Kuzul

Roy Halladay ranks among the best pitchers in the game today. He pitched a perfect game during the 2010 regular season and followed that with a no-hitter in the playoffs. But just how good is Halladay compared to some of the “recent” greats?

Following the 1969 season in which New York’s most beloved team, the New York Mets, pulled off one of the greatest surprises in sports history, Tom Seaver was considered baseball’s premier pitcher. He was even better than even the great Bob Gibson or the equally outstanding Juan Marichal.

Seaver was 25-7 with a 2.21 ERA in 1969. He joined the Mets 1967, won 16 games and was the Rookie of the Year. Seaver’s last season as a great pitcher was probably the strike-shortened season of 1981, when he was 14-2 with a 2.54 ERA.

The following represents a typical Seaver season from 1967-81:

W L ERA GS IP SO BB ERA+ WHIP
17 10 2.60 33 253 205 72 136 1.079

Roy Halladay became Roy Halladay when he returned from the minors in 2001. From 2001-10, Halladay has the following statistics:

W L ERA GS IP SO BB ERA+ WHIP
16 7 3.05 29 207 158 36 147 1.122

The numbers are extremely close. Seaver averaged one more win a season than Halladay, but he averaged three more losses.

Seaver has a big edge in ERA, but Halladay had to face teams with the designated hitter when he was in the American League. Halladay actually has a better ERA.

In 1967 and 1968, Seaver pitched off mounds that were 15 inches high, which was an advantage never enjoyed by Halladay.

Seaver started more games, worked more innings and struck out many more hitters than Halladay. There were fewer league strikeouts during Seaver’s career, which makes his edge even more impressive. Of course, National League pitchers had to hit against Seaver, which helped his strikeout totals.

Seaver walked almost twice as many in a typical season as did Halladay, but he worked more innings. Seaver allowed about 2.6 walks per nine innings, while Halladay allowed only 1.6 walks per nine innings.

Finally, Seaver’s 1.079 WHIP ranks among the lowest in history. For his entire career, the greatest pitcher in Mets’ history had a 1.21 WHIP, compared to Halladay’s 1.81.

Both were workhorses. The only reason Halladay has relatively few complete games is that games are turned over to closers today. If he pitched today, the same idiotic approach would be used with Seaver.

The statistics of each are so close that it is impossible to prove which pitcher was better. Both rank among the best of all time and possibly the best of his era.

I saw most of Seaver’s games until he was sent to Cincinnati. I have seen almost as many of Halladay’s games thanks to modern means of watching baseball.

It is a judgment call. The pick here is Seaver over Halladay.

Reference:

Baseball Reference

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So, who would you say is the Philadelphia Phillies team MVP?

By this, I am not asking Who is their best player? Rather, who can they least afford to lose for long stretches, if not the entire season?

Truth be told, I would rather be asking, “Will the Phillies win 100 or 105 games this year?” Or, “When they win their 11 postseason games, will they lose five games or fewer?”

These questions may, hopefully, still be asked down the road, but admittedly all the talk about second baseman Chase Utley’s patellar tendinitis and rookie rightfielder Domonic Brown’s hook of hamate injury has me wondering whose loss would impact the team most negatively.

While we’re on the subject, I liked H20 much better when it did not mean Hook of Hamate, and yes, I’d much rather talk about Hamels’ hook (and how frequently he throws it) than this new hook that I would prefer not to know anything about.

But let’s not get hooked on semantics here.

Which player could the Phils least afford to lose for an extended period of time?

I was going to do this in a slideshow format, but I’ve been fighting carpal tunnel syndrome from all the grueling typing I’ve done on my last few shows, so here is my list in a standard article format.

As one of the five most valuable members of my household, I can’t afford to be disabled.

Before reading my list, please note that I gave some consideration to who each player’s backup is.

So, without any more hemming and hawing, here is how I would rank the 10 Most Valuable Phillies in ascending order (of value) from 10 to one.

10) Roy Oswalt

Oswalt is considered a No. 3 or a No. 4 on this staff, but only on this incredible rotation.

He was absolutely brilliant with the Phils last season (7-1, 1.74 in 12 starts) and figures to have another strong season as a co-ace.

