One for the ages

There are human beings that travel around in order to cover the Philadelphia 76ers. Believe it or not, they are smart and caring people who live lives and have others who care about them. In fact, guys like Martin Frank and Dennis Deitch or two fellows that I consider friends and I wish them no ill will.

Apparently the team in which they cover is a little more sadistic, but we'll get to that in a moment. If these folks are going to survive the season and come out on the other side of it OK, we should know a little something about them just in case...

Martin and Dennis are as talented as they come in this business of ours. Martin always cuts to the heart of a story and he sees things that most people miss. He and I also spent a long May afternoon wiling away the time at Pimilco before Smarty Jones ran to a record-smashing victory in the 2004 Preakness. Since there were a slew of races on the undercard before the big race and they had a betting window in the press box, Martin and I decided the only logical thing to do was to study the race form and put a few dollars on a horse or two.

If I remember the day correctly, Martin did OK with the horses and the writing. I did better with the writing than I did with the horses. On the plus side, I came away with a better understanding of the phenomenon known as, "The betting window in the press box." I'm on the pro side of the argument (if there is even an argument).

Deitch is the most clever dude covering sports in Philadelphia. That’s not hyperbole or blowing smoke, either. Facts are facts and if there is anything remotely interesting going on with the 76ers, Deitch is the first place to check. That’s not a knock on anyone else, it’s just that Dennis sees through all the traps and talking points floated out there.

So when I finished watching the Lakers and Celtics play in one of the more entertaining NBA games this season, I flipped over to watch the Sixers face the Nets…

Yeah.

Let’s just say there was a bit of a difference in the quality of play in the two games. After watching the Lakers handle the Sixers last Friday night, my interest was piqued enough to want to watch how they measure up against a better opponent. Better yet, it was quite a treat to see a stellar performance from Celtics’ point guard Rajon Rondo. That dude can play.

Meanwhile, up at the Meadowlands it didn’t take very long for my heart to sink into the pit of my stomach and immediately feel a bit of empathy for Martin, Dennis and the rest of the gang. Did they get hazard pay for traveling to North Jersey to watch that game? Do their eyes still ache more than a day later?

I can only imagine that Deitch probably had to drop to one knee in order to catch his breath and re-organize his thoughts shortly after the final horn sounded. Poor guy.

The Sixers beat the Nets on Sunday evening, but not by much. Thanks to… well, thanks to no one in particular, the Sixers dealt the Nets their 42nd defeat (83-79) of the season in 46 games. For those scoring at home, the Nets are on pace to finish 7-75 this season, which is two wins shy of the all-time worst season in pro sports by the 1972-73 76ers. Frankly, it’s amazing that any team in this age of sports (with expansion and a salary cap) outside of the Los Angeles Clippers could flirt with a record that seemed like the NBA’s version of Joe DiMaggio’s hitting streak.

Yet like the ’73 Sixers once were, the Nets are 4-42, but just missed pulling off their second win in three games. If the Nets could have won on Sunday night, it seemingly makes the record for the worst season safe for another year. But if there was ever a game the Nets should have won, it was the one against the Sixers. After all, the Nets’ defense held the Sixers to 36.5 percent shooting from the field and out-rebounded them, 50-47.

Looks like the Nets might have a date with destiny.

“I looked at the stat sheet and saw we shot, what, 36 percent? And still won the ball game? Man,” Allen Iverson said. “Obviously they didn’t play well at all for us to be able to win a game like that.”

What about the gang who had to sit there and then write about the game afterwards? How demoralized are those guys? Do you think it’s easy watching bad games night after night? Having seen the 2002 and 2004 Phillies up close the answer is an obvious, no. Losing is a communicable ailment that is airborne and contagious. It infects all that it comes in contact with and ruins the good will of kind-hearted people.

