Monday, February 21, 2011
TO ISAAC, THESE MAY BE FIGHTING WORDS: Humble Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins has set down his marker: "Yeah, we'll win 100 games," he said. "I really plan on going after, who is it, Seattle won [116 in 2001]. We'll get somewhere hopefully in that range, but that requires, after being lucky enough to stay healthy, having everybody doing their job on the mound, in the field and in the box." Indeed, former GM of both franchises Pat Gillick concurs with the optimism, saying, "This team is better, on paper. On paper."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
They better make sure their bats stay healthy. No one'll score on 'em but they gotta get the runs.
ReplyDeleteYep. We need good health all around, and something closer to career norms from Howard, Utley, Rollins and Victorino. We need Ibanez not to have a rapid decline. We need production out of RF, whether that's Dom Brown seizing the job, or just a solid platoon out of Brown and Ben Francisco. And we need good work from the back of the bullpen. On paper, we're as talented as any other 100+win team. But a whole lot has to go right.
ReplyDelete"<span>This is our year, I'm telling you. Best football season ever. I'm so in shape, I'm a rock. It's all about egg whites. If we can focus, keep discipline, and not have quite as many mysterious deaths, Sunnydale is gonna *rule!*"</span>
ReplyDeleteThe 2001 Mariners had Edgar Martinez at his absolute peak, John Olerud at roughly his peak, Ichiro Suzuki in his weirdly awesome rookie season, and Brett Boone at his likely steroid-induced peak. Two of them (Martinez and Boone) were legitimate offensive MVP candidates, and a third (Ichiro) turned out to be an actual MVP candidate (though less deserving than Martinez and Boone). The team had three of the best relievers in the AL (Sasaki (R), Rhodes (L), Nelson (R)). It had the best defensive outfield in the game (Cameron, probably MLB's defensive MVP; Ichiro, the best defensive RF in the game, and Winn, who had a weak arm but stellar range in LF), and the best defensive right side of the IF in the game (Olerud and Boone). It was the best defensive team in the AL by a mile, which explains how a rotation of four #2/#3 starters and a #4 starter could go 86-30. The team scored 300 more runs than it gave up. It was best in the AL in both runs scored and runs allowed. It didn't lose a three- or four-game series until late summer.
ReplyDeleteRollins can say whatever he wants. The lack of front-line starting pitchers was what doomed that team in the playoffs, but there has never been a team built for regular-season dominance like that one.
Far be it for me to criticize a Rollins preseason boast - he sure backed up his big talk in 2007 - but shouldn't he be more worried about whether he can hit over .250 for the first time since 2008?
ReplyDelete