Then again, the squad has three other stud starters and a pretty good No. 5 as well.

9) Cole Hamels

Hamles rebounded in a big way last year, even if his won-loss record (12-11) did not do justice to how well he pitched.

Just like Oswalt, if it weren’t for the other three members of R2C2, his placement would be higher.

8) Shane Victorino

Shane is becoming a veteran, emotional leader for this team who contributes much needed speed and terrific Gold Glove play in center field.

If he thought more like a speed demon than a power hitter at the plate, he would be even more valuable.

7) Brad Lidge

We’ll never see him approach his amazing 2008 campaign, where everything worked out perfectly, but Lidge pitched quite well the last couple months of 2010.

And as well as Ryan Madson (just missed my list) has pitched as a setup man, Lidge is still the man for the ninth.

6) Jimmy Rollins

A few years ago, it would have been silly to have rated J-Roll this far down the list. After all, he won the National league MVP in 2007.

But Rollins, whether due to age, injuries or a combination of both factors, has not been that same compelling offensive player since. Still, his glove and his effervescent leadership are huge for this team, and when he does hit, the team wins a great majority of the time.

5) Cliff Lee

Lee, despite missing some turns with injuries, was second in all of baseball (to new teammate Roy Halladay) in complete games last year.

Given his postseason success, he merits a higher place on this list than either Oswalt or Hamels. Given the presence of the other three aces, it’s hard to rank him any higher.

4) Roy Halladay

If Halladay entered 2010 as the unofficial “best pitcher in baseball,” then last season only cemented this status in most pundits’ eyes.

Perhaps winning the Cy Young unanimously in your first year in a new league and throwing a no-no in your postseason debut will do that.

Funny how that works.

3) Carlos Ruiz

I actually thought of placing “Chooch” at No. 1.

My reasoning? I’m aware that he still has not won a Gold Glove or been voted onto the All-Star team, but the man plays the most important defensive position of the starting eight and does so brilliantly.

He calls a great game, throws runners out when given the opportunity, and he has developed into arguably the best No. 8 hitter in the league.

What other No. 8 hitter batted .302 with an OBP of .400 and a .293 batting average with runners in scoring position?

2) Ryan Howard

Yes, he still has a hole or two in his swing, and he still makes Phils fans nervous whenever he has to throw the ball to second base. I also realize that he had a down year—by his very high standards—in 2010.

But what other Phillie can give you his consistent production and inspire as much fear in opposing managers and pitchers?

That was a rhetorical question.

1) Chase Utley

The Phillies weathered the regular season storm pretty well last year when both Rollins and Utley lost significant amounts of games due to injuries.

Phillies Nation, obviously, hopes that the team—to say nothing of most pleasant surprise Wilson Valdez—is not put to such a test in 2011.

If you’re reading this column, I don’t have to sell you on Utley’s worth. The perennial All-Star is their only logical candidate for the vital No. 3 spot in the lineup, plays terrific (if slightly underrated) defense and spurs his team with his all-out, hardnosed play.

While the Phillies would not relish any of these 10 players (and others, including Ryan Madson, Rual Ibanez and Placido Polanco) missing significant playing time, the thought of losing Utley creates even more apprehension.

For more information on Matt Goldberg’s new books, other writings and public appearances, please e-mail: matt@tipofthegoldberg.com or contact him via his Bleacher Report homepage.

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We’re well into spring training, and some story lines with the Philadelphia Phillies have emerged. 

Ben Francisco has been stellar and is ready to replace Jayson Werth in right.  We may even see Francisco in Werth’s 5-hole slot by season’s end.

Domonic Brown broke his hand at the wrong time.  He’s been in free fall in camp, and he needed as much spring training as possible.  He needs to regain his confidence.

Chase Utley’s knee has raised some concerns.

Other than that, everything’s just dandy.

Begin Slideshow

Looking at the Philadelphia Phillies starting rotation is something everyone will be doing all season. Why?

Because they could be the best starting rotation ever assembled.

What makes one say that?

Well let’s take a look at each one.

Roy Halladay: good old No. 34 happens to be turning 34 years old this May, yet is still ranked as the No. 1 starting pitcher in all Major League Baseball.