Worse, a game like Sunday’s in the Meadowlands can break a man’s spirit. When the game ended I was worried about the writing corps and feared that something bad was going to happen. Maybe after filing a story they would go to their car in the parking lot and find that the tires of the car had been slashed. Maybe after watching the game someone developed a rash and needed to rush down the Turnpike in order to get something lanced?

These are the times that try men’s souls.

Fortunately, morale appears to be high. In the Delaware County Daily Times, Mr. Deitch looked at the game from a historical perspective. Sure, the Sixers won the game, but in the process they nearly took the sport back to its peach basket days.

Deitch wrote:

If you said that this abomination set the game of basketball back 50 years, Wilt Chamberlain would crawl out of his grave and smack you for disrespecting his era.

Burn the tape. What, they don’t use tape any longer? Melt the memory card.

If you witnessed this game, seek therapy. And you might want to enter a decontamination shower, like Meryl Steep in “Silkwood.”

It really was that awful.

Here’s the ugliness Double D describes: The Nets scored just two fastbreak points in the game and were whistled for a shot-clock violation when trailing by two points with less than two minutes to go in the game. With feats like that one has to wonder about the Nets’ chances against the Washington Generals.

It wasn’t too much better on the winning side, either, with the Sixers missing 16 shots in the final quarter. More telling was the fact that the Sixers didn’t break into double-figures in scoring in the final quarter until the final minute. By that point the Sixers had to score because the Nets kept fouling them to stop the clock.

And to think, after the game some of the Sixers had the nerve to talk about how bad the Nets are.

“It is a frustrating thing. We just can’t play down to the level of our competition,” Iverson said.

“I’ve been on some pretty poor teams, but never that poor,” said Elton Brand, who went from going 66-7 in two seasons at Duke, to 15-67 in his first season in the NBA with the Bulls.

To be fair, maybe Sunday’s epic wasn’t the worst game ever or set the league back a half century, but it wasn’t one to be proud of, either.

Wrote Deitch:

So, maybe the fog of time just made it seem like Sunday night's game was the worst. But trust me -- this was a once-in-a-decade display. There were at least five shots that hit off the side or bottom of the backboard. (I'm still trying to figure out where the hell Willie Green was aiming that fourth-quarter shot.) The general sloppiness and disorder was brutal to watch, and the fact that both teams saved their worst play for the fourth quarter -- you know, when you're supposed to put your best foot forward -- made it a form of torture to watch.

Send the video to Abu Ghraib.

Paying attention is hard - Part III

Interestingly, third basemen Mike Lowell and Scott Rolen have the same agent. Even more interesting, the Phillies have not inquired about making a deal for either player. But then again, the team says all they are interested in is adding pitching. Yeah, we've been all over this before.

But it's free agency period and everyone is into the Hot Stove stuff which means memories are short or ears are clogged or both. People will pay attention to what they want and they will only hear enough to keep the rumor-mongers in business. That's what it is now - rumors and innuendo. Forget about facts and news. That's boring.

It's boring like the news from the St. Louis papers regarding Rolen, who reportedly is seeking a trade away from the Cardinals because of a damaged relationship with manager Tony La Russa. This is old news. In fact, it was well known last summer that Rolen did not want to return to the Cardinals in 2008 if La Russa was going to remain the team's manager. But with La Russa signed on for a couple more years, it has come to light that Rolen is seeking a trade.

Again, no surprise there.

Here's the thing though - because Rolen apparently wants to be traded away from the Cardinals and because it's assumed the Phillies are after a third baseman because it's also assumed that they need one (even though the Phillies say obtaining a third baseman is "not a priority"), immediately the Rolen-to-Phillies stories creep up.

What are we missing here?

Oh yeah, how about the facts. Like the fact that Rolen has a no-trade clause with an unwritten line that states, "I'll waive it for anywhere but Baghdad or Philadelphia." Or the fact that Rolen still has three years remaining on his contract and is owed $36 million coupled with the report that the Cards will not help pay the freight. What about the fact that Rolen missed most of 2005 and 2007 seasons because of injuries that may or may not have taken away some of his offensive punch.

