I wasn't going to tell anyone that I watched about a half hour of the Women's World Cup Final yesterday. I suppose there are those who appreciate the fact that the women played for what seemed like hours without anyone scoring, but I am not one who appreciates it. I spoke with a guy I know from Kenya today about the game and he thought it was one of the better matches he had ever seen. This same guy told me that he thought American football was boring since they stopped play so often. If I had the power, I would have him deported because American football is not boring and no one should be allowed to live here who thinks it is. His point about why the soccer game was so exciting (despite the lack of scoring) was the skill level of the women playing, and the outstanding passing, etc, etc. To the LSF, the game sucks and I was thrilled when Scott decided to give the game up since that let me off the hook from going to his games.
I happened to be watching as the U.S. women took a 1-0 lead when someone named Morgan kicked the ball into the net. But alas, the girls couldn't hold on and ended up losing on a penalty kick after the overtime period. What the hell is that all about? I say, let them continue to play until someone scores. If the ladies pass out from exhaustion - so be it - let the game be determined on the playing field not by some contrived tie-breaking system. Anyhow, congratulations to the Japanese team, who hadn't had a victory like this over an American team since Dec. 7th, 1941.
Okay, enough talking about soccer or futbol, or whatever you want to call it, let's move on to a real American game and the trading deadline that is fast approaching. Your Phillies continued their winning ways over the weekend by taking two out of three from the Madoffs and managed to add a game to their lead over the Braves. They even managed to score a bunch of runs and got good performances out of the staff - with the exception of Madson, Perez, and Hamels. Hamels just can't seem to work his magic against the team from beyond the Molly Pitcher rest stop.
Fortunately for the Phillies, all of the teams they are competing with for the NL East title have as many holes as they do and, in fact, I have yet to see any team in baseball not have needs of any kind - and that includes the guys in the Bronx who, when healthy, are my pick as the best team in baseball. Sorry gang, but that is how I see it. The Bombers can beat you with both power and hitting, while the Phillies are still suffering from a major power outage this year and haven't been hitting for average despite the past few games. Most pundits and fans alike believe that the Phillies could use a right handed hitter who has some power. Most believe that this hitter might help Howard see better pitches if this unnamed hitter bats fifth. They may be right, but that assumes that the Superflop can get out of his .257 funk with better discipline at the plate. I do not see that happening but, for the sake of the conversation, I'll say that he will.
Looking at the current roster we see that Mayberry has shown moments of being able to get the job done but we need more evidence that he can and I don't know if he will have the time between now and July 31 to provide the evidence. Francisco is fast becoming the forgotten man on the roster and it is safe to say that no team will give you anything of value for him. Despite his recent awakening at the plate, Ibanez is all but untradeable because of his bloated contract and age. The problem then becomes simple to understand but hard to solve. The Phillies obviously need another bat but may not have what is needed to give in return for that bat, and that relates to the pitching staff. Yes, the Big Three have performed brilliantly as have the Young Guys, but with Oswalt and Blanton on the DL it means that guys like Kendrick and Worley cannot be traded, and who in their right mind would want staff members not named Stutes and Bastardo, even if they are showing some promising signs? Baez is worthless, as is Carpenter, and even Herndon isn't exactly pitching well of late.
Let's assume, however, that the Phillies are not willing to part with any of their top minor league pitching prospects, that everyone becomes healthy between now and July 31, and Amaro feels it in his bones the need to do something. Let's look at some of the names that may be available.
I won't insult anyone by suggesting that Willingham is the stuff that Series rings are made of. The guy is a serviceable bum - meaning that he can find a job on a bad team, but just can't cut it with a team looking to compete for the series title. Ludwick is another one who I would hate to give up anything of value for, and I believe him to be one of the better journeymen out there. I would love to see Carlos Beltran in a Phillies uniform, but I don't see Amaro giving up the kind of talent it would take to rent the free agent's services for the next few months. Beltran has proven that he is still a good player, but age has started to take it's toll on his skills and I don't see the Phillies coming up with the kind of gelt it would take to keep him here beyond the end of this season.
Let me throw out a couple of names at you that might be a fit for the Candystripers.
Vlad Guerrero, now with the O's, has been having a decent year for the birds although nothing like what we saw when he was with the Expos or in his first years with the Angels. He is a bit long in the tooth, but he hits right handed and, in a park like the Phils play in, he might be able to provide some much needed power. He is a defensive liability, and would have to be replaced in the late innings, but he will be a free agent at the end of the year and I doubt if the O's will attempt to resign him. They might be willing to take a Francisco or someone like him on the farm, so if I were Ruben I would at least make the call.
My first choice would be to call the Royals and see if they would be interested in trading Melky Cabrera. Cabrera is young, has playoff experience, and is putting up decent numbers for a team clearly not going anywhere near the playoffs. So far this year Cabrera is hitting .295, has 11 home runs, 52 RBI's, with a .333 OBP and a slugging average of .453. He can play all of the outfield positions and is a switch hitter. He won't be a free agent until after the 2013 season so the Phillies could get at least a second year out of him. He would be more than capable of providing cover behind Howard in the lineup.
For a guy with Cabrera's credentials the Royals are going to need something decent in return, and more than likely more than one player. They need pitching and will surely ask for Worley. We could offer Kendrick and one other staff member, and maybe Zagurski, but it might take a Worley to get the deal done. Would you do that trade? Well, you wouldn't if Oswalt, Blanton, and Lidge are not quite ready for prime time - but I, for one, would be tempted. Cabrera can get the job done this year and could more than fill the shoes of Ibanez who will most surely not be here next year. There is the matter of sign-ability after his free agent year, but I am about winning now and Cabrera might just be the missing piece to the puzzle.
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