And he is—the 2010 Cy Young Award in his cabinet proves it. The five consecutive seasons of 220-plus innings proves it. The 19 career shutouts and 58 career complete games prove it. At 34 years old by seasons end, this year could be Doc’s greatest masterpiece. My prediction: 24-6, 1.85 ERA, 250-plus innings pitched,

Cliff Lee: No. 33, ironically turning 33 years old this season in August. Ranked the No. 5 best starting pitcher in all baseball. Ninety-five—what’s that mean? That’s how many walks Lee has surrendered since the beginning of the 2008 season. That’s an average of just under 32 walks a season. Has a 7-2 cumulative postseason record with a 2.13 ERA. My prediction: 21-8, 2.40 ERA, 220-plus innings pitched.

Roy Oswalt: No. 44 turns 34 years old this August. Two 20-win campaigns under his belt and a 5-1 cumulative record in the playoffs with a 3.39 lifetime playoff ERA. Oswalt still seems to have plenty left in the tank, and he could have one of his finest seasons this year although I doubt he will duplicate his 20-win campaigns. He is perfect to pitch after Halladay and Lee. My prediction: 18-12, 2.85 ERA, 220-plus innings pitched.

Cole Hamels: No. 35 turns 28 this December. This is the guy in the rotation to watch. The youngest of the bunch, entering his sixth season, Hamels has really learned to pitch. He’s also learned how to go about his business from watching Halladay last year and Lee in 2009.

I pity teams facing these four in row in a four-game set. My prediction: Hamels will be the best left-hander in baseball this season, going 22-5 with a 2.30 ERA, and 220-plus innings pitched.

Joe Blanton: No. 36 will be 31 years old this December. Blanton has yet to record 200 innings a season while in a Philadelphia uniform. He’s done it twice in his career with Oakland and look for him to do it this season. Pitching behind the four aces make predicting what type of season he will have the most difficult.

His over-the-top arm angle and pitching style make him the perfect contrast to hitters from each of the four aces. The biggest obstacle for Blanton will be the first inning. Once through that, if he’s got a lead he’s likely to hold it. My prediction: 15-10, 4.10 Era, 200-plus innings pitched.

Yup, if you kept count, that’s 100 wins and 41 losses I’m predicting for this starting rotation alone. I don’t believe the bullpen will have too many decisions to figure in this year—precisely 21 if my predictions come true. Say the bullpen goes 10-11 this season, that would give the Phillies a 110-win season.

The offense will heavily affect this. It doesn’t matter how good the starting pitching is; if you don’t score a run you can’t win the game. The Phillies should have no problem with that. But that’s another story.

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Prior to the start of the 2009 season, the Yankees made a huge splash in free-agency by landing CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett. They won 103 games and the World Series. Looking back, the Sabathia signing sent shock waves, but nothing like the Cliff Lee spectacle this past offseason.

The Phillies won a MLB high 97 games a year ago, and it was a down year. Players were falling down like flies, and many fans were doubting if the team could even make the postseason. During the summer, the Braves held a large lead in the NL East.

Now with the signing of Lee, the fans are dreaming big and rightfully so. In the end, the Phillies may be the World Series Champions on paper, but now they have to go out and earn it.

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Begin Slideshow

I was always under the impression that the starting pitcher on Opening Day was the best pitcher on the staff. That was until last season, when Dusty Baker gave the ball to Aaron Harang for a record-tying fifth consecutive season.

That is a stiff indictment against a pitching staff. Something must be wrong for a man to start game one in back-to-back seasons while winning only six games the previous year.

Bronson Arroyo should have started in the opener last season, but watched as the Reds were routed by the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-6.  Arroyo is so mellow and type-B, that it was not a big deal to him.

This season, Baker announced (seemingly from day one of spring training) that his opener would be Edinson Volquez. Yes, that Volquez. The Tommy John surgery undergoing, steroid-taking, flat-billed hat-wearing, Josh Hamilton-traded-for, Dominican Republic-born enigma, with back-to-back four-win seasons.

So, how does he rate the big honor? I suppose he is still basking in the glory of his freshman year with the Reds when he made the All-Star team and was 17-6.

Arroyo has been one of the best work-horses in MLB since coming to Cincinnati in a trade for Willy Mo Pena in 2006.