Do the facts matter or do they just get in the way of a good story?

Answers: No and yes.

Either way, let us reinterate the main point again - Rolen has a no-trade clause. It means he can't be traded anywhere unless he waives it and this is often done for a hefty fee. Knowing what we know about Rolen's first 6½ seasons in Philadelphia and the way he was received in all of his visits since 2002, what sane person would think he'd want to return to play for the Phillies, let alone fly over the city in the Enola Gay?

And don't give me a silly answer like, "money" because Rolen already accepted a smaller paycheck to play for St. Louis.

Look, certainly Rolen is not the first player Tony La Russa rubbed the wrong way. Needless to say, La Russa isn't the first manager Rolen has had trouble with. Actually, it seems as if the only manager Rolen did well with was Terry Francona. Let's be hypocrites and play the rumor game, only we'll be a little more original and make up one of our own...

Ready?

OK, Lowell signs with the Cardinals and Rolen gets traded to the Red Sox... how does that work?

Hey, it's the best I could come up with on short notice.

But, you know, paying attention is hard. That's especially true when the real story gets in the way of the more entertaining story.

Speaking of which, Mike Lowell ain't coming to Philadelphia either... then again, what does his agent or Phils' GM Pat Gillick know?

So long, sailor... It's worth noting that Dennis Deitch of the Delaware County Daily Times finally found a seat with a desk. That means regular hours, holidays off and no more travelling around following a baseball team all summer long. That frees him up to do... well, whatever it is he does. Dungeons & Dragons, I guess. Perhaps some Everquest with Curt Schilling, poker at the Borgata and more time spent honing his act as the new crocodile hunter.

To that end we wish Dennis well, note our envy and hope he learns how to duck and move a little more quickly. For us that remain the departure means no more ridiculously riotous comments made with pitch-perfect timing[1]. For us, that sucks.

But kudos, Dennis. Kudos.

If you're scoring at home, the scribes now have subtracted Marcus Hayes and Deitch from the ranks... I say the beat guys get to vote the next guy off the island. Does it work that way?

---

[1] Timing, of course, is relative. Perhaps Dennis' timing is perfect because it's so inappropriate? That's probably the case.

Did you see that?

There is not much new to report from the home base here in The Lanc. All is quiet here, which is just the way we like it. Actually, it’s so quiet around here that more than a few folks appear to be worked up about the Phillies’ loss to those wily Washington Nats last night. Never mind the fact that the Phillies have scored just five runs in two games in Washington, or the fact that the entire lineup appears to have dived into a funk at exactly the same time. No, the play or decision that rankled some folks was manager Charlie Manuel’s determination to use lefty Russ Branyan as a pinch hitter against lefty reliever Ray King with no outs and two on in the seventh inning.

Branyan, needless to say, struck out. Hey, that’s just what he does. But the consensus seems to be that Manuel should have yanked Branyan for a right-handed hitter, which would have been the standard baseball move. But Manuel doesn’t have that option with his rice paper–thin bench. Because of injuries to Chase Utley, Michael Bourn and Shane Victorino, Manuel can’t waste too many players in such a situation. Righties Chris Coste, Jayson Werth and Wes Helms were in the game instead of on the bench, where Chris Roberson was the only other option aside from Branyan.

Regardless, Branyan’s whiff, and Jimmy Rollins’ subsequent strike out, was not the main reason why the Phillies lost to the Nats last night. The fact that the Phillies only got three hits off starter Tim Redding through six innings was much more significant.

When former Phillies attack former Phillies… Meanwhile, I was able to get my hands on a copy of the bat attack by former Phillie Jose Offerman on former Phillie Matt Beach in the Atlantic League game from earlier this week. Check it out:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEuWQcPQfuw]

Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

*** Over the past couple of days I have read a few of the remembrances of former Yankees legend Phil Rizzuto, who died this week at age 84. Suffice it to say, Rizzuto lived a charmed life that seemed to transcend mere baseballdom. If I am not mistaken, the Scooter is the only man to win the World Series, and AL MVP Award, be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, and win an Grammy Award, which he got for his role in Meat Loaf’s “Paradise By the Dashboard Light.”

