The Philadelphia Philies have been owning the National League East the previous 5 seasons and last year they picked up 102 victories during the regular year. That went for naught though when Philly was beaten in the first round of the postseason versus St. Louis. Let's take a look at their lineup to work out if they have enough ability to score runs to win another division title. If you'd like more information on the team have a look at our Philadelphia Phillies 2012 preview.
Projected Lineup
Carlos Ruiz (Catcher) - Carlos Ruiz is among the more underrated backstops in the league today. The veteran has done an amazing job managing the Philadelphia pitching staff, and gave excellent offensive stats in the process. Last year he batted .283 with.371 OBP. Ruiz infrequently swings at an awful pitch. In fact , the guy struck out just 48 times in 410 at-bats last year.
Ryan Howard (First Base) - The All-Star first baseman Ryan Howard is expected to miss a couple of months while recovering from an Achilles ' injury he went through in the last game of the NLDS versus St. Louis. He is not expected back in the order until early May and veteran Ty Wigginton is anticipated to start in his spot in the meantime. The giant concern the Phillies have coming into the 2012 year is whether the injury will affect Howard's power stats after he returns in May.
Chase Utley (2nd Base) - Chronic knee tendinitis forced Utley to sit out the 1st 46 games of the year last year and injuries are keeping him out of the order at the beginning of 2012 too. The injury took its toll on his offensive production in 2011, as he batted for a career-worst .259 average to go along with 11 homers and 44 RBI in 103 games. Now that Utley has had a full winter to recover and is making the effort to get into game shape, the Phillies hope that the Utley who will show up in 2012 will be the Utley who batted .282 with 31 homers and 92 RBI in 2009.
Jimmy Rollins (Shortstop) - Another Philadelphia player who has been constrained by injury is Jimmy Rollins. In spite of this, I believe we continue to haven't seen the last of what Rollins can do. Rollins managed to bat .268 with 16 homers, 63 RBI and 30 steals in just 142 games last year. And I believe that he has what is required to have similar if not better stats in 2012.
Placido Polanco (3rd Base) - The 36-year-old vet is still as good defensively as anybody, but his offensive numbers are beginning to regress. Polanco's .277 average last season was a career low for a season in which he played at least 100 games.
John Mayberry Jr. (Left Field) - The Phillies are truly excited about what Mayberry Jr. Can do on offense. The 28-year-old is coming off a year in which he hit .273 with 15 homers and 49 RBI in just 267 at-bats. The Phillies are hoping for more of the same in 2012.
Shane Victorino (Center Field) - Victorino is another player who was held down by the injury bug last year. He played a great 2011 year before a thumb and hamstring injury finished it prematurely. In 132 games, Victorino hit .279 with 17 homers, 16 triples and 61 RBI.
Hunter Pence (Right Field) - After a midseason deal that landed him in Philly from the Houston Astros, Pence actually caught on fire and was a major help in the Phillies ' search for playoff contention. In 100 games with Houston, Pence hit .308 with 11 homers and 62 RBI; in just 54 games with the Phillies, he hit .324 with 11 homers and 35 RBI.
Projected Lineup
Carlos Ruiz (Catcher) - Carlos Ruiz is among the more underrated backstops in the league today. The veteran has done an amazing job managing the Philadelphia pitching staff, and gave excellent offensive stats in the process. Last year he batted .283 with.371 OBP. Ruiz infrequently swings at an awful pitch. In fact , the guy struck out just 48 times in 410 at-bats last year.
Ryan Howard (First Base) - The All-Star first baseman Ryan Howard is expected to miss a couple of months while recovering from an Achilles ' injury he went through in the last game of the NLDS versus St. Louis. He is not expected back in the order until early May and veteran Ty Wigginton is anticipated to start in his spot in the meantime. The giant concern the Phillies have coming into the 2012 year is whether the injury will affect Howard's power stats after he returns in May.
Chase Utley (2nd Base) - Chronic knee tendinitis forced Utley to sit out the 1st 46 games of the year last year and injuries are keeping him out of the order at the beginning of 2012 too. The injury took its toll on his offensive production in 2011, as he batted for a career-worst .259 average to go along with 11 homers and 44 RBI in 103 games. Now that Utley has had a full winter to recover and is making the effort to get into game shape, the Phillies hope that the Utley who will show up in 2012 will be the Utley who batted .282 with 31 homers and 92 RBI in 2009.
Jimmy Rollins (Shortstop) - Another Philadelphia player who has been constrained by injury is Jimmy Rollins. In spite of this, I believe we continue to haven't seen the last of what Rollins can do. Rollins managed to bat .268 with 16 homers, 63 RBI and 30 steals in just 142 games last year. And I believe that he has what is required to have similar if not better stats in 2012.
Placido Polanco (3rd Base) - The 36-year-old vet is still as good defensively as anybody, but his offensive numbers are beginning to regress. Polanco's .277 average last season was a career low for a season in which he played at least 100 games.
John Mayberry Jr. (Left Field) - The Phillies are truly excited about what Mayberry Jr. Can do on offense. The 28-year-old is coming off a year in which he hit .273 with 15 homers and 49 RBI in just 267 at-bats. The Phillies are hoping for more of the same in 2012.
Shane Victorino (Center Field) - Victorino is another player who was held down by the injury bug last year. He played a great 2011 year before a thumb and hamstring injury finished it prematurely. In 132 games, Victorino hit .279 with 17 homers, 16 triples and 61 RBI.
Hunter Pence (Right Field) - After a midseason deal that landed him in Philly from the Houston Astros, Pence actually caught on fire and was a major help in the Phillies ' search for playoff contention. In 100 games with Houston, Pence hit .308 with 11 homers and 62 RBI; in just 54 games with the Phillies, he hit .324 with 11 homers and 35 RBI.
About the Author:
If you would like to win more with your baseball betting this season then join the free MLB picks at BetFirms.
No comments:
Post a Comment