Since then, he has pitched more innings than anyone in the National League, and is fourth overall. The only ones with more innings are Roy Halladay, CC Sabathia and Dan Haren. Nobody else has started more games than he has during that period.

I don’t recall him missing any starts since joining the Reds.

In 2010, he finished fourth in the NL in wins with 17. It is hard to see how anyone could find Volquez deserving of an Opening Day shot over Arroyo.

The last time he was seen in live baseball, he was being rocked by the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 1 of the first round of the NL playoffs. In less than two innings, he faced 11 batters and left the game with an ERA over 21, and of course was tagged with the loss.

Why didn’t Baker start southpaw Travis Wood that game? He nearly threw a perfect game at those same Phillies last year.

There is nothing magical about starting on Opening Day. But it should at least be an honorarium for work done the previous season.

Again, Arroyo let it roll off like water on a duck’s back. He said it was fine with him as he enjoys watching the opening game from the dugout.

Baker’s justification for the nod to Volquez is, “You want to go hard, soft, hard. You want to break up Cueto and Volquez so they don’t go out and out-radar gun each other.”

Nothing wrong with that logic, but what is wrong with soft, hard, soft, hard?

A rotation of Arroyo, Volquez, Leake, Cueto and Wood could accomplish the same mission. It seems weird seeing the words “radar gun” without Aroldis Chapman’s name mentioned.

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Spring training has just begun and not only Phillies fans, but all baseball fans can’t wait for the season to start.

Entering this year on of the biggest headlines and most talked about topics in all of sports has been the Phillies’ Fab Four, Big Four, R2C2…you get the point here.

The Phillies starting rotation is clearly the best in baseball. Some people believe they will go down as one of the greatest of all time—Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt.

I’m pretty confident with that lineup.

In fact, all of these for guys are aces on almost any team in the league with the exception of the Yankees, Mariners, Cardinals and Red Sox, to name most.

These four pitchers all had ERAs under 3.18. Also, don’t under estimate Hamels’ and Oswalt’s records (Oswalt was .500 and Hamels was a game over). They received zero run support throughout the season when they were pitching as good as anyone in the league.

However, after all of this hype on them, let’s not forget about Joe Blanton. With all of the talk around the big four, Blanton may just have a silent, but very good season this year. As a fifth starter behind the guys mentioned earlier, he will be pretty comfortable.

But not the entire offseason had been talk about the starting pitching staff. There were also some cons.

The biggest issue entering this season was the bullpen. Now, I’m not one who criticizes the pen because it isn’t as bad as fans make it out to be.

Last season, the Phillies bullpen logged a league low in innings pitched with 421. That number will only decrease with the addition of Cliff Lee.

This stud rotation will limit the time for some of the subpar relief pitchers that the Phillies have.

This also means that they consistently will be able to use the same relievers.

For example, the starting pitchers will most likely go deep into every game. Therefore, we won’t have someone like Jose Contreras being called out everyday in the sixth or seventh inning. We will be able save him for the postseason and keep his starts spread out.

Now, I’m not saying the bullpen will receive zero action, but they will have a smaller role than usual which is somewhat of a good thing considering some of the problems.

But let’s hold the phone for second. What do I really mean by “probelms?”

Well, they aren’t particularly problems, but instead it’s just the talent within the bullpen. Aside from Ryan Madson, Contreras (call him old, but he is still nasty) and Brad Lidge, no one else has great talent.

Chad Durbin intrigues me. I still don’t know if I love or hate him. He’s nothing great, but then again he’s not bad. There are times where he comes through and times where he doesn’t. He’s pretty on and off (don’t get me started on Danys Baez). [Ed. note: Durbin has reportedly signed with the Indians.]

But on a side note real quick on Brad Lidge, I think he will definitely rebound this season. He just needs to make better decision on the types of pitches he throws.

Basically, if the Phillies’ hitting comes around and the starting rotation remains healthy, the bullpen will have a limited role and Phillies fans should have high hopes for this upcoming season.

But let’s just remember we play the games for a reason. I, for one, am a huge Phillies fan and believe that they have the best team on paper in the league, but the best team on paper doesn’t always win.

