December 14, 2010 at 7:18 am
Agreed, the Phils will be the team to beat during the next 4-5 years.
Obviously I'm disappointed by his decision, but I'm still a Cliff Lee fan nonetheless. It is somewhat satisfying that we didn't get beat out by the Yankees on the deal, and I'm glad that the Rangers won't be seeing much of Cliff Lee as an opponent (until the Series, at least 😎 )
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December 14, 2010 at 7:24 am
Well, speaking as a Yankee fan . . .
I'm still trying to figure out whether I'm disappointed or relieved. I'm relieved that we didn't sign him to seven years, but disappointed that we're now losing the AL East arms race to the Red Sux.
I'm sure Yankee haters everywhere are rejoicing!
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December 14, 2010 at 7:30 am
Nothing is guaranteed even with a Cliff Lee. Odds for the Phillies to be in the World Series just went up no doubt.
Remember the 110+ wins that Seattle had a while back? Everyone said they will win the World Series and they didn't even make it there.
December 14, 2010 at 8:34 am
Heard Tim Legler on Mike and Mike say that most of the time this doesn't work. 97 Marlins, '09 Yankees were able to buy a championship. Most other times it doesn't work.
December 14, 2010 at 8:39 am
Steve Jones - SSC Editor (12/14/2010)
Heard Tim Legler on Mike and Mike say that most of the time this doesn't work. 97 Marlins, '09 Yankees were able to buy a championship. Most other times it doesn't work.
Very true. The Yankees have had some very expensive payrolls and for the most part have not been a factor in the World Series much lately.
The starting rotation of the Phillies though is about as good as it can get. Barring injury they should have enough starting pitching to get into the playoffs. Beyond that it is anyone's guess. This year that starting staff shutdown my Red's quite easily and then struggled against the Giants.
December 14, 2010 at 8:50 am
Markus (12/14/2010)
Nothing is guaranteed even with a Cliff Lee. Odds for the Phillies to be in the World Series just went up no doubt.Remember the 110+ wins that Seattle had a while back? Everyone said they will win the World Series and they didn't even make it there.
The difference between the 2001 Mariners and the 2011 Phillies is that Seattle relied a lot on finesse pitchers (like Jamie Moyer). They didn't have the power arms after they traded Randy Johnson. That served them well over the 162-game marathon, but not so much in a playoff series.
On the other hand, Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, et al, are flamethrowers, intimidating and overpowering. Not the kind of pitching staff I'd want to face in a postseason series.
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December 14, 2010 at 8:51 am
>>Most other times it doesn't work.
That's true: even the Yankees have only won a couple dozens over the years. (rimshot!)
A lot of winning a World Series comes down to luck: staying healthy, one of your catching an updraft and playing well down the stretch or one of their guys just not hitting at all, basically some "baseball" things have to bounce your way. You know, Mark Lemke hitting about .600, or Bobby Abreu striking out a dozen times in the Series.
Dropping $100m on a pitcher is pretty much a huge roll of the dice unless you're making money during the regular season and you know you'll cover most of the bet. That's what I think is going on here. And they're willing to take the risk on the balance because so many of their guys are coming to the end of their deals and they need to wring one more big push out of this team before making hard choices on guys like Utley and Rollins and Halladay over the next year or three.
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December 14, 2010 at 1:48 pm
The Phillies certainly are the favorites on paper, but we don't play on paper. Anyone think the Giants were going to win before Oct last year?
Phillies have had injuries in the infield, Howard has fallen down at times, and those pitchers (except Halladay) haven't always been consistent.
December 15, 2010 at 7:09 am
Steve Jones - SSC Editor (12/14/2010)
The Phillies certainly are the favorites on paper, but we don't play on paper.
Very true, although they certainly have improved their chances.
Case in point: how is it that the Atlanta Braves had a pitching staff that included Greg Maddux, Steve Avery, and John Smoltz, yet won only one World Series in the '90s?
Ya never know . . .
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December 15, 2010 at 8:47 am
That's definitely the knock on Bobby Cox...had the horses and went 1 for 4. Don't forget Tom Glavine, too.
It's fun listening to all the banter...the SF radio show is up in arms this morning about all the head lines about the Phillies staff being the best in baseball. East coast bias? Stats are similar, last year's post season definitely tips the favor in the Giants direction. I wholly agree with Steve, it's all talk until we see it all happen next year. Maybe the Giants were a flash in the pan, maybe they're gonna get more rings outta this crew. We'll see in a few months, only 11 weeks to pitchers and catchers.
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December 15, 2010 at 9:13 am
The Braves starting rotation was superb in the regular season but seemed to drop off some in the post season except for that 1995 playoff run. They beat my Reds and absolutely shutdown the Indians hot bats to the tone of something like a .177 batting average in the World Series. I remember that final game David Justice hit a home run late in the game and the Braves won it 1-0.
Sometimes it is about the best team.. sometimes it is the hottest team at the time... sometimes it is a few lucky hits to win a specific game...
A few years ago the Cardinals won like 86 games and everyone said they won a weak division and were destined to be eliminated early and they stunned the season long 100+ game winning Tigers.
You just never know how a team will gel during the season and/or post season. My 1990 Reds were a long shot to beat the A's as they had just won back to back World Series and the Reds swept them.
That is why they play the games. On any given day any MLB team can beat any MLB team more so than any other sport.
December 15, 2010 at 9:32 am
One thing I didn't mention, and didn't realize until late yesterday, was that Lee took a lot less to go to Philly. I am pleased to see athletes, LeBron James included, that look to more than the money. Whether that's a championship, being home, whatever. It's a good trend.
I was always annoyed that Mike Hampton took $110+mm to come to Colorado instead of $100mm to go back home to Texas. Thought that was a sign of poor character and an idiot of an agent.
December 15, 2010 at 10:01 am
Yep, I thought it was interesting that everyone assumed Lee would sign for seven years, yet he only took a five-year contract to sign with Philly. Go figure.
Even I admit that the Yankees offering of seven years was making me nervous. What happens when age starts affecting his arm before seven years, as is likely to happen?
There are countless examples of underdog teams winning the Series -- this year's Giants, 2006 Cardinals, 1988 Dodgers, 1985 Royals, 1969 Mets . . . the list goes on.
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December 16, 2010 at 7:05 am
R.I.P Rapid Robert
Indians legend Feller dead at 92
Went to the '93 All-Star Game in Baltimore, and I actually got to meet Bob Feller at the All-Star Fan Fest. One of the nicest guys I ever had the pleasure of meeting! Rest in peace, Mr. Feller.
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December 16, 2010 at 7:08 am
Ray K (12/16/2010)
R.I.P Rapid RobertIndians legend Feller dead at 92
Went to the '93 All-Star Game in Baltimore, and I actually got to meet Bob Feller at the All-Star Fan Fest. One of the nicest guys I ever had the pleasure of meeting! Rest in peace, Mr. Feller.
In the 90's my parents used to head down to Florida to see the Indians Spring Training and he would go to every Spring Training game signing autographs and watching the games.
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