Cole Hamels Beans Bryce Harper: Why Jordan Zimmermann Should Also Be Suspended

Let me just start out by quoting Jim Leyland.  When asked about Hamels' suspension, the Detroit Tigers manager said, "I think five games is way too light... Personally, if I was making that vote, it would be a 15-game suspension — at least."  

Really?  

Jim Leyland's own player, Delmon Young, was arrested in New York for committing a hate crime. Young was only suspended 7 games for committing a HATE CRIME, yet Leyland believes that Cole Hamels should be suspended more than twice as long for hitting a guy right above his butt with a baseball.  

That's stupid.  You don't see Leyland arguing that his player should be suspended for longer.  

Anyway, yes I think Cole Hamels was wrong and dumb to hit Bryce Harper and to then own up to it. Even if you did it on purpose (which I still think was unwarranted and uncool, not "old school"), just say the pitch got away from you.  You can tell your teammates you did it on purpose, you can tell your friends you did it on purpose, but telling the media you did it on purpose is just stupid.

As anyone who was watching the game knows, Jordan Zimmermann then hit Cole Hamels with a pitch when it was Hamels' turn to bat.  

Jordan Zimmermann, however, was not suspended.  He was not fined.  He was not badmouthed by Jim Leyland.

Why?

I don't care that Zimmermann didn't admit that he hit Hamels on purpose after the game; he hit him on purpose.  The announcers even predicted retribution before the pitch was thrown.  When there is overwhelming evidence and motive, criminals in this country can be convicted even without "admitting" they committed a crime.

So, both players did the same thing.  Both players hit another player with a pitch on purpose.  And yet only one was punished.

That's stupid.

You can say that it's okay because he did it as payback, but is that really okay?  If someone steals my laptop from my house, isn't it still a crime for me to go to their house and steal one of their possessions?  If I suddenly got a Dexter-esque urge to go out and kill murderers, would I not be a murderer as well?

I'm not complaining at all about the fact that Cole Hamels was suspended, but to not punish Zimmermann in any way is totally irrational.  Both pitchers did the exact same thing, and MLB made a completely arbitrary ruling against Cole Hamels.  

Two wrongs don't make a right, and Zimmermann's vigilante justice should not have gone unpunished.  

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Who Will Be a More Successful Big Leaguer: Domonic Brown or Trevor May?

The Phillies have had their share of farm system success stories over the years.  Pat Burrell, Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, Scott Rolen, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley all rose through the minors to become successful and productive Phillies at some point. 

On the other hand, there have been some guys who just didn’t pan out, or never really got their shot with the Phils.  Gavin Floyd (with the Phillies at least), Greg Golson, Scott Mathieson, Mike Costanzo, etc. 

The verdict is still out on uber-middle-relief prospect Mike Schwimmer.  JK, he should not be anywhere near a close game, ever.

The Phillies have also had their hits and misses with announcing prospects, like Scott Franzke (not highly rated on Announcing America’s top 100 list; overachieved; the Vance Worley of announcing) and Chris Wheeler (bust, huge bust, please check the Chris Wheeler glossary, it's hilarious).

Domonic Brown (2011) and Trevor May (2012) have been the Phillies' top-rated prospects the past two seasons.  While predicting the success of minor league players in the major leagues is far from an exact science, I am going to predict with 100 percent guaranteed accuracy which player will have a more successful big league career. 

Yup.  Just watch me, haters.

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Charlie Manuel’s 10 Worst Managing Decisions of the Season

Charlie Manuel is a guy that players love to play for. He has a good feel for the pulse of his locker room, and that was on full display when he led the 2008 Phillies to a World Series title.

Not all of Manuel's in-game decisions, though, deserve the same level of praise as the rapport he has managed to develop with his players.

Charlie makes more than his fair share of questionable pinch-hitting substitutions, pitching changes and lineup choices. Here are his 10 worst decisions of the season so far.

*Special shoutout to the blog Charlie's Manuel, which evaluates Charlie's decisions each game and was very helpful in my research for this article.

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Why Joe Blanton Will Be an Impact Player for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2012

Joe Blanton doesn't seem to get a lot of respect among us Phillies fans.

We give him nicknames like Heavy B (a nickname I love), want him traded to free up salary space (an idea I was totally behind a couple months ago) and write him letters urging the removal of his facial hair (okay maybe that was just me).

