Laminated Hall Pass?

As the Phillies are closing in on the end of Spring Training, there are questions about the Phillies upcoming season and the future of Chase Utley. The questions about the Phillies and most of those about Chase Utley have been asked for the past several weeks, so I’m not going to ask the same questions we’ve already been hearing. The question I have about Utley is: does he get a free pass from Phillies fans? And if so, Why?

I’m sure as Phillies fans we’ve been notoriously tough on athletes in Philadelphia. Everyone from Mike Schmidt to Eric Lindros to Donovan McNabb have been booed by the Philadelphia faithful. Despite making key post season errors Chase Utley seems to get a free pass by the fans. Is it because he plays so hard and was a key contributor to the 2008 World Series Championship, or his famous speech after the parade that has given him a pardon?

I’m not saying that Utley deserves to be booed, or that he deserves to get by with a free pass, but the fact of the matter is, is that Utley has done his fair share to get under the skin of Phillies fans, and yet he always seems to fly under the harshest critic’s radar. Lately, Utley has been a lot like Andy Reid by holding press conferences and not giving any type of information that we, as fans, feel we’re entitled to.

All through Spring Training, the Phillies and Utley were telling us he’d be ready for opening day. It wasn’t until Jimmy Rollins mentioned to Jason Stark of ESPN that he doesn’t see how Utley could play in his condition with the pain he’s going through that that assumption was questioned. Suddenly, Utley went to see a specialist and then we were told he’d be doubtful for April 5. Now, there’s all sorts of secrecy about what’s really happening. One day I’m hearing he has no cartilage in either of his knees, and today I’m hearing one knee is 100%, and the other is only missing some cartilage.

Are the Phillies lying to us? The Phillies really have nothing to gain by lying; however they seem to be trying to keep this whole thing a secret. Last week, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. was on the Mike Missanelli show and when asked about Utley he said “I’ll let Chase answer those questions.” Yesterday when Utley spoke he didn’t give much information other than to say that he won’t be ready and that he’s going to take his time.

Is Chase Utley lying to the Phillies? Or Did Utley mislead the Phillies during the offseason on his condition? Or did the injury really occur after he started fielding at Spring Training? I’m sure if the Phillies knew of Utley’s condition they wouldn’t have traded Wilson Valdez, and be left having to rely on Freddy Galvis at second-base. Amaro even admitted in the same interview with Missanelli that it was a mistake trading Valdez and when asked if he would make that trade again saying “absolutely not” or something to that sort.

Is the Phillies medical staff just complacent? Let’s face it. Ryan Howard’s injury happened because at the end of last year they didn’t treat the tendinitis in his ankle which directly led to his Achilles injury. I know it was the post-season, but having a player who already has limited mobility out there with one bad food he’s not offering much to help the team. He did, however, deliver a key home-run in Game 1.

Back to Utley. Why does it seem like he’s always getting a free pass? Jimmy Rollins has been a vocal leader on and off the field, and has always said what’s on his mind. He notoriously called Phillies fans front runners in 2008 and heard it from the fans. Howard has been booed at times from Phils fans just for his knack of striking out often even though he habitually hits 40 home-runs and has over 100 RBI’s. Utley’s stats have been declining since the beginning of 2009 season, and we’re all well aware of Utley’s post season throwing errors in back to back games in 2009.

Last season, Marcus Hayes of the Philadelphia Daily News said that Utley gets a free pass because he is white, and Rollins and Howard, both former MVP’s don’t have the same luxury as Utley because they’re black. I’m not saying it’s true, but it’s a very valid point that they’re both former MVP’s and both receive traditional Philadelphia treatment. While it’s a valid point, I truly believe its bullshit because Cole Hamels was the biggest reason for the 2008 Championship, and he received worse than Rollins and Howard less than a year after winning NLCS MVP, and World Series MVP. Maybe we expect more from players we know can perform at that higher level.