Growing up in Washington and Lancaster, I wasn’t privy to Rizzuto’s work with the Yankees’ broadcasts, but I was well aware of his work with Mr. Loaf and the commercials for The Money Store, which were spectacular.

Can you imagine such a place? The Money Store… who would have guessed?

Anyway, from the little bits I was able to piece together and from the stories people tell, Rizzuto was the perfect baseball announcer. Sure, he was probably lacking when it came to in-depth analysis and strategery type stuff, but really, who cares? Instead, Rizzuto entertained listeners with stories about the players, his life and the restaurants he visited. It seemed as if he was just another guy hanging out with the gang to watch the game and talk to his friends… that is the perfect announcer.

Plus, Rizzuto was funny. Who doesn’t use “Holy Cow!” as an exultation? Or, when calling a spectacular play while broadcasting a game on the radio Rizzuto would exclaim, “Did you see that?!”

Uh, no Phil… it’s radio.

The favorite, of course, was one Puerto Rico Day at Yankee Stadium when Scooter was describing the scene to his listeners, poked his head out of the press box window and exclaimed into the microphone, “… and look at all those Puuuuuuuuerto Ricans!”

It would have been neat to have heard Rizzuto call games regularly, but we’ll always have “Paradise by the Dashboard Light.”

*** Finally, I believe in the First Amendment. Actually, without the freedom of speech we have nothing. It’s the right that makes all others possible.

Be that as it is, there is one man whose entry to the so-called blogosphere who could push those freedoms to their ever-elastic breaking point.

Yes, Dennis Deitch has a blog.

God bless America. God bless us all.

Late night at the old ballpark...

Hey, I told you so…

The idea this winter was that catcher Carlos Ruiz wasn’t quite ready to handle the intricacies of playing every day in the big leagues. So to help out the rookie backstop, the Phillies spent $3 million on Rod Barajas. But so far this season Barajas has struggled and his playing time has waned, while Ruiz is second amongst all rookies with 17 RBIs and fourth with 28 hits in just 98 at-bats heading into Thursday’s action.

Interestingly, the Phillies very easily could have had Ruiz and Chris Coste as the team’s catchers for the league minimum… or Mike Lieberthal for a third of Barajas’ salary.

So in our first installment of, “Hey, I told you so… ” Dennis Deitch of the Delaware County Daily Times offers a reprint of his story on the day the Phillies signed Barajas.

Phillies sign catcher Barajas
By DENNIS DEITCH

PHILADELPHIA – When Pat Burrell offered so little protection to Ryan Howard in the batting order that the eventual MVP couldn't get a pitch to hit, the Phillies turned to Jeff Conine, who offered some professionalism to the fifth spot in the batting order.

When Mike Lieberthal's injury-plagued career with the Phillies wound to an injury-plagued conclusion last season, Chris Coste filled the gap and hit .328, including .356 with runners in scoring position.

Conine and Coste received nifty Christmas presents from the Phillies Thursday for their 2006 efforts: Conine got a one-way ticket to Cincinnati, while Coste watched as Rod Barajas signed a one-year deal with the Phils to relegate last year's feel-good story to third-stringer.

Next up for Pat Gillick: A Christmas Eve reindeer hunt.

Actually, the Phillies' general manager isn't out to ruin the holidays for anyone – at least not purposely. But you have to wonder whether his personnel decisions in recent days are improving the Phillies.

According to Gillick, the signing of outfielder Jayson Werth Tuesday didn't leave much playing time for Conine in an outfield that includes Burrell and his disappearing act, Aaron Rowand and his well-worn Blue Cross/Blue Shield card, and Shane Victorino.