Reporters forget he won a World Series with the Phillies, and I'm going to assume the other four "cool" pitchers last season gave loser Joe lots of wedgies, noogies and wet willies.

That said, Joe Blanton has been an effective pitcher throughout his major league career, has helped the Phillies win a World Series and will have a significant impact on this 2012 season one way or another.  

Here's why Joe Blanton will be an impact player for the Phillies this season.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 7 Reasons Juan Pierre Should Be the Everyday Left Fielder

After years and years of Pat Burrell and Raul Ibanez manning left field on a day-to-day basis, the Phillies actually had an opening at the position entering 2012.  

While John Mayberry, Jr. seemed to be the favorite to win the job (especially before Ryan Howard got hurt and opened up first base), he struggled in spring training and never really ran away with the position. Laynce Nix and Dom Brown were other possible candidates for the job, but they didn’t exactly grab the position by the throat either.

Now, I’m willing to argue the best option for the Phillies in left field is Juan Pierre. Juan should be in the lineup, leading off, every night for the Phillies. Here’s why.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Why It’s Premature to Proclaim the Dynasty Dead

Well, this isn't exactly the start that we were hoping for.

The Phillies have struggled out of the gates early on in this 2012 season, which has understandably brought out some panic and frustration among Philly fans. More troubling, though, is that these early struggles are being cited as an omen signaling the end for the Phillies' dynasty.

While I agree that some of the current team's shortcomings have been highlighted these first few games, I think it's way too early to say the 2012 Phillies are "done," that they don't have a shot at winning a championship or that their run of success in the National League is coming to an abrupt close.

In the next few slides, I'll go over why I don't think it's time to freak out just yet, and why some of the common worries about the Phillies and their farm system are overblown.

Call me an optimist, but I think this team will be alright. 

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Philadelphia Phillies: Don’t Be so Quick to Throw Freddy Galvis Under the Bus

To anyone who might be freaking out about Freddy Galvis: calm down!

It's not that big of a deal that Galvis hit into two double plays in his Major League debut, couldn't get an RBI in a couple of big spots on Saturday night and is hitless through his first two games.

Is it really that big a concern that the Phillies' number eight hitter has 0 hits, when (besides Carlos Ruiz) no other player has more than two?  

Little things are bound to get blown out of proportion early in the year due to the excitement and anxiety that the beginning of the season brings, but we have to remember to keep things in perspective.  

Freddy Galvis is an 8-hole hitter, Freddy Galvis should not have to win games with his bat. Hunter Pence, who is both way more offensively talented and way better paid than Freddy Galvis, also had a chance to win Saturday's game. Jim Thome had a chance to win the game too. In fact, anyone who came to the plate had a chance to win the game because even one solo home run would have been the difference.

A lot of this has to do with first impressions. Let's face it, if Galvis started off hitting .400 in the first two games of the season, it'd be a whole different story. We'd already be crowning him rookie of the year, even though he might struggle the next couple games and see his average dip to .250.

Now, even if he hits well his next two games and gets his average up to around .250, everyone will still have a sour taste in their mouths and view that .250 differently based on his first couple games. Nevermind that the law of averages dictates he'll probably be at .250 one way or another soon enough.

Even if that is an oversimplification, I'm sure you understand what I mean.  Regardless of where a player's average ends up, initial hot or cold streaks carry a lot of weight perception-wise.

Also, don't start to clamor for Mike Fontenot or any other utility infielder just yet.  Ruben Amaro Jr. and Charlie Manuel know what players are free agents or available via trade better than we do, and the fact that they haven't made any type of move yet is more telling than Galvis' first two games ever could be.

If Rube and Charlie thought there was a better move to be made, or a better player to plug in there, then that move would be made and that player would be playing; if this team struggles, it affects them way more than it affects any of us fans and armchair GMs.

The point is, give the young man some time. Two games is a laughably small window to base judgments of a player's ability and worth. He's not going to hit like Chase Utley, nor should we expect him to. As long as he plays solid defense until Chase returns, hits around .250, and steals some bases, he has done his job.

Anything more is just gravy.

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Philadelphia Phillies: Second-Guessing Charlie Manuel’s Roster Decisions

Let me start by saying that Charlie Manuel is the man. He's the bees knees. He's the perfect manager for this club.

You also have to love his interviews after the game. Not only is he as candid as it gets, but when listening to Charlie Manuel talk after games, I'm convinced that someone just took Foghorn Leghorn and slapped a baseball uniform on him.