Chase Utley has played hard since coming to Philadelphia. He’s made great plays with his glove during the 2008 run, and made stupid errors. He also famously proclaimed “World Fucking Champions” during the Phillies World Series celebration. It’s something that a blue collar city like Philadelphia can respect from a blue collar guy like Utley. Maybe we feel Utley has earned our respect, and instead we let out our frustrations on Rollins and Howard who are less consistent than Utley at times, and sometimes have that “I don’t care attitude.”

Whatever the reason, I just want the Phillies to go back to being the Phillies we expect to win with Utley and Howard filling in the three and four spots respectively in the lineup. With those two at 100% and a stronger bench and still with this pitching staff the Phillies window of opportunity is still open, and I’m not quite ready for it to close yet.

Eugene

The SIX Horseman?

Once again the call to the pen came telling me my services were needed for Kornhole’s Alley because Korhan wasn’t available. As I began to warm up and practiced typing ASDF and JKL; repeatedly like the nerd I am I had no idea what to write about. In fact, as I type this sentence I still have no idea. Hmmm????

I’m sure by now we all know about the struggles of Cole Hamels on Friday night. He didn’t have the velocity he normally has. I don’t know about you but I was starting to get worried. Hamels is third in the National League in innings pitched this season with 172 innings pitched. Ahead of him in the NL is Roy Halladay and Clayton Kershaw at 175.2 and then its Cole and Cliff Lee with 172. The following day the Phillies said that Hamels has dead arm. There are even rumors that Halladay is fighting dead arm himself.

I think the Phillies need to go to a six man rotation down the stretch and let their work horses get the extra days rest here and there. Sure it would be great for the Phillies to match the 101 wins they had in 1976 and 1977. However, I think it would be better for the Phillies to win the World Series like they did in 1980 and 2008. However let’s not dismiss either of those and I’ll explain why.

Every Phillies starter is has an ERA of under 4 except for Joe Blanton. That’s right the Phillies have six starters with an ERA under 4. Obviously the big four in Halladay, Lee, Hamels and Oswalt. Vance Worley and even Kyle Kendrick is holding his own as well. That’s right I said KYLE KENDRICK. I’m not saying Kendrick should be used as a starter in the post season, but I think it’s fair to say that Kendrick is picking up some good habits from the aces. They’ve helped him pitch well this season, and now it’s his turn to help them. He should be used as the sixth starter for a while to allow for Hamels, Halladay and Lee go into the post season more rested and more importantly more effective.

Many baseball fans understand late in the season that pitchers experience dead arm. Last season Halladay and Oswalt were both dealing with it and turned in pretty successful runs late in the season without the extra days rest. So by using Kendrick he could pick up some innings and the starters could pick up some rest. The rosters can be expanded in September and they’ll have the extra bodies in the bull pen to pick up some of the innings later in the game.

PART II

 This is where I’m going to get our readers involved. To those who remember the 1980 season I want to get your take in this version of the Phillies. Since I wasn’t around in 1980 because I wasn’t born, I want your opinion. Does this season feel more magical then the 1980 season? Is there something about this team that makes you believe this team is better than the 1980 World Championship team?

Kornhole's Alley: Eagles vs Fightins edition

KORNHOLE’S ALLEY

Hello everyone and thanks once again for coming hard into my Kornhole. I have pretty much busy as hell this week working on another project so I asked Eugene to step in and do my dirty work inside the Kornhole. So, without further adieu.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES: PHILADELPHIA’S TEAM

This is Eugene again. I’m the guest columnist for Kornhole’s Alley this week. I was sitting around yesterday watching the Phils unravel against the Met’s when Korhan asked me if I’d be interested in doing it, because he had a 5pm liason with his favorite hooker on the Ave. I know he waited forever for this meeting with Bruce so I decided to help him out. Anyway down to business.

When I was a kid, I believe the Eagles were Philadelphia’s team. Now the Phillies are Philadelphia’s team. This isn’t to say people weren’t Phillies fan before or aren’t Eagles fans now. I’m saying the passion level is what has changed. It would be easy to say that the Phillies 2008 World Series title is the reason and that is probably the major reason it changed, but I believe it started when the teams moved into their new stadiums, or quite possibly their move out of the Vet could be what started the pendulum swinging the other direction.