"We think we weren't going to be able to give Jeff the playing time we were a month ago, six weeks ago," Gillick said. "When Werth was completed, we thought the best plan for us was to move Jeff on. I know he wants playing time. Right now, we project Werth is going to get a majority of the playing time that Jeff had.

"We acquired a player who can do similar things. I'd say that at this point, Werth is a better option."

Hmm. That guy who does similar things is the same Werth who didn't play a game in 2005; who has had two surgeries to correct a wrist injury suffered 21 months ago and admittedly isn't completely healed; who has a shade over 800 big-league plate appearances and a career .245 average, compared to Conine and his 7,500 plate appearances and .286 lifetime average.

At least the Phils got a pair of underwhelming prospects in return – a no-bat third baseman named Brad Key, and outfielder Javon Moran, who originally started in the Phillies' organization, but was traded to Cincy for Cory Lidle in 2004.

"It was a little bit of a surprise a couple of days before Christmas to get the call from Pat Gillick," "Obviously I didn't have a long tenure there in Philadelphia."

As for Barajas, he received a $2.5 million contract from the Phils for 2007, with a team option for 2008. Barajas started about two-thirds of the games behind the plate for the Rangers over the last three seasons and averaged 16 homers and 53 RBIs per year in that span while batting a lukewarm .252.

It should be noted that Barajas put up those numbers in the American League, where the No. 9 hitter in the lineup often sees a healthy dose of fastballs. That particularly was the case for Barajas, who was hitting in front of players like Gary Matthews Jr., David Dellucci and Michael Young while in Texas.

There was some controversy when Barajas changed agents after some reports had him reaching a verbal agreement with the Blue Jays last month.

"I wanted to the right fit for me," Barajas said. "This feels completely right."

According to the Phillies, Barajas and Carlos Ruiz will share time behind the plate, with performance determining which catcher makes the majority of starts.

So, does Coste at least have a spot on the club as a bench player solidified?

"I can't use the word solidify," Gillick said. "We still need a left-handed hitter. The fact that Werth can catch some … there's some flexibility there. If we acquire a left-handed hitter, someone could be in jeopardy."

Hard to believe a guy who hit .328 who showed a knack for clutch hitting and delivering in the pinch might be at peril … but so says Gillick.

When it comes to protecting Howard in the order next season, Gillick said, "If we don't get another hitter, we'll probably make an internal adjustment to back up Ryan."

Mandelbaum! Mandelbaum!

On another note, I (as well as a bunch from the Philadelphia-writing contingent) was nearly hospitalized from laughing so hard when Ken Mandel, dressed as the big-headed Thomas Jefferson, took a header onto the outfield grass during the always-popular Presidents Race held between innings. Ken, not exactly the epitome of grace or athleticism (think the opposite of Adonis!), finished DFL in the four-man race in part because he fell -- head first -- not once, but twice. Worse, when he finally got his equilibrium together, the Phillies.com scribe seemed to dash for the first row of seats near the Phillies' dugout instead of for the finish line.

Yes, it was a black day for baseball.

But it was also the hardest I laughed at a ballgame since the Oriole Bird moment in Baltimore during the 2001 season.

While Ken was running like Thomas Jefferson with his head cut off, Dennis Deitch, the easy-going (yeah, that's an apt description for Deitch) writer for the Delaware County Daily Times finished second in the race. Wearing the George Washington head, Deitch ran gamely despite falling behind to Abraham Lincoln very early. Deitch bravely made up ground after the midway point of the race, but the deficit was too much to overcome.

Meanwhile, Phils' pitcher Randy Wolf seemed to know that the man wearing the Jefferson suit was Mandel after the first fall, and alerted a few of his teammates. I suppose there is something about Mandel falling flat on his face that is unmistakable.

On a final note, Deitch was welcomed back into the press box with rousing cheers following his race. His competitiveness deserved the applause.

