The Fightin’ Phils’ Future Depends Solely On Their Spending

Another Phillies season is almost complete and fans take up hope that the Phillies front office does something to keep their team from serving as the National League’s bathmat for the 14th year straight. But before planning a vacation around a Phillies-less playoff time in 2007, our savior, General Manager Pat Gillick holds the oft-misplaced Phillies’ key to change and success.
A report out of MSNBC News Services stated that the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros were vying for the right to outfielder Ichiro Suzuki. The trades revolve around Bobby Abreu, now with the New York Yankees, and 20-game-winning right-handed Roy Oswalt, who wasn’t traded and currently whines about feeling betrayed by the Astros for being trade bait. This is an interesting move, not just because Ichiro is one of the best hitters in the league, but that Pat Gillick is actually trying to be the architect of a winning team like he once was with Toronto. If this is the case, and Gillick and the ownership is ready to spend money to make a winner and not just sit on Abreu’s bag of cash, then there are some moves he should look to make and should be a major buyer in the off-season.
The first move should be to bring in a possible number-one pitcher. Barry Zito is available but he comes at a hefty price and is infamous for disappearing during the first half of the season. The plus side is that he is left-handed and almost never gets hurt. There are other aces that the Phils could attempt at, such as an aging Jason Schmidt, who had a disappointing ’05 season but seems to have regained the magic that he lost. Also there is the veteran Mike Mussina, who isn’t getting any younger and likely to get picked back up by the Yankees. Mark Mulder is another ace free agent, he is coming off major rotator cuff surgery and may be too much of a question mark to throw large amounts of money at until he’s proven he can pitch at his former elite level.

A younger, better value, with prospect potential may just lie over the pacific. The Phillies do not have a reputation for being in the overseas talent market, but this would be a good player to start with. Along with Zito and Schmidt, the most sought after free agent pitcher in the off season is going to be 26-year-old right-handed, Daisuke Matsuzaka, from the Seibu Lions in Japan. He is known for his high pitch counts, especially famous around Japan for his legendary feat of throwing 250 pitches in a high school extra inning game against a hometown rival. The World Baseball Classic brought his arm to America where not only did he lead the Japanese to the championship but he won MVP of the WBC with an ERA of 1.13. The Yankees have shown obvious interest in the overseas pitcher as well as the Anaheim Angels (Daisuke won one game in Angel Stadium during the WBC). For the Phillies to become a player in the big name overseas market they would have to show a very generous posting fee for the rights to negotiate with the unproven big league prospect, and paying big Yankee style money is something the Phillies do not have a healthy habit of doing with the exception of Jim Thome. Daisuke would be not only an upgrade over any pitcher the Phillies have had in years but a legitimate star and seat filler. The money all together to get Daisuke might still be less then they would have to pay for Barry Zito, but much more then the questionable Jason Schmidt.

If the Phils show interest in getting Zito, Daisuke, or any other high flying ace, don’t expect them to get much more in the off season in free agency because clutch starting pitchers are rare and overly expensive. The Phillies most likely won’t be blowing up the bank to replace Abreu and Bell. And if Gillick doesn’t decide to keep Pat Burrell or Dave Delucchi in the outfield, there is a relatively cheap but productive option in outfielder Frank Catalanotto of the Toronto Blue Jays. Catalanotto is one of the most underappreciated players in the league. This year he is batting .314 and has an OBP and SLG percentage well over .400. More importantly Catalanotta rarely strikes out. His walks-to-strike-out ratio is close to double the walks and should help fill in the Phils lineup which is plagued with untimely whiffs.
With rumors of Johnny Estrada wanting back in Philadelphia, and a suitable player guarding third base, the Phillies could have a new look squad next year and if all goes well, Pat Gillick and the Phillies will have a busy off season making the Eagles not the only thing to talk about in town when it snows.