I remember when I was a kid and during the fall on Sundays everyone would wear their Eagles Jersey, Jackets, hats or hoodies. I would go outside and there would be barely any noise unless it was coming from the bar when the Eagles did something good or bad. Even today most people wear their Eagles gear on game day. The only difference between now and then is that the other six days of the week everyone is wearing their Phillies gear. Back then the only time most people wore their Phillies gear was when they would go to the Vet.

Why did this start to happen? Both teams were moving into two beautiful state of the art stadiums to move out of the concrete jungle that was the Vet. The Eagles were one of the top teams in the NFL and had just been in their second consecutive Conference Championship, and the Phillies were beginning their climb to be a capable Major League Team. Both teams moving out of the Vet and into new stadiums and the future was looking bright for both teams.

When Veteran’s Stadium closed its doors for the final time on September 28, 2003 the Eagles were already out of the stadium for eight-months, and had already opened Lincoln Financial Field. The Vet held lots of memories for both Phillies and Eagles fans. The difference was that the Vet earned it’s stripes during Eagles games. Eagles fans took pride in the fact that the stadium was a tough place for visitors whether they were on the field or in the stands they displayed passion and even criminal behavior all for the name of their team. This isn’t to say that Phillies fans didn’t make some noise because we all know rowdiness happened during baseball season as well.

When the Vet was all sealed off and being dismantled the Eagles wanted nothing to do with the stadium. Whether it was because at the time their season was in full swing or they just wanted to distance themselves from unwanted memories of road flares, snowballs and rowdiness. The Phillies did all the leg work in auctioning off the seats and everything else that was auctioned off. They did more to recognize the Vets demise than the Eagles did, and some Philadelphia fans took note of this. I don’t believe that this is what swung the pendulum, but I believe it put the Phillies in the good graces of the fans.

So now we’re several seasons into the new stadium era and here’s what the teams have done. The Phillies have developed players and still had a few more key pieces coming up in the minor leagues and really didn’t do anything to get the fans behind them except for be patient and wait for the winning to begin. Eventually they would fire Larry Bowa and hire Charlie Manuel to give the team guidance. The Eagles are still using the same playbook from Andy Reid’s first season, but they have a catchy slogan. ONE…ONE CITY…ONE TEAM….ONE DREAM. ONE GOOD IDEA TO SELL MORE MERCHANDISE. On the bright side they made it to the Super Bowl, where they eventually lost, on their fourth trip to the NFC Finals. So that’s what they did after the stadiums opened.

Slowly fans took notice of the Phillies slowly emerging from behind the shadow of the bigger team from the bigger league with the bigger pay roll. The Phillies players all seemed to enter their prime and the emergence of players like Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins and Cole Hamels and the sting of defeat made the Phillies team not want to repeat their playoff performance of 2007, and go on to win the World Series.

After the Phillies won the World Series, it seems as if both the Phillies and Eagles have developed their own separate fan bases. I know many people who didn’t like the Eagles for years, and people who just despise baseball so much they don’t care about the Phillies. I’ve gone to message boards where I’ve seen Phillies fans trash talking Eagles fans. When did this become a White Sox and Cubs type of rivalry? Is it Eagles fans bitterness to no longer being the top team in town? Or is it Phillies fans in their Philadelphia best attitude talking trash for surpassing the Eagles.

Eagles games still sell out and fans still wear their Sunday’s best during football season to show their support of the Eagles, but the rest of the week people are about the Phillies even when it’s not baseball season. A friend of mine commented about his son’s daycare the other day that when they go outside during the summer all the children need to wear hats. Every child wore a Phillies hat.

If you follow pro athletes for their witty comments and have the ability to stalk them like I do you would know even other pro athletes in town know that CBP is the place to be. On Twitter, I stalk…er follow James van Riemsdyk of the Flyers and Evan Turner of the Sixers. This past week, I saw a twitter conversations where they were catching up with each other, and at the end of it JVR said he and Turner should catch a Phillies game together.