Mandel, on the other hand, was greeted with even louder cheers though it was the type of applause saved for a guy who limps away after embarrassingly getting kicked in the groin.

One more thing regarding scribes and running: Rich Hofmann looks as if he is fit enough to rip off a 3:30 marathon even though he only hits the roads three or four times a week.

End of an era?

The Phillies played another doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday, and Pat Burrell was not in the lineup for either game. Chances are the star-crossed slugger will be in left field when the Phillies close out the series against the Braves’ lefty Chuck James on Thursday, but make no mistake about it, the team’s brass is sending a loud-and-clear message to their $50 million man:

“You are not needed here.”

By now, close followers of the Phillies have deciphered Burrell’s limited role during the wild-card chase. Better yet, Marcus Hayes and Dennis Deitch have written very trenchant and unflinching looks at the former No. 1 draft pick, who, despite the early raves, big contract, and unlimited potential, never seemed to live up to the expectations.

There is no crime in that, of course. Often, the media anoints a player to be a star even though he isn’t built for the rigors or pressure that come with it. Other times they just misdiagnose how good a player really is.

Then there is the case of Pat Burrell.

There was nothing about Burrell’s ascent to the big leagues, nor his first three seasons with the Phillies, that indicated he was a mediocre ballplayer. Then again, it’s hard to call his 24-homers and 84-RBIs 2006 season mediocre. Disappointing? Yes, especially when one factors in the promise and the hype that greeted Burrell after the 2002 season in which he had his supposed “breakout” year.

What’s most enigmatic about Burrell – other than his personality – is his failure to produce with runners in scoring position this season, as well as his failure to… well, hit during this past month. Sure, Burrell has had trouble with his wrist and his foot, both which needed surgery at one point or another. But it’s also fair to point out that Burrell’s celebrated nocturnal habits might also have something to do with his leveling off as a player.

This isn’t to say Burrell doesn’t put in the work. At least as far as it’s known, he used to. Before the injuries, winters were spent with fitness guru Mark Verstegen at the Athlete’s Performance Center in Arizona, and Burrell may very well spend time there. It’s just that every serious athlete comes to a point in his career where he has to make a choice – is he going to be serious, take nothing for granted and dedicate himself to his craft on and off the field, which means proper rest, a proper diet and good habits.

Or, is he going to live in the moment and hope that the fickle hands of father time don’t massage him before his prime… or before he even has one.

Burrell still has a choice. After all, he doesn’t turn 30 until Oct. 10. But if he’s going to refocus his energies to baseball, it might be a good choice for him to waive that no-trade clause where he can enter his prime in another city.

Good reading...

Here are some stories that stood out on Monday morning:

Scott Lauber's feature in the Wilmington News Journal on Tommy John surgery is outstanding. This is his first year covering the Phillies, but already Lauber has stood out with his enthusiasm. He could turn out to be another Doug Lesmerises.

The New Yorker's take on the Bobby Abreu deal in The Times from local kid Tyler Kepner and Jack Curry. According to the story, the Yankees believe they got a steal. It's hard to argue with that.

From the before-and-after file, here's on from Dennis Deitch of the Delco Times published on Feb. 16, 2003 and the reprisal from July 31, 2006. Deitch has an innate ability to cut through the crap and tell the real story. For anyone who appreciates real iconoclasts, Deitch is your man. Better yet, he wisely believes that the Pixies are the greatest band in the past 25 years.

I call them No. 1a, standing astride Fugazi, but that's a different post for later.

And, of course, there is Todd Zolecki's short interview with Cory Lidle, who hucked a Moltov cocktail on his way out of Philadelphia. Very nice.

Deitch Column that his suck-ass paper did not put online

DENVER – Trades are an imperfect science. When two teams agree to a deal, clearly both sides believe the deal was at least balanced, and probably leaning in their favor. The goal for general managers is to make more good trades than bad trades, and the more significant the trade the more a G.M. needs a high success rate. It takes time to make a fair judgment on a trade. However, there are some trades where it doesn't matter some much whether they are good, bad or insignificant. The question begs: Was it necessary at all?

