Hamilton Area Sports

For commentary on local sports from the Hamilton Square Area

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Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Can the Phillies reach a century of wins?

Last year was a great year for Phillies fans considering it was the first trip to the playoffs since 1993. One aspect overlooked by many Phillies fans since they made it to the playoffs was their record of 89-73. Their record was the best since 1993 but they have had years where they were close to this win-loss. For the past two decades, the Phillies have hovered around 90 wins and the statement this year by guru MVP Jimmy Rollins is that the Phillies are going to win 100 games this season. The offense is there, but is the pitching. As much as I would love to believe in J-Rolls prediction, I still have my doubts. The Phillies can produce runs but the problem has not been having runners cross the plate but rather preventing the other team from making it around the bases. Pat Gillick knows that this was the problem last year and has made some roster moves to ensure several more wins but does the addition of Brad Lidge and Chad Durbin give this team 20 more wins? I believe that the Phillies have the pitching talent to get to 100 wins, but the problem is not talent but health. During the 2007 season, the Phillies lost many key pitchers for a considerable amount of time and that cost the Phillies some wins. Going into this year, the Phillies seem to have a sound and healthy rotation and the addition of Chad Durbin as an injury starter does help considering the Phillies had to rely on rookie Kyle Kendrick last year. Without Kendricks amazing season, the Phillies would have never made it to the playoffs. Scott Mathieson, who has had big league experience, will also boost the rotation with his 90+ mph fastball should someone go down with an injury. Pitching wins games there is no doubt about it and the Phillies have the pieces to win 100 but it will rely on staying away from the injury bug.