So basically, I just threw a bunch of letters and words together and said what we already knew. Citizens Bank Park is the place to be and the Phillies have surpassed the Eagles and Philadelphia’s team. Now it’s up to the Eagles to start trying to win a Super Bowl and recreate the excitement and keep themselves in the running for Philadelphia’s team. And do away with their new motto of 25/8. They should concentrate on the right mix of players and try and earn the chance to sell Super Bowl Champions shirts, and stop trying to sell catch phrases to get our money.

BACK TO KORNHOLE

Thanks Eugene for adding your hand to my Kornhole. I’ll be back next week with my usual rumblings. Until then I’d like to receive my FIRST EMAIL. Even if it is spam or some doctor in Africa offering to pay me millions if I give them my bank account number. So email me kornhole@philliesbunts.com

Road Trip!

Welcome to another week of Kornhole Alley. I wasn’t able to put together something this week due to a personal matter so I found somebody who writes better articles than me anyway. Below is Eugene’s guest spot for this week’s Kornhole’s Alley.

As Phillies fans we get to watch the majority of our team’s games at Citizens Bank Park. After a few seasons, we’ve all become accustomed to where our favorite vendor spots to hit up are at. If I want a Yuengling I know where to go for it, and when the mood strikes I know exactly where to go for a Schmitter. I know where I like to park and I know where I like to sit. What about road games? That gets a bit more difficult due to the fact that we’re unfamiliar on another team's turf.
I haven’t travelled as much to see the Phillies as I have to see the Flyers, but I’ve done some good trips and whether they’ve won or the lost most of the time I’ve had a good time. As a visiting fan, you have to be prepared if the Phils lose you’ll get some trash talk, and if they win the home fans will automatically pull out the "Philly fans are the worst" cliché. I’m going to go over a few of the places I’ve traveled. I’ll even throw in a few things I would recommend about the city to try so if you ever find yourself in one of these places you might have an easier time then someone without any recommendations.

The first Phillies trip I ever took was to see the Phillies take on the Cubs at the friendly confines of Wrigley Field. Prior to the trip, there was a slight chance the series was going to be shifted to U.S. Cellular. This was because part of the stands had concrete falling from them posing a danger to the fans below. Fortunately for us, the city of Chicago deemed it safe and as a precaution the Cubs put safety netting throughout the stadium.

This was my first time in Chicago and on the way to the stadium I was lost and several people realized who I was and instead of giving me directions simply said "Good luck finding Wrigley Field," but I was able to find my way and before walking in I walked around the stadium to take in the sights and heard a lot of trash talking from the roof tops. It was nothing severe it was just "You Suck" and other simple things. During the game, I remember the fans in my area being polite and showing good baseball etiquette so I won’t go into trashing the fans.

The games while I was there is a different story. I had tickets to the Friday and Sunday games. Saturday was a day to see the city. Friday, the Phillies jumped out to a quick lead on home-runs by Bobby Abreu and Pat Burrell. Both would go on to hit two homers each, but the Phillies would drop the game by a score of 10-7 in a game that had eight home runs hit. So yes, the wind was blowing out that day at Wrigley. The next day was the MLB trade deadline and I didn’t have tickets to the game so I called my family and spent the day with my cousins watching the game that the Phillies won across the street. The rubber match was another Cubs win by a score of 6-3. This game was also Nomar Garciaparra’s first game with the Cubs after being dealt there the previous day.

The following season, I did see a game at U.S. Cellular in a game between the Sox and Dodgers. It doesn’t have the same aura as Wrigley, but I like the environment better there. Unless you count being herded to our seats like cattle to prevent people with upperdeck seats from walking around the lower concourse after highly publicized incidents of fans attacking players and umpires. The concessions I remember getting were hot dogs and Chicago’s Old Style beer. If you go to Chicago I recommend you check out the bar scene if that’s your thing. The bars are open ridiculously late and I remember getting in at five and being annihilated.

