Philadelphia Phillies Fan Blog

Oswalt Arrives

The Phillies have acquired Roy Oswalt from the Houston Astros for J.A. Happ and a few prospects. The move came just a few days before the MLB trade deadline. Oswalt, 32, decided to waive his no-trade clause to allow the deal to go through. Seeing as how Happ is a young arm, and Oswalt’s best days are behind him, this is clearly a win-now move.

However, many question why the Phillies got rid of Cliff Lee. At the time, they got some prospects for him. However, those prospects are not at the level of what they gave up for Oswalt. So essentially, they downgraded in prospects, as well as pitching. Regardless, this was a pretty necessary move and it really moves the Phillies back into Wild Card contention. It was a good move now, but the Phillies may regret not keeping Lee.

July 30, 2010 Posted by David | Phillies Stuff | | No Comments Yet

Momentum

The Philadelphia Phillies need a reason to be optimistic. They have optimism now, after completing a four-game sweep of the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds had a team record of 49-37 going into the series as division leaders. After these four wins, the Phillies have a record of 47-40, still finding themselves 4.5 games out of first place in the National League East. While the Phillies won four games straight, there is still some room for panic.

For the most part, the pitching can be credited with why the Phillies took this series. The last two victorious were both 1-0 wins. So while the pitching heavily stepped up, the batting still looked pretty miserable. And with Utley and Polanco still on the disabled list, that will not get any better.

With the trade deadline approaching, the Phillies need to make a move. There is no point in acquiring a pitcher if the team cannot score runs. Adding a bat to the lineup should be a higher priority on Ruben Amaro’s list.

July 12, 2010 Posted by David | Phillies Stuff | | No Comments Yet