2023 Phillies Regular Season Discussion

[flyers19rw]

I’m about finished with Sosa at 3B. He has eight errors at 3B while the supposedly horrendous Bohm has one. Put Alec at 3B and leave him alone.

[bkox]

Rob Thomson said that no matter what happens tonight, Harper won't play first base tomorrow. He'll be DHing. The plan for now is to have him play first base every other day.

— Alex Coffey ( @byalexcoffey ) July 21, 2023

He said Jake Cave is an option to play first base when Harper is DHing

— Alex Coffey ( @byalexcoffey ) July 21, 2023

[andyb]

Filter to Phillies and 3B. Even with the errors Sosa is -1. Bohm is -6. It is a somewhat new position for Sosa and he'll likely cut down on the errors. Bohm has improved, but Sosa is still better.

https://fieldingbible.com/DRSLeaderboard

[flyers19rw]

I’ll still take the guy with one error over the guy with eight. Stats don’t always tell the story. Bohm doesn’t get the credit for his play in the field.

[andyb]

So I guess you think Larry Bowa was a better fielder than Ozzie Smith?

[zambonir]

Errors are literally stats. And just because Bohm makes some good plays doesn't mean he's actually good. He's better than he was, certainly.

I do think Sosa has clearly been miscast as a 3B though. But there's no playing time for him at the other two positions. They can't do it this way next year. If Bohm sticks, find a LHB who can play 3B. Maybe that's Clemens (but not so far).

[flyers19rw]

That’s moving the goalposts. I believe that Bohm is a better 3B than Sosa. He’s worked hard to improve at it and he has. He’s not Schmidty or Rolen but he’s become a competent play at the position

[andyb]

Sosa just gets to more balls than Bohm. It is not appearances. It is outs we want.

[zambonir]

Right Bohm would make more errors if he had more range

[bkox]

Two strikeouts and walk for Seranthony in his inning of work. Fastball up to 98.4

— Matt Winkelman ( @Matt_Winkelman ) July 22, 2023

[flyers19rw]

The last play by Bohm in the bottom of the fifth with one out in the Guardians game clearly showed his lack of range and weak play at 3B. Some of you guys just want to go negative on him. It’s hard to overcome a rap that came with him on draft day but Bohm has done that.

[zambonir]

He makes some very nice plays. So do other bad fielders. Kyle Schwarber made an amazing one the other night. So has Nick C, and he may have actually improved more than Bohm has (but still isn't good). And bad hitters also get big hits.

I'm more concerned - but slowly being won over at this point - by his offense. If he can really be a .300 hitter and his style of hitting actually sustains itself with men on base his defense still doesn't really matter. But his margin for error on both counts (as a mediocre fielder at best and a lower-power hitter) remains slim. If we're gonna talk about Bohm's rep - and where he was taken - on draft day, he's a disappointing hitter, regardless of his glove.

[LoneStarPhan]

My hope is that any trade made by the deadline does not sell out the future by moving prospects that are critical to the future success of the Phillies. The present team has been built on the high dollar, long term free agents signed recently. This is an unsustainable model of success. Without young productive players, we will be doomed to years of mediocracy at best.

Trading O'Hoppe for Marsh is one thing because the Phillies have valuable productivity for multiple seasons. Trading Moniak is a totally different thing. While the Phillies got some 2022 starts in return, we are now facing years of lost productivity. That can be acceptable only when the minor league system is producing productive players at a rate greater than can be used. So far, the Phillies system has not reached that point.

I have more confidence in DD than I have had in the organizational leaders in a long time. I understand the need to give it the bust shot possible to make the post season each year, but I also have a strong desire to make deals that strengthen the organization into the future. It will not be easy but I hope a few moves can be made that will help this year without significantly hurting the orgainization.

In any event, we will soon know what they do.

[andyb]

I am not negative on Bohm. Just realistic. It is mediocre range. Good arm. Experience is cutting down the errors and improving the decision-making. But he started out as among the worst in the league. He is now a little below average there. He is certainly playable there if he keeps the OPS over 725 or 750.

Bohm also helps THIS TEAM at 1B because we don't really have one dramatically better than him (offensively or defensively). Which is why he continues to play 1B against LHP and maybe a few other pitchers to let Bryce DH (and then Sosa play 3B). He works hard and has made himself a passable 3B which is to his credit. But he simply is not great there no matter how he looks to the casual fan.

[VoteForKalas]

Dombrowski's job as club President is to balance 2023 needs against the organization's future. There is, inevitably, some tension between the short-term (2023) and longer-term (2024 and after) needs of the organization - and thus, some potential tension between the manager and the President ( At the end of the day, the roster decision is Dombrowski's, not Thomson's.

Agree that is DD's job, but I think he has shown over his career that short term goals normally outweigh long term needs. His reputation and track record is to leave few stones unturned to win now with less focus on prospects and the future. I suspect that is how he will continue to proceed at the deadline.

[VoteForKalas]

I'm more concerned - but slowly being won over at this point - by his offense. If he can really be a .300 hitter and his style of hitting actually sustains itself with men on base his defense still doesn't really matter. But his margin for error on both counts (as a mediocre fielder at best and a lower-power hitter) remains slim. If we're gonna talk about Bohm's rep - and where he was taken - on draft day, he's a disappointing hitter, regardless of his glove.

Agree with this, his margin is slim and he needs to keep hitting to balance out the field work even if it has improved some since he started. I would still play Bohm every day including Sunday over Sosa, but I'm openly biased against the Phillies always having a Pedro Feliz type on the roster, especially at 3B to cover for their talent acquisition and development failures.

[zambonir]

As Andy points out this is all situational anyway. Bohm at 1B and Sosa at 3B is still better than any other options they've had to this point (including Clemens and Hall in the end, as well as Harrison and Ellis) regardless of what you think of either Bohm or Sosa individually. After a few more weeks - and especially after the trade deadline - Bohm shouldn't really need to play 1B except maybe for Harper off-days and Sosa will play a lot less.

At this point comparing Sosa to Pedro Feliz is pretty unfair to Pedro fielding-wise though I suspect the numbers might say otherwise there too.

The bench just never made sense. Harrison should be the primary back-up 3B except he's also a RHB and can't hit. Sosa is a classic utility IF who should play SS and 2B except there's very little playing time there (and he also hits from the same side as the 3B and the SS).

[Philsmania]

LSP, Moniak probably would have been nontendered or traded for spare parts after 2022.

[zambonir]

He wouldn't have been anywhere near a non-tender, but yeah. You actually can't separate that deal from the O'Hoppe deal because even though Thor was a rental Marsh's arrival also ended Mickey's chance of finding a spot on this year's team. At the time it felt like a low price - and that Moniak wasn't even the top asset in the deal.

I still reckon there won't be room for all of Rojas, Pache and Muzziotti on the 40 next year (especially if Bryce returns to RF).

[zambonir]

lol, our left fielder's spectacular defense is now a t-shirt.

Kyle Schwarber: Air Schwarbs Shirt, Philly - MLBPA Licensed -BreakingT