Nevertheless, anything less than a World Series victory should be considered a failure for the Phillies at this point.

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As everyone knows Albert Pujols did not sign a contract extension with the Saint Louis Cardinals by the deadline that was put in place by Pujols.  As a result Pujols will become a free agent after the 2011 Major League Baseball season.  At the Winter Meetings, Pujols will sign the largest contract in the history of baseball, 10 years for $300 million, with the Chicago Cubs.  Immediately afterwards the world will start its decline into the apocalypse.
 
At his press conference Pujols will sacrifice a live billy goat on stage at Wrigley Field.  He will drink its blood and exclaim, “I have ended the Billy Goat Curse.  There is only room for one GOAT in Chicago, and it is I Albert Pujols who is the Greatest Of All Time!”  Michael Jordan will instantly take this as a slight to his Chicago GOAT status and attempt a baseball comeback with the Chicago White Sox.  He goes 0-23 in Spring Training and concedes that Pujols is indeed the GOAT in Chicago and ends his comeback bid.
 
On Opening Day Pujols hits three home runs, two of which land on Waveland Avenue.  The “W” flag is flown above Wrigley Field, and it remains there for the rest of the season.
 
At the All Star break the Cubs will have a perfect record, Pujols will be leading the Triple Crown race with a .666 batting average, 45 home runs, and 153 RBI.  The National League will lose the All Star game because manager Charlie Manuel removed Pujols so that Ryan Howard could get into the game at first base.  Unsettled by even an exhibition game loss Pujols decrees that all black cats in the state of Illinois be euthanized so that none of them can cross his path.  He said the late great Ron Santo would have wanted it that way.  The citizens of Illinois follow his edict since they are still scared of him after watching him butcher and devour an entire live billy goat on stage just a few months earlier.
 
Shortly after clinching the division (in early August), Pujols tracks down Steve Bartman from the witness protection agency location he is hiding out at on one of his off days.  He has a press conference to announce that he has forgiven Bartman and that if someone has an issue with Bartman, they have an issue with him.  Bartman is immediately given a key to the city and is a regular at Cubs games again.
 
The Cubs finish the season 162-0.  Pujols breaks every major single season hitting record in the history of baseball.  He then informs Ernie Banks that he will be now known as Mr. Cub, and that Banks needs to find a new nickname.  Banks dies less then a week later from a broken heart.  Pujols delivers the eulogy at Banks funeral and lets everyone know that Banks was the second greatest Cub of all time after himself.
 
The Cubs sweep the Marlins in the Division Series.  Afterwards Pujols tells everyone, “I took my talents to South Beach, and it will never be the same.”  The Miami Heat immediately trade LeBron James to open up a spot on the roster for their new starting small forward, Albert Pujols.
 
In the NLCS the Cubs sweep the Phillies despite Pujols being intentionally walked in every at bat of the series.  Charlie Manuel defended the move by saying he knew Pujols wanted revenge from the All Star game and feared he would hit a home run in every at bat.  Even more amazingly the Phillies lose every game despite Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee both throwing no-hitters in the first two games of the series.
 
The Cubs then go on to embarrass the Red Sox in the World Series.  Pujols not only wins the World Series MVP, but also becomes the first player to hit a ball through the Green Monster.
 
The Cubs had gone 104 straight years without winning the World Series.  Not a single Cubs fan was alive the last time they won it all.  The streak had reached such a depressing level that even Cleveland sports fans felt sorry for Cubs fans.  Little did we all know that the Cubs were not meant to win another World Series and that by doing so they triggered the end of the world. 
 
Natural disasters started to occur at an alarming rate.  Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and hurricanes became commonplace.  A quarter of the world’s population was wiped out by the time the Cubs held their victory parade.  Archaeologists soon discovered that the Mayan prediction that the world would end on 12/21/2012 had some validity after the words “Pujols” and “Cubs” were decoded on a newly discovered artifact.
 
On the fateful day of 12/21/2012 an asteroid the size of Alaska hit the earth.  Everything was destroyed with the exception of cockroaches, Twinkies, and Albert Pujols.  Cardinals fans would now get their wish.  Albert Pujols would have to go screw himself for the rest of eternity.
 