Just before the start of the season Phillies G.M. Pat Gillick decided that he wanted a power-hitting fifth outfielder enough that he traded Rob Tejeda to the pitching-desperate Rangers for veteran David Dellucci.

The season only is two weeks old. However, it hasn't been a great start for Dellucci. He entered Saturday night's game against the Rockies with one hit in 11 at-bats with five strikeouts.

When Dellucci arrived in Philadelphia hours before the season's opening game, it was clear he was shocked by the trade. In Texas he was slated to be a starter after a productive season in which he hit 29 home runs and scored 99 runs. With the Phillies he is a fifth outfielder, and fifth outfielders can expect to see maybe 200 plate appearances in a season – maybe.

Sure, you can make a speech about how baseball is a team sport and that winning should be every player's No. 1 priority. But let's say you were a standout at your place of work, then suddenly found yourself transferred to another office where you became a paper pusher who had far less significance.

Think you would take it in stride? Well, Dellucci is certainly fighting an inner battle over it. In fact, during an interview this weekend he said the phrase, "it's tough" so often he felt the need to apologize for repeating himself.

"It's tough," he said (obviously), "and there are a lot of variables that make it tougher. It's difficult for a player to go from two years of consistent playing time to a bench role. I'd be lying if I said I don't look at some of the opposing players who have 40 at-bats already and think about having 40 at-bats this time last year."

Based purely on statistical facts, it was tough to argue with the trade. Dellucci is a potent threat at the plate, and prior to getting an upgrade in playing time with the Rangers he was one of the better bench players in the majors. And the Phillies didn't give up the farm to get Dellucci. Tejeda could be a decent, bottom-of-the-rotation starter in the majors, or perhaps a good set-up reliever with some seasoning. The opinion of most is that he can be a big-league contributor, but Texas shouldn't expect any All-Star appearances from Tejeda.

The problem is that the Phillies probably would have been fine without making the trade. Chris Coste had an inspiring spring, not just for himself, but it caught the eyes of the other players in the clubhouse. No one would have had a qualm about Coste making the team, and just about everyone thought he deserve a chance to do so.

If having four outfielders became an uncomfortable situation, or if Coste did indeed use all of his hits in March, it wouldn't have been too difficult to find someone willing to make an in-season trade for a fifth outfielder.

Instead, what the Phillies have is a struggling fifth outfielder who knows he deserves better than to see five or six at-bats a week. Coste, meanwhile, is scuffling at Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes-Barre – and you know that his last-minute demotion is still tearing the career minor-leaguer in a million pieces.

Would Dellucci be struggling like this if he were still in Texas playing every day? Would Coste be unproductive if he were making pinch-hit appearances with the Phils instead of taking International League bus trips?

Maybe. The guess here is that two comfortable and content players in roles in which they both deserved to serve would be more productive than the two restless individuals languishing within the Phillies organization at the moment.

That is a factor Gillick should have taken into consideration when faced with that trade. And a career baseball guy like him should have known better than to ignore the consequences of upsetting the chemistry the way he did.

Deitch Column

PHILADELPHIA – It has been tough going for the Phillies' marketing department in the early going. They promoted the start of the season with a "Paint The Town Red" campaign that seemed to have a main purpose of turning the Phanatic into a mascot for the underworld. Once the season started the only thing that got painted red was the Phillies' derrieres, thanks to four straight spankings.

Saturday was feted as "Kids' Opening Day." There were two problems with that well-intended promotion: 1) The game was rained out, and 2) the press release for the event read "Kid's Opening Day."

Either there was only one kid scheduled to attend Saturday's game, or the Phillies were promoting crappy grammar to our youth.

