By Christopher Kiel
So I’ve been waiting to write a review of the season and I figure 10 games is a nice round number. At this point in the season the Phightins are 7-3 and in first place. This is a great start because the last few years the have been slow starters. In 2007 they started 2-8, in 2008 when they won the World Series they started 4-6, in 2009 they were also 4-6. Last year they started 8-2. So this is a pretty good start for them. Now let’s take a look at some of the players and how they’re doing.
Starting Pitching- Going into the season everyone agreed this was the Phillies strength and it’s been pretty good so far. Doc has been great while allowing one run and striking out 13 in 13 innings. Oswalt has been solid while posting a 2.25 era in two starts. Cole Hamels the man everyone loves to boo had a terrible first game (I was there and proud to say I didn’t boo) but bounced back by dominating the Braves in his second. I still think that Cole will have a huge year and that first start will prove to be an aberration. Cliff Lee who was anointed a God in Philadelphia after he left has a good start and a terrible one under his belt. Don’t get me wrong, Lee is a great pitcher but he doesn’t have overpowering stuff and he’s shown through out his career if his control is off he can get hit around. People forget that his last few regular season starts the last time he was here weren’t that great. Oh, and Joe Blanton has sucked so far. No further comments.
Bullpen- The Bullpen has been good so far. With the exception of David Herndon everyone has pitched as good or better then expected. It’s early but I really like what I’m seeing out of Bastardo so far. Hopefully he can keep it up (that’s what she said!) and become a guy Charlie can rely on in late innings. Contreras has done a good job but I still think Madson will wind up with a few saves by the end of the season.
Infield- The infield overall has been great. Howard is off to a good start. All the starters are hitting over .300. Will that last probably not. In fact there’s probably better odds of me growing all my hair back. The best thing about the infield had been has been Rollins. He’s shown he still has life left in his legs and that he wants that new contract at the end of the year. Right now Valdez is batting .355. If he’s batting over .300 at the end of the year I’ll paint myself orange and blue (for the mets) and streak across CBP.
Outfield- Victorino and Francisco have been good and Ibanez has been ok. Ibanez doesn’t have a good average but has 7 Rbi’s. Shane has been really good in the leadoff spot. Hopefully he’s realized he’s 5 ft 8 with speed and not a 6’5” slugger. I hope it keeps it up because I believe he’s a better leadoff hitter then Rollins. Ben Fran has been solid so far while taking over for the 126 million dollar man. He’s hitting .308 with 2 homers but has hit the ball hard all year.
Bench- The bench has been a strong point so far. Pete Orr, Ross Gload, Michael Martinez, John Mayberry have all done a good job providing depth. They provide a nice combination of speed and power. I think Charlie is comfortable giving anyone of them a start which is good because some of our regulars are getting up there in age and could use some days off.
So as you can see the team is off to a good start. And like I said in my season preview they have an easy first month and should get off to a good start. Boy, I’m a genius. Hopefully they keep it and finish strong like they always do.
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