Last season after the Phillies got Roy Oswalt in a trade with the Astros, I called up a few friends, including Kornhole’s Alley writer, Jim Korhan, to go down and welcome him to the red pinstripes. We weren’t the only ones making the trek down there as hundreds of Phillies fans made the drive down south to Citizens Bank Park Jr, or CBP South in Washington D.C. The game sucked and the prices were too high. The fans had no etiquette and we missed half the game as fans were continually walking up and down during at bats. They don’t have a please wait until the at bat is finished policy, and it was very frustrating. Add that to the fact that the Phillies were playing a terrible game it made for a bad night.
Korhan and I decided to walk around the stadium and see what they had to offer. Quite honestly, it’s nothing in my opinion. Don’t let this persuade you not to go though. If you do buy the cheapest tickets and just go out into the bar in center field. The beer selection is better than the rest of the stadium and it’s the best environment in the stadium. We stood there for two innings and no one said anything to us. If you find yourself attending a game in D.C., I recommend finding the exit as quickly as possible and leaving. Just kidding. I suggest you take a ride up New York Avenue and check out the Kentucky Fried Chicken we stopped at.

By far the best trip I’ve been on was the trip I took to San Diego last year. The Phillies won both games I was at and the stadium was full of Phillies fans. It was like Citizens Bank Park South West. There weren’t many Padres fans there that would trash talk since it was mostly a family affair out there. After the game, we found a few fans who would yell things about our reputation, but nothing serious. The stadium, in my opinion, is awesome. I know some who don’t agree, but I loved the palm trees out there and the park out in center field was great. One of the games, I attended people were allowed to bring their dogs and it was quite a site to see a parade of dogs on the field prior to the game.
The games were both Phillies wins. The tickets we bought were OK for the first game considering we walked up to the box office. We were put in the second deck in right field, but it was a good view. The next day was an afternoon game and I decided to try Stub Hub and found great tickets for a great price. We sat just below the Western Metal Supply building in left field and it shaded us very quickly after we got there. The section for the second game was almost all Phillies fans. We were the first to arrive and Padres fans said we picked a bad section to sit. For the next half hour, Phillies fans were piling in until the Padres fans were outnumbered and were upset there were so many of us. The one downside of the stadium is that you can’t walk around the lower level without having to go up and down steps a few times. The outfield is a lot lower than the rest of the stadium so therefore you have to walk down the steps. It’s really only an issue if you’re drunk though, so I guess it’s not bad.

I’m partial to San Diego since I was stationed in the area while in the Marine Corps. The city has so much to offer. Beaches, bars, restaurants, Sea World and of course the world famous San Diego Zoo. The zoo was amazing. There was too much to see in one day. The nightlife is great if you’re in the gas lamp. We ate at a place called Brian’s 24 and the portions were enormous and were so good. Also if you want to drive, in Carlsbad California which is forty minutes north there’s a good night life also. For breakfast, we did the Broken Yolk which also has ridiculously large portions and was featured on Man vs. Food.

After those trips, I still see CBP as home sweet home. I could go further into it, but this is already long and I want people to actually read it.
To view more of the San Diego photos click here
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1430061150311.2056366.1196312024

Thanks Eugene. I have traveled to many parks around the league myself. Living in California for a year I had the priviledge of visiting many on the left coast.

Quick tidbits for the week from Kornhole:

-- Last week’s article I discussed the Phillies offensive woes and screamed not to worry. I believe I also guaranteed an offensive explosion. I was wrong about the explosion but I still feel people are panicking.

This team is trecking out there Mike Martinzez, Pete Orr, a freaking Sardine, Wilson Valdez amongst others night after night. Fear not my friends. Chase Utley returns tonight. He may not come out hitting like Ichiro but he will help this offense. Let’s see what happens over the next two months. I believe that the Rube will make a move.
  

THIS WEEK IN PHILLIES FUTURE

The Phightins embark on a four game homestand with the Sweepinati Reds. It’s the return of everyone’s favorite Phillie. The Icon of Philadelphia the one and only Vance Worley. Vance fills in for Fat Joe Tuesday and will pitch a dominating 6 innings but it won’t be enough.
I think the Phils actually split with the Reds this week and take 2 of 3 from the Mets. A 4-3 record. I honestly believe the offense will continue to struggle until next week when they bombard Washington and the official "Hitting Season" that Charlie speaks of officially begins.
I’ll be back in full swing next week. Thanks Eugene for another great article. And don’t forget to e-mail me at kornhole@philliesbunts.com. Peace out Cracka’s! Go Phightins!