OK, enough kicking the Phillies while they're (still) down. The point of this is to give an early alert to Scott Palmer, John Brazer and the other members of the Super Happy Club to be prepared for what could be a very, very interesting first weekend of May at Citizens Bank Park.

That weekend the Giants are coming to town, and there is a very strong possibility that Bonds' infamous quest to catch and pass Babe Ruth could reach its zenith in Philadelphia.

Bonds entered Saturday sitting at 708 career home runs, six short of the Babe's mark of 714, second on the all-time list. With 26 days between now and the start of the May 6-8 three-game series with the Giants, it wouldn't be surprising at all to see Bonds arrive in Philly with 712, 713 or 714 career homers.

One can only imagine what a Philadelphia crowd will have up its collective sleeve if Bonds is close to or tied with the Bambino that weekend. Heck, some fan in San Diego put down his sushi plate long enough to throw a syringe in Bonds' direction on opening day. Phillies fans might throw Victor Conte onto the field.

It will be tough for the Phillies to take any direct shots at Bonds, even good-natured ones. Here's hoping the Phanatic (non-underworld version) pulls out his powerlifting skit while Bonds is in town and has a couple of oversized prop bottles of "Cream" and “Clear” there to help him get his barbell overhead.

Don't worry, Super Happy Club – tell Bonds to sue me if he's offended.

***

Inspiration at times comes from within.

For instance, after Gavin Floyd was God-awful in his season debut against the Dodgers Friday night and was summarily booed off the field when Charlie Manuel had to take him out of the game in the third inning, someone in the press box said that the fans should be taken to task for aiding and abetting the destruction of Floyd's confidence (or lack thereof).

Which leads to this response: If Gavin Floyd is so fragile that hearing some boos after a genuinely lousy performance is going to undermine his ability to compete in the major leagues, what makes you think that you can ever trust him to pitch in a clutch circumstance?

This isn't to indict Floyd. He wasn't the one who complained about the booing, and perhaps he will go out there for his next start and be tremendous. However, for anyone to complain about the fans when their team has stumbled out to an 0-3 start and the player getting booed has paved a yellow brick road to 0-4 with his ineffectiveness is silly.

Was Floyd under the gun after the Phils were swept by the Cardinals? Yes, he was. But those are the proving grounds for pitchers. Those are the starts where a young pitcher can let his manager know that when it comes down to a big start in September, he can be trusted.

Floyd blew that test. The Phillies used the fourth overall pick in the 2001 draft and $4.2 million of signing-bonus money on Floyd. It matters. He has to live up to that investment. It might not be fair, but who thinks their line of work is fair?

A show of hands?

There's no reason to give up on Floyd yet. Pitchers, the best of them, have rough outings. But if one bad outing turns into two, and two turns into three, and three turns into four … well, after that expect to see Cole Hamels, a prospect who isn't short on guts. <!-- D(["mb","

\n

Hamels, incidentally, pitched six shutout innings in his debut for Class A Clearwater, and could get promoted to Double- or Triple-A with one more statement start like that.\n

\n

o

\n

Ironically, the final game of Ruth\'s career came May 30, 1935, in Philadelphia\n against the Phillies. The Phils had just swept Ruth\'s Boston Braves in a doubleheader that day. Apparently he couldn\'t bear the thought of playing for a team that actually was worse than the Phillies (the sweep improved the Phils to 11-22 and dropped the Braves to 9-25).\n

\n

\n

\n\n",0] ); D(["ce"]); //-->

Hamels, incidentally, pitched six shutout innings in his debut for Class A Clearwater, and could get promoted to Double- or Triple-A with one more statement start like that.

***

Ironically, the final game of Ruth's career came May 30, 1935, in Philadelphia against the Phillies. The Phils had just swept Ruth's Boston Braves in a doubleheader that day. Apparently he couldn't bear the thought of playing for a team that actually was worse than the Phillies (the sweep improved the Phils to 11-22 and dropped the Braves to 9-25).