DISCLAIMER:  This article does not endorse the sacrificing of live billy goats, the euthanization of black cats, and I hope Mr. Cub Ernie Banks lives to be older then Methuselah.

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Earlier today, the baseball world got some difficult news to swallow when the St. Louis Cardinals’ ace Adam Wainwright was experiencing some serious pain in his right throwing arm, and that more than likely, the 29 year old will undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his 2011 season before it begins. The subject of numerous highlight reels thanks to that nasty curveball, not being able to watch Wainwright throw is a loss to baseball fans everywhere—not just those in St. Louis.

His injury sets the stage for another interesting debate. With the runner up shelved, can anyone stop the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner from re-capturing his title?

Without Wainwright, there is a significant gap between Halladay and the rest of the league. The Cardinals’ ace finished second in last season’s voting, capturing all but four of the second place votes after Halladay took home the award unanimously.

To sum last season up in a nut shell—Halladay was so good that it wasn’t even close, and now with the only other 20 game winner of last season out for the year, we wonder if the Philadelphia Phillies’ ace can cruise to the honor yet again as the anchor of a rotation that resembled an All-Star team.

Halladay, who finished with more than 100 total points in the overall voting than any player, was looking down from a different plateau last season. The rest of the field was a little closer. Wainwright finished with 122 total points, followed by Colorado Rockies’ break-out ace Ubaldo Jimenez (90), Atlanta Braves’ ace Tim Hudson (39), Florida Marlins’ ace Josh Johnson (34) and Halladay’s fellow teammate, Roy Oswalt (nine).

We can only wonder what the rest of the voting would have looked like without Wainwright last season, who posted a record of 20-11 with an ERA of 2.42 with the Cardinals. The wealth of second place votes would have been spread around, but would any other pitcher even come close to Halladay? All we can do now is question each of Halladay’s top threats as Wainwright looks on from the dugout.

For most of the first half of the season, Ubaldo Jimenez seemed like a lock to win the National League Cy Young. Before the All-Star break, he posted an incredible record of 15-1 with an ERA of just 2.20 for the Rockies. We baseball fans believed he would cruise to 20 wins without a problem, but not so fast. He struggled after the All-Star break, posting a record of 4-7 with an ERA of 3.80.

Though I’m in favor of voters showing a bit of leniency for Rockies’ pitchers, who are often thrown under the proverbial bus in Colorado thanks to Coors’ Field, until he shows he can be consistent over the course of an entire season, is he a threat to Halladay’s crown?

As voters begin to take a more SABRmetric approach to the voting process, it’s very unlikely that Tim Hudson captures the award this season either. On the surface, Hudson’s record of 17-9 and ERA of 2.83 seem to place him among baseball’s elite pitchers.

Taking a deeper look, we wonder if he was even deserving of his fourth place finish in 2010. He struck out just 5.47 batters per nine innings while featuring a BABIP of .249—showing that he was incredibly lucky last season. His Fielding Independent Pitching, which is a stat designed to show the overall effectiveness of a pitcher in a form similar to ERA, of 4.09 was more akin to that of a bottom of the rotation arm than the ace he is built up to be. Hudson will be lucky to replicate his 2010 season, let alone win the Cy Young.

What about Halladay’s teammates? Can any of them perform well enough to steal some of their ace’s votes and capture the Cy Young Award? Cliff Lee, who won the award in 2008 in the American League with the Cleveland Indians, has an excellent chance of winning the award. Like Halladay last season, he is transitioning to the National League for his first full season, and following a year where he handled the American League opposition—a feat in and of itself—could benefit greatly from having to face the pitcher as opposed to that pesky DH.

Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels are certainly no slouches either. Oswalt finished sixth in the voting last season while leading the National League in WHIP. He posted a record of 7-1 with the Phillies after coming over from Houston and has fans excited to see what he can do over the course of a full season.

Hamels, on the other hand, has been getting a ton of attention thanks to his newly developed cut fastball. According to pitching coach Rich Dubee, Hamels is in the best shape of his career and now boasts a cutter that is one of best in baseball. In fact, Hamels has improved to the point where FOXsports’ Ken Rosenthal has chosen him as his 2011 NL Cy Young prediction.

