Phil Watch: An Addendum

Phil double downed on Saturday and I missed it.

Though nothing in the realm of stupid like Rays fight + Billy Crystal = No passion to play the Red Sox, there's a few nuggets.

Let's get started:

The Cubs, Red Sox, Diamondbacks and Phillies need to pick up the pace a little bit. Entering the weekend, those four 2007 playoff teams were among the 10 biggest losers this spring. There was only one playoff team from among the 10 teams with the worst records last spring

Okay. I'm going to say this once and I will never speak of it again, mainly because just typing makes Christo angry. Sad angry, sort of a shaking-head-toss-my-hands-up-in-desperation angry.

It's. Spring. Training.

It. Does. Not. Count.

When the Yankees field a lineup like this on June 18, I'll begin to consider any article that starts with such silliness.

Christian?

Battle?

Corona?

Anson?

Curtis?

Ransom?

Miranda?

Sounds like a lineup from Hardball on the Commodore 64.

And this is who the Yankees sent to the mound.

Heard of 40% of these guys? Me either.

So stop being a moron.

Kyle Lohse contributed to winning teams in Minnesota and Philadelphia but wore out his welcome in both places. He should help the Cardinals, but general manager John Mozeliak signed him out of desperation, not desire, after Lohse priced himself out of the free-agent market this winter. …

As an aside, there's something superatively funny about Lohse seeking a five year/$50 million package at the beginning of the free agent season and ending up signing a one year/$4.25 million contract. 'Priced himself out' is a bit of an understatement.

I add this Phil nugget for a reason...

The Phillies beat the odds by making the playoffs with a 4.91 ERA from their starting pitchers last season, and that deficit might have worsened with Lohse's departure. Charlie Manuel's starters have been getting pounded this spring, including ace Cole Hamels.

...and that's why.

The Phillies were indeed bad last year with starting pitching-type numbers.

Kyle Lohse was traded to the Phillies on July 30 of last year, making a grand total of 11 starts.

In those starts, he had a 4.72 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. In his 195 career starts, he has a 4.83 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. He's bad. He's Jason Marquis. Just a guy fortunate enough to avoid injuries.

How exactly would that deficit worsen this year with the absense of Kyle freakin' Lohse?

I guess technically he's right. Kind of like if you threw a rock at a burning car. Technically, the situation is worse.

Kevin Cash's handling of knuckleballer Tim Wakefield led to the surprising release of Doug Mirabelli. It's still hard to believe the Red Sox gave up Josh Bard, Cla Meredith and cash to get Mirabelli back from San Diego in 2006. What a deal for Padres GM Kevin Towers. …

Doug Mirabelli? Bad. So, not surprising because he's bad. He was only needed because Josh Bard looked like a monkey humping a football when trying to catch Wakefield's knuckleball.

The only reason this was seen as a lopsided trade at the time was because Bard hit out of his gourd immediately following the trade. He still can't lock down the starting job in San Diego because he's kind of bad at catching and throwing baseballs.

And it's not like the Red Sox were a loser in the trade. Their middle relief was solid at the time and Bard was becoming a liability defensively. Meredith had a great 2006 and promptly returned to Earth in 2007, especially with his peripherals.

A bit petty but 'What a Deal'? Meh.

The Braves are raving about right-hander Jair Jurrjens,who came from Detroit in the Edgar Renteria trade. The 22-year-old Jurrjens, a native of Curacao, will break camp in the rotation barring a setback.

I'll be putting this one in my back pocket for future reference. Phil in the past tried to make a case for the Tigers' rotation being 'a lot of fun'. I'm just curious to see how this one plays out.