Phils acquire Cliff Lee

[mobbdeep1122]

Hamels has good the last month (as has the rest of the Phils rotation) and Lee's ERA is just above 3 in the AL. I don't see how this doesn't make the Phils the favorite in the NL (if they weren't already).

Phils are gaining ground on the Dodgers fast.

[Obst]

Lou Marson - Catcher - Age 23 - Here is a guy who was for a time regarded as our best positional prospect. He has already spent time with the Phillies big league club. In 2008 he made the Eastern League All-Star game, the Olympic team, played on our MLB roster, and stuck around in the playoffs in case an injury happened. Up until this year, and even in the beginning of this year, a lot of people in the system thought he would be our starting catcher by maybe the all-star break. He is a very athletic catcher who loves to hit for average, and has a accurate arm which helps him throw out base runners. This year has been really a down year for Marson though, and was now our number 2 catching prospect behind Travis D’Arnaud. Marson is batting .294 with 1 HR and 24 RBI's this year in Triple A. He was batting .235 in the 7 games he spent up in Philly this year. He could become your every day catcher, especially now with Garko being traded, moving V-Mart to first and Marson being your catcher could be possible.

Jason Donald SS - Age 24 - Another player who is having a bad year but is a huge name in our farm system. Here is a guy who was regarded as our SECOND best positional prospect behind you got it, Lou Marson. The problem for Donald is that he’s 24 now, turns 25 in September, and needs to get back on track fast. Spent time on the DL this year and is only batting .235 with 1 HR and 17 RBI's. He was also an Eastern League All-Star last year along with making the Olympic team. He is a grinder, who always puts up consistent numbers (til this year) and would make a great SS for any team once he breaks out of his slump.

Carlos Carrasco Pitcher - Age 22 - Last year, this guy was our Kyle Drabek. Carrasco was the star of the Futures game out in San Francisco and even now with his numbers not looking so good, people still think he could be the best pitcher in our farm system. He is 6-9 with 5.18 ERA but strikes out an average of 9 batters per 9 innings and has a 112/38 K:BB ratio. He battled for the 5th spot in our rotation, eventually losing it to Chan Ho Park, but if things went well this year, he was supposed to come up and pitch for us, the way Happ is now. His fastball is anywhere between 89-93 MPH and has outstanding late life. He complements the fastball with the best changeup in the system, and he commands it to both sides of the plate with good depth and fade. His curveball continued to make strides in 2007, ranging from a soft 71-72 mph breaker to a harder 76-78 mph offering that more resembles a slider. His body allows him to unleash all his pitches from a steep downhill plane, and when he’s on, he pounds the strike zone. The bad thing about him is when he gets in trouble he rushes his delivery and gets smoked. If the Indians can help him fix that, then he will be in their MLB rotation by next year.

Jason Knapp Pitcher - Age 18 - Knapp lit the world on fire in his first few starts, and even though hes hit some bumps in the road, he’s still showing one of the biggest arms in A ball, despite being only 18. Hes still a little rough around the edges, but he’s proven to be worth the investment. Like the MSN article said, he looks like a clone of Doc Halladay. Standing in at 6'5", he has a big frame and is known for striking guys out because of his mid 90's fastball. Knapp could potentially become a number two starter in the future and has a lot of time to grow.

Here are the mechanics of Carrasco and Knapp.

Carrasco:
Knapp:

[Obst]

Still Consider the Dodgers the Favorite.
Hamels hasnt had the best year this year and Lee isn't near what he was last year. The offense is there but the Dodgers is Stronger I feel.

Check his numbers, besides wins and loses, his numbers from last year and this year are almost the same exact thing.

[chazmaniandevil]

you put drabeks mechanics

[Obst]

you put drabeks mechanics

Sorry, its Carrasco, I just wasn't thinking when I typed it

[Blade]

Great trade, we are going back this year for sure.

No one in the NL has the resources to trade of Halladay. They want way toooooo much. The Yanks have already passed on a trade with the Jays. The Angels have a good shot, because they are not within division of the Jays. Red Sox are desperate enough and have already dangled Buchholz.

BTW anyone who things Dodgers are still the favorite after this trade, needs to check their brain. Hamels is finally starting to turn it on, exactly like last year and Lee needs run support, otherwise he has won 3 games in a row with 3 or less runs of support.

[Obst]

Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times hears from a source who says the Dodgers aren't willing to part with the talent it would take to acquire Halladay or Cliff Lee. Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley are off-limits.

So unless you guys give up one of your young MLB pitchers, which your GM said he isn't breaking up your MLB team, then no Halladay.

[Miami Flash15]

They already captured the NL East so they don't really have to worry about that.

[Hasselbeck]

Carlos Carrasco and Jason Donald are still very good prospects. Seems like a pretty fair trade to me.

Hamels
Lee
Blanton
Moyer
Happ

FUCK! World Series Champions!!!!

If Lee flops that's still a very average rotation.

If Lee pitches like he did last year.. the Phillies are scary.

[mcstl25]

I didn't even know that Lee was on the market. Nice trade for the Phillies.

[kbpsu]

GREAT, great move. We keep the prospects that the Jays wanted and we get a very solid, and younger, pitcher. Not to mention, his contract is smaller than Halladay's.

I think this makes us the clear cut favorite in the NL now. Obviously, I am going to be a biased, but its hard not to think this. With our rotation going something like: Hamels, Lee, Happ, Blanton, Moyer/Pedro (maybe). Blanton is having a very good year so far, better than I (and probably most of the fanbase) expected. We will be getting Meyers back toward the end of the season, who will likely be in the bullpen, but still another good arm.

That is just our pitching. With our offense, I think it is really hard not to believe the Phils have a very (if not the best) chance at representing the NL in the World Series.

[NAHSTE]

If Lee flops that's still a very average rotation.

If Lee pitches like he did last year.. the Phillies are scary.

He's been posting a 2.66 ERA since May or something like that. And it's not like his total ERA is anything to sneeze at either. He's pitched very well this season considering.

Great move for Philadelphia, because even if Lee is just average and the rotation is average, they are still just as good as they were last year, if not better. Also means one fewer inexperienced pitcher has to start a playoff game.

[kbpsu]

He's been posting a 2.66 ERA since May or something like that. And it's not like his total ERA is anything to sneeze at either. He's pitched very well this season considering.

Great move for Philadelphia, because even if Lee is just average and the rotation is average, they are still just as good as they were last year, if not better. Also means one fewer inexperienced pitcher has to start a playoff game.

Speaking of playoffs, I couldnt be more confident going into a 5 or 7 game series with this starting rotation.

[BWEISS]

Speaking of playoffs, I couldnt be more confident going into a 5 or 7 game series with this starting rotation.

Our rotation would be better in the playoffs because we wouldn't have to worry about Jamie Moyer this year, hopefully. He's not a guy I want pitching in playoffs after his performance last year.

Hamels/Lee/Blanton/Happ or Pedro.... I'm hoping anyway.

[chazmaniandevil]

i completely forgot about pedro lol, love this trade for the phils though

v-mart has to be leaving, hafner-vmart-santana-marson aint guna work with 2 or 3 spots available