I want a recount

In making the case that Charlie Manuel is the best Phillies manager ever, Paul Hagen was a little too quick to dismiss a man who has one more ring than Cholly - the one, the only, Terry Francona:

Sorry, Tito, you're the first to go. We always knew you had the right stuff to succeed, but you never had a chance here. The front office raised expectations with a "Bring It On" slogan your last season without giving you the talent to back it up. Then-general manager Ed Wade has since said firing you was the biggest mistake he ever made. But we can't give you credit for what you did after you left. Especially in Boston. Remember, this is a National League game.

Seriously, I can't argue with this, and I'm actually surprised to see a writer from Philly speak so well of Francona. I thought he was unfairly loathed. And we're always glad to see a reference to Bring It On - a classically cheesy Phillies slogan.

If former Phillies got to vote for their favorite manager, I think Pat Burrell, who misses Philadelphia, would pick Cholly:

"I don't know if there is any way of saying this without getting myself in trouble," Burrell said. "But there is definitely a different excitement level [in Philadelphia]. I think more than anything, there is a stronger tradition for baseball there. That goes without saying."

I'm certain Chan Ho Park would vote for Chuck:

"Say hi to Charlie for me. Tell him he's the best manager I've ever played for."

So Cholly is the best Phillies manager ever. Terry will have to settle for being the best Red Sox manager.

Former SoxandPhils stuck in New York

The Fan's Mike Francesa has quickly become enamored with Rod Barajas since he signed with the Mets, saying he is a student of the game with a real passion for baseball. That's news for us who lived through his 2007 stint with the Phillies.

It didn't hit me immediately that Barajas' arrival in New York means that just like in 2007, he's forcing Chris Coste to the minors:

Mets manager Jerry Manuel wasn't ready to concede the job to Barajas, but with a one-year, $1 million deal that the front office forced on the roster this late, it's hard to imagine how rough spring would have to be for him to not get the job. The Mets would like Josh Thole to get more seasoning in the minor leagues and Chris Coste seems bound to be his tutor there.

Poor Coste - being a Met is bad enough, being a minor league Met is just awful.

Other SoxandPhils stuck in New York were also discussing their departures from classy organizations this week. Chan Ho Park sounds generally bummed to be a Yankee:

Park said it was "too late" to accept the Phillies' offer. I think by the time he realized he couldn't do better than the Phillies' offer the Phillies already had signed Baez and Contreras and the Phillies no longer were interested.

"Philadelphia was the number one choice, and I had a tough time to leave there," Park said. "I'm mostly sad to leave Philadelphia, the teammates and fans were unbelievable. I had fun last year, good memories. That makes me sad. But this is the future and a good team and another chance."

Yeah, another chance to relieve his Rangers days - missing the playoffs with Alex Rodriguez.

Jason Bay, meanwhile, keeps talking about Boston. He says it was a mutual decision, but you know he's going to regret the fact that when his career is over, his only playoff experience will be his two years with the Red Sox:

"Would I have gone back [to Boston]? Yeah, I think so," he said. "But I'd be back on my terms. During the season I was part of the Red Sox, and once the offseason came I didn't consider myself part of the Red Sox. We kept in dialogue and they were a team on my list. I felt at that point I had a little more power, or at least it was going to be my decision what my direction was.

"I had teams on the list and I had my pluses and minuses, and Boston had its pluses because I'd been there and I’d understood how to play there."

Oh well. These guys were once beloved; now they're enemies. Hope they enjoy watching their former mates stomp all over their new teams.

Speculatin'

Baseball writers throughout the country again snubbed Charlie Manuel for Manager of the Year while our teams' scribes have been busy posturing potential player acquisitions.

Terry Francona spoke today (it seems like a long time since we've heard anything from the Red Sox) and discussed his wish list. It sounds like he wants Jason Bay back and additional pitching - but his comments about John Lackey convinced me that the Red Sox are not pursuing the free agent:

Every year, there's a couple guys that seem like they can sway the fortunes of an organization. I think he's that type of pitcher. Now, to get that type of pitcher, you're going to have to make quite a commitment. That's something that makes our organization a little bit uneasy. It doesn't mean a guy can't come in and help you win, but if there's an injury along the way, that can set your organization back quite a bit. So there's a lot to think about besides just the year 2010. You're possibly talking about 2015. That's a lot of years.

Funny, they weren't too uneasy about paying more than $100 million to acquire and retain Daisuke Matsuzaka.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, jettisoned George Kottaras and were linked to Braves free agents Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano.

