To all Phillies Phans:    

Tired of hearing about Atlanta winning another division pennant?

Tired of hearing about the Phillies not having enough cash for the big free-agents?

Tired of Losing?!

I am!

The Phillies overhauled farm system, thanks to Arbuckle, is now blossoming at the major league level. With the big surprise to me being Randy Wolf, who seems to be our #1 man going into 2003.

Lets take a look at what we have:

Pitching

Randy Wolf is drawing sharp comparisons to Tom Glavine, which is very good.  Wolf has been close to dominant in the second half of 2002 and if it were not for the Phillies bats going cold when he takes the mound, he would have a handful more wins. I see Wolf developing into our ace and leader for 2003, and years to come.

Vincente Padilla had a great first half of 2002 but the arm started to wear down after his first all-star appearance. That is probably due to him usually pitching winter-ball to improve his game, Phils will not need him to do that anymore. A consistently strong Padilla should show next season.

Brandon Duckworth & Brett Myers both are taking their lumps in the bigs, both have bright futures. If these guys can have .500 seasons in 2003, the Phils will be in good shape. Consistent pitching will be needed from these two at the end of next year for a playoff push...you cannot be young forever.

Terry Adams will test the free agent waters for a better contract and more chances to start. Terry looked very good out of the pen in long relief but continued to struggle in starts. Slim chance he will return.

Joe Roa looked good in a few starts late in the season, but an aging pitcher just making it to the majors now is most likely a temporary fix. Roa will battle for a fifth spot next spring but likely will end up in the pen.

Mike Timlin is getting up in age and will likely try to cash in on another team. We will see if he would like to stay in Philly to finish his career.

Ricky Botallico hopes the Phils still see something in him for another season. I hope I am not the only one that is tired of seeing good ol' Ricky get mad after he threw a bases clearing double pitch.

David Coggin proved to be very good out of the pen for long relief and continues to struggle with consistency as a starter. Will likely battle for fifth spot in the spring.

Robert Person could be on his way out after supposedly not informing the coaching staff about his troubled arm. If Person survives the off-season trade winds, he will be battling for the fifth spot amongst others.

Rheal Cormier might stick around another season because he has a left arm, enough said.

Hector Mercado might want to challenge for the fifth spot. But most likely will remain in the pen where he could continue to improve.

Dan Plesac is a couple of years younger than the planet Jupiter, but he still has a left arm with decent stuff. If he has one more year left, his leadership and experience would be a plus for the Phils young staff.

Jose Santiago is a decent guy out of the pen, he will be there next season to setup the late innings.

Jose Mesa is a headache, but looks like we got him for one more year as our closer.  Unless some deal is struck bringing in someone better, Advil stock will rise again next spring...bank on it.

Carlos Silva produced well and should improve for next season. He will be setting up the closer again in 2003.

Fielders

Mike Lieberthal came on strong in the second half of 2002 and hopefully will have a more consistent 2003. He is a key player for the Phils because of his impact on the maturity and growth of the young pitching staff.

Todd Pratt might just have one more season with the Phils. He's been good for the pitching staff and seems to get some timely hits. If Pratt breaks down, the return of Estrada could happen.

Marlon Anderson gives a decent glove at second but could improve at the plate with OBP and hitting while guys are on base. Lack of improvement means more playing time for Harry Kalas's favorite Tomas Perez.

Dave Hollins might have to give way to the future third baseman Chase Utley.  Depends on spring training, but Dave is likely gone.

Travis Lee is a solid glove at first base, but the problem is people expect RBIs and HRs from  1B. Thus, an impatient Bowa  relied on Jeremy Giambi to provide some more offensive spark form the position. Bowa will look to improve on this during the winter meetings.

Tomas Perez is Kalas's favorite backup, and im sure is Bowa's also. He has an aggressive bat for pinch hitting and nifty defensive skills or the infield...perfect role guy guy the Phillies need.

Placido Polanco will never live up to Rolen's glove. But then who can? He will give you steady hitting with few strikeouts.  It is not easy finding a good thrid baseman.  Polanco should be our man in 2003.   Youngster Chase Utley should be joining the club in 2003, he will be pushing for a starting spot, either Polanco's or Anderson's .

Jimmy Rollins is having a disappointing second season. He must improve his OBP and batting for 2003 if the Phils are going to contend. Rollins needs to set the table for the big hitters behind him, and also stop swinging for the fence...remember Jimmy you are a leadoff man.

Bobby Abreu might be a little lazy in the field at times, but he is a Phillie for sure next season. A solid .300 hitter and extra base guy, Abreu will be better next season if some of his teammates improve.

Pat Burrell showed in 2002 an improvement in all aspects of his game, especially plate discipline. His patience in the box showed in his offensive numbers. Opposing pitchers now know he will be threat for years to come, Mets pitchers knew that before anyone else. All Pat "the bat" needs now is a worthy big hitter behind him in the lineup.

Marlon Byrd was called a poorman's Bo Jackson by a scout once. A big, strong guy with speed, Byrd will most likely given CF next spring to see what he can do.

Jeremy Giambi was a very nice pickup by Bowa this season. Jeremy supplied much needed offense off the bench and occasional starts, but is a defensive liability. It would be nice to have him again, but Jeremy is better suited for the AL where he could DH some nights.

Doug Glanville should be looking to move this off-season. His offensive numbers continue to drop along with his starts. His poor OBP has him likely playing in other threads in the spring. Later Doug.

Ricky Ledee is just a defensive outfielder to bring in late in the game. He does have a left-handed bat, but does not do too much with it.

Jason Michaels provides a nice bat off the bench and decent defense in the outfield. Micheals does not have a shot at starting, but is a reliable bench guy.

Off-season

It is time for the Phillies to pull a Jim Fassell and "push all their chips to the middle of the table!!". They need to make a serious push for guys like Jim Thome or Carlos Delgado. Thome will be a free agent and would be a perfect fit for this squad. Travis Lee shows no signs of improving his numbers and with Rolen's HRs gone, something must be done. Delgado has been talked about in trade rumors and also would look good in Phillie threads. Either way a big time bat behind Burrell would bulster this lineup tremendously. If this first tier of guys are unavailable, 1B John Olerud or 3B David Bell could suffice. Better relief will be looked at also during the cool months.

So what could the 2003 Phillies look like...

1	Rollins	SS		1	Wolf
2	Anderson	2B		2	Padilla
3	Abreu	RF		3	Duckworth
4	Burrell	LF		4	Myers
5	Thome/Delgado	1B		5	Person/Coggin
6	Lieberthal	C
7	Palanco/Utley	3B			Mesa
8	Byrd	CF			Silva
					Santiago
	Perez	IF			Mercado
	Ledee	OF			Roa
	Michaels	OF			Plesac

The Phuture is now in Philly!!