In 2019, even with Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, Jean Segura, Jay Bruce and Corey Dickerson, the Philadelphia Phillies STILL could not get a record above .500
One year later, all but Dickerson are still here, and Didi Gregorius, Zack Wheeler and Josh Harrison have been added to the fold. And the trick here, I imagine, would be to actually have a winning record with all of this.
Here's the litmus for all of this- J.T. Realmuto has one more year guaranteed on this contract before he becomes a free agent. He had a whole saga of arbitration battles, and while he obviously wants to stay in Philly, the outcome of that soured things a bit. After all, J.T. Realmuto might be the best catcher in baseball right now (though the return of Salvador Perez may challenge this distinction), and if the Phillies aren't agreeing with him, then there's no point. So if J.T. Realmuto leaves after this season, then everything will have been for nothing.
But we're far from calling this season a wash. Realmuto, Harper, Logan Forsythe and Vince Velasquez all look sharp. The new guys are taking their time, but I'm not worried. Guys like Alec Bohm, Mickey Moniak and Nick Maton are all looking good, despite being some time away from major league readiness.
And the presence of Joe Girardi certainly calms me down, as he won't make any boneheaded decisions in the name of sabermetrics like Kapler did. He knows Didi, he's easy to get along with, and he knows how to get to October. With enough really good guys on this team, the Phillies could definitely make something happen in 2020. And maybe, just maybe, they'll do well enough to re-sign Realmuto, because I can't risk anybody else getting him.
Coming Tomorrow- After a breakout year and a batting title, he's back to prove his team is FINALLY ready to compete.
No comments:
Post a Comment