2017 Season Phillies Discussion (News/Notes, etc.), continued

phillychuck 2017-08-04 03:25:21 UTC #21

Sixto or Ortiz on the promotion?

Crawford with HR #11.

bkox 2017-08-04 04:10:54 UTC #22

Knapp lleft the game tonight after getting hit on the hand. So far just announced as a contusion. But if he needs to be DL'd, who gets the call? ALfaro who is on the 40 man or Logan Moore who isnt?

zambonir 2017-08-04 05:01:09 UTC #23

Good question. I would think Alfaro because then you are stuck with Moore on the 40 after Knapp comes back (unless he's out for a month).

Hopefully he's healthy enough even if Rupp has to start all weekend.

bkox 2017-08-04 05:30:26 UTC #24

bkeich 2017-08-04 05:38:32 UTC #25

No matter what I assume a move has to be made because looking at the pitch there is no chance Knapp is available tomorrow. Thomspon was optioned down, if nothing else I assume Moore or Alfaro comes up and sits on the bench for a few days. Maybe Knapp goes on the DL (if you watch the pitch that hit it, it is very easy to believe he will miss 10 days).

Foul tip hit the knuckles on his throwing hand flush. If there is no break it is going to be a few days until the swelling goes down I assume.

zambonir 2017-08-04 06:17:06 UTC #26

More likely Thompson was already going down for a reliever, but you're right that it creates the option.

bkeich 2017-08-04 06:53:34 UTC #27

I think that is of course the longer term plan, but I wouldn't be surprised if they don't flex up a catcher for a few days if that is all Knapp needs. If he is going to need a week or more (very possible) I assume he just goes on the DL.

andyb 2017-08-04 11:09:56 UTC #28

If it is a few days they probably bring up Alfaro. If it is longer they turn to Moore or a veteran rental.

Not too worried about Moore being claimed if he needs to be removed from the 40-man at some point. Backup catchers without major league experience are not that valuable and every team occasionally needs them for injuries.

Lawman 2017-08-04 12:39:55 UTC #29

I have no idea, just found it a semi-intriguing, Phillies related, tweet so I posted it.

zambonir 2017-08-04 17:23:07 UTC #30

Probably true but it seems like they also want to leave a little room on the 40, and you probably wouldn't want to DFA him in-season. Of course if it really came to it they could find a AAAA catcher out there. As of now Knapp says he's ok, he was scanned but not x-rayed. No official transaction processed yet (not even for Thompson).

julio 2017-08-04 17:58:29 UTC #31

They could bring up Rickles, and then just cut him loose when necessary. He's a complete spare part - and there are three active catchers on the Reading roster right now (Austin Bossart was promoted from Clearwater today)...and it's not as if losing Rickles would somehow jeopardize the Fightins' playoff chances.

andyb 2017-08-04 18:00:58 UTC #32

They might be able to get Hanigan back if they wanted to since the Rockies went out and got Lucroy. Probably lots of AAAA options if they really needed to. Or Knapp is OK with a day or two of rest. A Blanco emergency catching appearance might liven up a game anyway.

zambonir 2017-08-04 18:22:02 UTC #33

I was just going to mention Hanigan, though he seems to have stuck as the Rockies back-up, They have a glut at AAA

EastFallowfield 2017-08-04 18:30:29 UTC #34

JP who?

Les229 2017-08-04 18:45:11 UTC #35

Let me try to stop laughing long enough to form an answer.

Some guys just drink the Kool Aid. Crawford has a LOOONG way to go before he is going to be able to carry Galvis' glove, or even his bat. I have seen him play in spring training and here in Clearwater. Every time I see him he reminds me of one player....Anthony Hewitt. We all know what a hall of famer he turned out to be. This kid needs to stop being treated like a prima donna and made just one of the scrubs and let him earn his way.

As far as Kingery, if he is all that good, let him push Hernandez aside. I wonder if he has an arm strong enough to play third. Franco needs to be woken up and pushed by a legitimate threat.

bkox 2017-08-04 18:46:30 UTC #36

Mitch Rupert just tweeted the Rickles is headed to LHV.

andyb 2017-08-04 18:52:00 UTC #37

Which means Alfaro or Moore is probably headed to wherever the Phillies are.

David_Criss 2017-08-04 19:17:44 UTC #38

Why not just DL Knapp anyway? It isn't like they need him or anyone to get the team into the playoffs this year. How does the DL work? He is injured? Let him sit out two weeks and bring in Alfaro for a look and see. As far as the tweet Lawman shared - my guess based on the tweet is that Hoskins or Kingery are getting the call. Is there anyone else that would "be exciting"? Not sure where either would play, but

zambonir 2017-08-04 19:26:11 UTC #39

That's not my quote, but that is a ludicrous comparison given Crawford's success at every level (yes, including AAA at this point) and his OBP. You can find plenty of long and repeated arguments about how good he is or isn't in past threads though. But the main thing is I still don't believe the Phillies are going to sign Galvis to a contract extension (unless they really go all-in and use Crawford in a big trade). So we are still more likely than not watching Freddy's final 150 games in a Phillies uniform. He makes too many outs and his power is not as valuable as it seems, because power is up all over the game. It's entirely possible Crawford won't pan out but even with a Gold Glove 30 year-old Freddy's offense is probably not gonna look great either.

julio 2017-08-04 19:44:10 UTC #40

It's... interesting. Everybody in the organization, and everybody in the Philly media, knows that Crawford is in AAA, and that he's been smoking since he returned from the DL. But what have we seen? Organizational types (Larry Shenk, Mackanin), Phillies' announcers (both TV and radio crews) and print/online people (beat writers, columnists), all absolutely gushing about how wonderful Freddy Galvis is. If I were a conspiracy nut, I'd posit that everybody and his brother has been recruited to build Galvis up to enhance his trade value... but I'm not a conspiracy nut. My conclusion is that Freddy Galvis is a really nice guy; they all like him, they don't particularly want to see him leave... so they're not making it easy for Klentak to move him, nor for Crawford to unseat him.

But...Freddy Galvis will be a free agent at the close of next season. He will be nearly 29 years old at that point (he'll turn 29 in November 2018, play at 29 in 2019). As a free agent, he'll be looking for what, 4-5 years? Ages 29-33 or so? If the Phillies extend Galvis, or sign him away from FA after next year, they are completely giving up on JP Crawford.

Yeah, I know; there are some fans who would be fine with that. This is Philadelphia, after all. But giving up on a first-round draft pick who is still highly-regarded by scouts and commentators who don't share the particular idiosyncrasies of Philadelphia? Very big risk, because if they trade Crawford and he becomes an All-Star... well, can you say "Ryne Sandberg" all over again?

Here's a suggested measuring stick. Beginning with the 2018 season, let's watch and see who produces more cumulative WAR in future seasons - Galvis, or Crawford. Yes, this is a long-term project - but as you may have noted, things you post on Philliesphans don't go away; they live in our archives (sixteen-odd years now). I'm pretty sure somebody (myself or somebody else) will be happy to pull these Galvis vs. Crawford arguments out of the archives a decade or so from now, just to see how they look.