Watched the game on ESPN today

[wcoastphan]

Been gone for a long time. Truth be told, I just couldn't get a handle on teh new interface when you guys shifted from PHPbb

Anyway, I watched teh game on ESPN today. Don't get much of an opportunity to see my team out here due to my schedule and limited TV access...

Watching the game, I saw lots of fans with Phillies jerseys. Names like Victorino, Halliday,Howard, Rollins, Utley....
Some were being worn by phans who clearly were too young to have vivid (if any) memories of seeing these guys in Phillies uniforms.

Did not see a single jersey with a current name, though. Are tehre any players on this team who are gaining traction with the Phanbase?

[zambonir]

That stuff takes time especially when there are only 18,000 people going to games, as there had been until this year. J-Roll had already been on the team for seven seasons before they made the playoffs, he had time to build a following, as did Burrell. And Howard and Utley got popular quickly by being so great quickly. Our guys haven't been that great, let alone great for very long. But once they win something...

In the meantime, Hoskins is the guy for sure. Nola has gotta be coming up strong now. And Herrera has his devotees.

Santana and Hernandez just aren't big personalities, and their skill set is kind of quiet too. I'm sure Arrieta sold some merch initially.

[California_Dreamin]

Watch how popular Machado or Hamels jerseys will be come late July/early August. This is a very good Phillie team, have been since after the All-Star break last year, and people are beginning to notice. The NL East division title is there for the taking. Phils know it, and phans will begin to know it. Could be a very fun summer, and if they get to the playoffs, anything can happen.

Hard to believe but true.

[zambonir]

Whenever he gets here, no question Machado will own the town.

[julio]

In the meantime, Hoskins is the guy for sure.

I tried to find a Hoskins jersey online, from the Sydney Blue Sox (from the winter he spent playing for them), but came up empty. It was to be a way of saying, "I've been watching this guy since before most of you knew he existed!" Would have been fun to wear to, for instance, a Crosscutters game.

[phillychuck]

I went to one of the games in the Yankees series, and I must have seen 30 or 40 Hoskins jerseys. Outnumbered all of the current Phillies' jerseys combined. He's definitely the guy.

Julio, get a generic Sydney Blue Sox jersey and have a custom shirt company add Hoskins' name. It's not that expensive.

[tom81]

I’m going to wear my El Torito shirt my next game. First time I won’t be wearing my Abreu one.

[Philsmania]

In 2001 when the Phillies started winning again, there were plenty of Kruk, Dykstra, Daulton and Schilling jerseys representing the ghosts of '93.

But yes, Hoskins is the leader now. The Slugger is always the fan favorite. Seeing more and more Nola's now. As for Herrera, I'm surprised at how few we see. A lot of phans have a visceral dislike for him because of his goofball nature (coupled, I believe, with his skin complexion).

[phillychuck]

Personally, I love the "goofball nature" in Herrera--makes him a much more entertaining player on a day-to-day basis. And when he's hot, he's scorching! I honestly hope Phillies' phans are way beyond worrying about skin color in their players!

[el-pietro]

I have a Jon Singleton Astros t shirt for a similar reason (I was gutted when he was traded and I was sure he was gonna be the real thing).

[el-pietro]

Odubel is 100% my favourite player in this team. I think Nola is the best player by a large margin and I love watching him pitch but Odubel is so much fun.

[zambonir]

Personally, I love the "goofball nature" in Herrera--makes him a much more entertaining player on a day-to-day basis. And when he's hot, he's scorching! I honestly hope Phillies' phans are way beyond worrying about skin color in their players!

Well, it's complicated. And not just for the Phillies, the other teams too. But I think with most Latin players it's just that they don't speak English and are often pretty low-key as a result. Herrera, however, has the personality and performance (and the nickname) to overcome that. But at the same time, yes, he is also one of the most disliked players on the team with some fans (the "play the game the right way" anti-bat toss types). In a way that rarely comes up with white guys. And being the best player on a 60-70 win team for three seasons isn't going to be a marketing bonanza.

Winning changes everything. If Franco had turned out to be a cornerstone slugger and perennial all-star he'd be more loved (though he was still on those same bad teams). .

[Austinfan]

I think with Odubel it's less about race and culture than sheer frustration.
I've never see a player go from all star to all bum in such a short period of time, and back again.
He's the girl with the curl: "when she was good she was very, very good, when she was bad she was horrid."

If he ever puts it together, he'll have his own army.

[julio]

I honestly hope Phillies' phans are way beyond worrying about skin color in their players!

I'm sure most of the phans are beyond that.

Still, if I had to guess... something on the order of 20% t0 30%. More or less the same percentages as all serious surveys identify nationally as voting in the last presidential election specifically because of white resentment. It's no longer "most of us," but it's real, and it's still out there. I grew up in Pennsyltucky; believe me, it's real.

[zambonir]

Yes but if he was white there wouldn't be as much "frustration." Consider the way Hoskins not running out a ball got played in the media last week compared to past similar incidents with Herrera and Rollins (and Williams, in the minors).

Funny, I saw Rhys Hoskins go from all-star to bum and back again just in the past five weeks. Herrera is never gonna "put it together," because he's already together. He's always going to be unconventional and streaky, and he's still the best player on the team, overall. Hopefully that won't remain the case but only because the other players get better (or we get new players).

[schillingfan]

One thing I love about Herrera is when he's swung at a bad pitch and strikes out, he pounds his head, like "you idiot." He may be goofy and unfocused, but he cares.

[Austinfan]

Hoskins is in his rookie season for all intents and purposes, as he gets more experienced, he'll become a more consistent hitter because he's so disciplined.
It's like Santana, horrid start but a history of getting hot in May and sure enough . . .

On the other hand, Kingery looks overmatched to me.

Odubel is different because his switches from hot to cold and back are so sudden, he'll hit 500 for ten days then go 1 for 18 and look awful, then suddenly start pounding balls. I think his swing has too many moving parts and is saved only by great reflexes and eye to hand coordination.

[phillychuck]

Kingery has adjusted at every level in the minors. With him it's all about pitch selection and recognition--the mechanics of the swing and the eye-hand coordination are excellent. Let's hope he can adjust in the big leagues--he really could have used at least 1/2 season in AAA.

[julio]

On the other hand, Kingery looks overmatched to me.

Kingery has adjusted at every level in the minors.

Timing is everything. Scott Kingery certainly didn't appear to be overmatched last night - four for five, with three runs scored, one RBI (two-out), a walk and a strikeout. He committed a throwing error - but I don't consider his errors at shortstop indicative of anything except that he's playing out of position - which is not his fault, and not a knock against him. He has a second baseman's arm, and his playing shortstop is like Chase Utley's minor-league season at third base - a rather bad idea driven by an exigency not related to the player.

I don't know that last night's game represents an adjustment to the majors, or whether it was just part of one of those nights when everybody hit everything - mad scramble at the bat rack.

[EastFallowfield]

His error last night was when he was shifted over to what we used to call "second"