While we are losing Wainwright for a season, we must also remember that we are gaining Zack Greinke in his first year in the National League. Greinke, who won the American League Cy Young in 2009 with the Kansas City Royals, was acquired by the Milwaukee Brewers this offseason, as they threw all of their eggs in one basket hoping for a World Series run. Though he had a bit of a down year in 2010 by his standards, he could easily challenge any pitcher in the game for the Cy Young.

If I had to have my pick at who would be the most likely to challenge Halladay, however, I’d go with either Tim Lincecum or Josh Johnson.

Lincecum, who is just turning 27 this season, already has two NL Cy Youngs under his belt, though they were both captured with Halladay in the American League. Lincecum battled a few injuries last season, and perhaps the league became a bit more familiar with him, but that shouldn’t be a problem moving forward. As long as he brings his control back to earth, he should contend for a Cy Young, especially pitching in a large ballpark. The only worry is that making last season’s historic run will do to him what it did to Hamels in 2008. The price for a World Series ring won by young arms are tired arms the following season.

Josh Johnson, on the other hand, has to be one of the most overlooked players in all of baseball. Though he has his injury concerns, the guy’s “stuff” is just absolutely filthy. Before missing the final month of last season, he posted a record of 11-6 with an ERA of 2.30. He seemed to finally develop into one of the game’s truly “elite” arms, and as long as he remains with the Florida Marlins, who are a dark horse pick around baseball and stays healthy, he could win 20 games and challenge any pitcher in baseball—not just Halladay’s Cy Young.

Of course, there’s the chance that Halladay removes himself from the process as well. As Wainwright’s circumstance shows, injuries can pop up at any time and completely hamper a player. There’s no predicting them and there’s nothing we can do to stop them. So while Halladay is likely to continue to blast through the National League, it’s entirely possible that something terribly wrong can happen. In fact, anything can happen.

With Wainwright out of the picture, is there really any pitcher better than Roy Halladay?

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Earlier this week it was reported that Cliff Lee, one of four Phillies aces, suffered a mild side strain. Lee stated that he was behind “5-10 pitches.”

In other words, he didn’t miss much time.

Sure, this may sound like news that doesn’t really matter, but this shouldn’t be brushed away. This is a very serious matter that the Phillies need to look into.

Lee should be monitored and checked frequently at practices. It may be a side strain now, but the next thing you know, he pulls his ACL or needs Tommy John Surgery. Lee was shut down for only a week, but this could turn into being shut down for multiple months.

The fact of the matter is that Lee is 32, and will be 33 at the end of the season. By these days’ standards, he might as well be 52.

It’s not just Lee, either.

Now that Shane Victorino is 30, that means the whole starting lineup is in their 30s. The majority of the starting lineup is in their lower 30s. That is a starting lineup that is just too old to be competing.

Last season was an example.

The 2010 campaign for the Phillies was plagued with injuries. Most of the injuries were not age-related, but they are still in trouble.

This injury could be an omen to the 2011 season for the Phillies. The management and coaching need to act soon. There should be a mandatory medical evaluation that will take place after ever practice, warm-ups and games. Lee and the Phillies are in some deep trouble.

It was being mentioned since the end of last season. The Phillies are old. Plain and simple. The average age will be about 32 for the Phillies regulars. Everyone knows that once a baseball player hits around 32-35, he’s done. Players are only good in their twenties these days, and many people have mentioned this lately.

The aged Phillies could possibly even miss the playoffs, since they are just way too old.

I believe many people will agree with me.

The Phillies won the World Series an entire three years ago. Most of the Phils were still in their twenties and youthful.

In 2011, they are aged and depleted, and aren’t in any spot to compete. Lee’s injury may have been small, but it’s a warning. Philadelphia needs to play it safe and smart if it wants to be contenders, and that’s just this year. The Phillies are taking a risk by going into the season at such a high age. This could be the last season that they make the playoffs.

Realistically, the NL East will be overtaken by a youthful, more skilled team, such as the Braves or the Mets. If they don’t get some youth, the Phillies dynasty could end.

So go ahead and take this injury as nothing, but the truth is the Phillies are old, and this is a preview of the season. It’s a small sample of what the lineup of dinosaurs that is the Phillies is in for.

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