With all due respect to Charlie though, he has made a couple decisions with the roster this Spring that leave some room for second-guessing. I'm not necessarily saying Manuel made the wrong choice in any of these situations—I just want to highlight how tough each decision was, and how these five in particular could possibly have gone a different way.

Also, keep in mind that as I write this article the entire 25-man roster is not quite fully determined, so for one of the "second-guesses", I speculated and analyzed what is most likely going to happen. 

All stats used in this article are current up to April 2, so the Phillies' last couple exhibition games against the Pirates aren't included.

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Philadelphia Phillies: 10 Reasons They Can Overcome Injury Devastation

As the Phillies play their final spring games before starting the 2012 season, they are in an unenviable position: many of the key offensive players on the Phils are seriously hurt, and will not be ready to go when the games start to matter.

Chase Utley is hurt.

Ryan Howard is hurt.

Michael Martinez is hurt.

And you know things are bad when an injury to Michael Martinez is actually sort of a big deal.

While the Phillies' infield depth will certainly be a concern during the first few months of the season (and that's without even mentioning brittle old Placido Polanco and an aging J-Roll), there are plenty of reasons to be confident in this team's ability to stay afloat and ahead of the pack in a hungry NL East.

Here are 10 reasons why the Phillies can overcome injury devastation in 2012. 

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Philadelphia Phillies: Ryan Madson’s Injury Doesn’t Validate Papelbon’s Contract

As I'm sure everyone knows by now, Ryan Madson will miss the 2012 season due to a torn ligament in his right elbow.  

Unfortunate as this injury is for the former Phillie, Mad Dog's injury does not, as some fans have suggested, validate the monster contract Ruben Amaro Jr. hastily handed to Jonathan Papelbon in the offseason.

For those who need a refresher on how the situation played out, Madson and the Phillies were close on a reported deal for $44 million in November before talks fell through and the Phils inked Papelbon for four years and $50 million. After holding out for another huge, multi-year offer that never came, Madson signed with the Reds for one year and $8.5 million in January.

Certainly, it's fortunate that the Phillies did not end up with another crippling injury entering 2012, and it unfortunate the Reds now have to find another closer—but what the relative losses are, and could have been, to each team only serves to highlight how impatient and foolish Ruben Amaro Jr.'s closer negotiating was this winter.

Yes, Madson's injury is a tough blow for the Reds' bullpen, but it's not terrible for their checkbook.

By showing patience while negotiating for a closer, and letting the market settle before making any rash offers, the Reds managed to wed themselves to Madson (a potentially elite closer) for only one year. The Reds' patience helped to minimize their losses—Madson probably would have been gone after the season in search of a much bigger deal had he performed well, anyway.

The Phillies, on the other hand, would not have come away so clean.

Had Ruben Amaro Jr. been successful in signing Madson, the Phillies would be on the books for a ton of money over a handful of years for a pitcher with a busted elbow.  

If anything, Madson's injury makes it even more clear how foolish the Papelbon contract was.

The closer role is one of the most volatile positions in all of sports. Guys burst on to the scene all the time (if you've ever played fantasy baseball, you know there's like 12 hot closer commodities that always seem to pop up during the season), they only pitch 60-70 innings a season and have incredible short career peaks (unless their last name is Rivera).

Madson's injury is scary because it could happen to anyone, even Johnny Paps—the $50 million man.

Obviously, the Phillies weren't overly concerned with Madson's elbow if they were that close to signing him long-term. His injury just serves to highlight how fickle it was to gamble $50 million on Jonathan Papelbon's right arm.  

Even if Papelbon has two great seasons and then goes down with a serious injury three years from now, the Phillies are still out tens of millions of dollars on an injured closer.  

Just look at the previous largest contract for a reliever.

In 2005, the Blue Jays signed B.J. Ryan to a five year deal worth $47 million. He had a great first year in 2006 before blowing out his elbow and missing almost the entire 2007 season. Though he did manage to come back with a solid year in 2008, he had a 6.53 ERA in 2009 and never pitched in the Major Leagues again.

Were those two good years of Ryan worth $47 million to the Blue Jays?  

Probably not.  

Would two good years of Jonathan Papelbon be worth $50 million? Would three even do it?

While the Reds lost $8.5 million on Ryan Madson, they'll be alright in the long run. If Jonathan Papelbon suffers a similar, unpredictable injury the Phillies won't be so lucky.

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