Kornhole's Alley: 1/2 Eugene Edition

Welcome to Kornhole’s Alley. I’ve been pretty busy lately and I don’t like giving a half ass blog so I asked my friend Eugene to put something together for me in my absence.

Before I post that I wanted to give my thoughts on a few things real fast:

VANCE WORLEY

The talk around town is Vance is the next coming of Cy Young. He has looked impressive in his stint with the ball club and he will be a good pitcher in the league but lets not jump the gun here and move Blanton yet. Kyle Kendrick threw a shutout on Saturday. Just sayin’

If Worley could produce an Outfielder with power, by all means I would listen. Get something now while the iron is hot. Remember, Garrett Stephenson started his career 8-0.

ROY OSWALT

Little Roy says not to worry. I’m not worried. He will be fine. He’ll be back later this week and everything will be fine. This is another reason you don’t want to move Blanton. People kill Blanton but seem to forget that the guy is a great second half pitcher.

CHASE UTLEY

I’ve seen more coverage of Chase running the bases than news about Osama Bin Laden. It’s good to see though, and when he returns I’d like to see him batting in the two hole to break him and Ryan up.

I have a special guest editorial from my main man, Eugene. I asked Eugene to write a piece this week and from time to time, I may ask him to fill in when I’m busy. I don’t want to rip the readers off by giving a ½ page blog. I like to give you the guy’s content. So here goes nothing.

KORNHOLE ALLEY – SPECIAL GUEST – EUGENE CLARKE

How would you like to make a Phillies game more affordable?  I’m going to share a little secret I don’t want to spread too much or I’ll lose this new found luxury of saving money.  It’s very simple, and it doesn’t involve anything illegal or doing anything immoral or even having to perform like a dog.

A ticket to the Phillies right now is one of the hottest tickets in town.  Recently, I found a little secret to get tickets below face value and there’s no chance you’ll be ripped off.  Major League Baseball allows Stub Hub to sell tickets legally.  If you go onto Stub Hub between two and three hours before the game starts tickets are being reduced.  Currently I’ve been watching Stub Hub for forty minutes and saw tickets as low as $11 that I would sit in.  Currently looking here are some available tickets

·       Section 314 Row 4. For $13

·       Section 207 row 11 going for $15 each.

·       Section 109 Row 27 for $20 each.

·       Section 146, Row 21 for $15 each.

Now I’ll admit they aren’t all the greatest seats.  I kept out some of the sections that most people wouldn’t want to sit at or the ones that I think are terrible to sit in.  During the time I was watching Stub Hub the tickets went down to $11 several times.  If you check hard enough you can find really good seats for $30 and save a considerable amount of money.  If you want to save even more money to make it cost efficient either take the subway or park in FDR park.  FDR park is free to park in during Phillies games.  Don’t try it during an Eagles game, but as far as I know it’s still free for the Phillies games and I have done this in the past myself. I know for families with children going to games in difficult because the price can get pretty steep, but this is a way to cut costs and still have a great time with good seats.

Thanks Eugene for helping out this week.  Let us continue….

THIS WEEK IN PHILLIES FUTURE

The boys embark on an eight game road trip that takes them to Miami and Atlanta. I predict that the Phillies will draw more people for their first game back May 18^th against Colorado than Florida will draw for all three games the Phils play down there this week.

With that said. It’s time to look at the old win-loss prediction. I think the Phils take 2 of 3 from the Fish but then drop 2 of 3 to the Braves over the weekend. I know it’s not a 6-0 record but I have to be realistic. Road trips are tough especially against the division.

I apologize I couldn’t give you more this week but I will get back into the swing of things providing you the two readers with the most entertaining blog on Monday’s anywhere.

And one last special thanks to Eugene for his contribution this week.

Feel free to email me at kornhole@philliesbunts.com