The Phillies seem to be all over the place. Todd Zolecki says they're the front-runners for Mark DeRosa - I don't want him, but I didn't know he went to high school near where I grew up. Chan Ho Park's agent says despite the player's stated preference of starting, a role in The Pen II wouldn't preclude Chan Ho from returning to the Phillies. And David Murphy has a litany of bench options the Phillies may consider.

I have bad feelings about the offseasons for both our teams. I don't know why. {Let's hope Greg is wrong about this prediction, too.}

Game 2 nostalgia

Today reminded me of Octobers from my youth. I'd scramble off the bus, pop open my notebook and do my homework while watching playoff baseball.

(The Giants Jeffrey Leonard, No. 00, with the hands-down home run trot, winning the 1987 NLCS MVP despite losing to the Cardinals particularly sticks out for some reason.)

Anyway, it was odd but definitely interesting to have an afternoon playoff game. I watched the first couple innings at work, listened to a couple on the ride home and then watched the last few with Christine at home.

The good feelings evaporated over our dinner (leftover Chinese food). After Pedro Martinez was vintage Pedro - two hits, no walks and three strikeouts in seven shutout innings - things fell apart with the Phillies holding a 1-0 lead over the Dodgers.

Chan Ho Park, who surprised me with a shutdown inning in Thursday night's win, came in and gave up a leadoff single (should have been an error on Pedro Feliz). They got nobody out on the following sacrifice bunt. Then, on a surefire double play, Chase Utley threw the ball about 10 feet from Ryan Howard, allowing the tying run to score.

With Jim Thome pinch-hitting, Scott Eyre came in. After the announcers lamented that Thome was 0-7 in his career against Eyre, he singled.

Ryan Madson came in - walked a batter, struck out a batter.

J.A. Happ came in and walked in a run.

Chad Durbin got a pop out to end the inning.

Is this any way to run a pitching staff?

So after two games, the Phillies won a shaky Cole Hamels start, 8-6, on Thursday but wasted a dominant Pedro start, 2-1, on Friday. I have a feeling this series is going to be longer and wilder than I originally thought.

I can't imagine how Christine is going to hold up; she seems to think they're done. But I know if they win Sunday, she'll say the Phillies won't go back to Dodger Stadium this year.

AL notes: The stupid Yankees lead the stupid Angels 4-1 in the 8th inning of Game 1. ... Tim Wakefield's surgery is scheduled for Wednesday. ... The Red Sox want Takashi Saito back, but not at $6 million. ... No more extended God Bless America at Yankee Stadium as Ronan Tynan proved to be not the embodiment of America.

Four pitching narratives

With both squads off yesterday, the beat writers wrote about pitching.

Phil Sheridan did a good job boiling down the enigma of Brett Myers: Whether or not the latest version of eye-gate is true, you can't question his desire to help his team, even though he always seems to find trouble like this.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Josh Beckett is dominating without trouble this year. Since he was shelled for all of April, Beckett has gone 12-2 with a 2.17 ERA. His opponents are hitting .208 and slugging .314 off him. This may be the year he wins a Cy Young.

Maybe we shouldn't have reminded him about April. He ended up pitching like it's the fourth month of the year again, giving up seven runs in 5 1/3 innings on nine hits and a walk. The Red Sox now lead the Blue Jays 9-7 in the 8th.

If Beckett does win a Cy Young, he'd be the first Red Sox to do so since Pedro Martinez in 2000. That's who Scott Lauber wrote about today in a touching tale of his lesser known brother Jesus, who never made it to the show. Because of that, Pedro has a soft spot for young players and sacrificed a start in 2002 for Josh Hancock.

Pedro made his first home start as a Phillie tonight. After giving up a leadoff home run in a 22-pitch first inning, Christine predicted Jamie Moyer's first relief appearance. Pedro needed just 16 pitches for the next two innings, but Christine was prophetic because the game was delayed by a thunderstorm.

Moyer took over after the delay and needed just six pitches in the 4th inning and then had a single in the bottom of the inning. The Phillies lead the Diamondbacks 4-1 in the 6th.

Hopefully, old Jamie can get the ball to shut-down reliever Chan Ho Park, whose relationship with Korean fans - and his upcoming documentary - were also featured today. Apparently, he's a god to his fellow Koreans.

Sick players, sicker bats

Antonio Bastardo, who unexpectedly helped the Phillies weather the loss of injured Brett Myers, has a doctor's appointment Monday to have an MRI on his shoulder. That can't be a good thing. Off the top of my head: Bastardo, Myers, Brad Lidge, Clay Condrey and Scott Eyre have been injured this year. If I were a member of the Phillies pitching staff, I'd be looking into some insurance policies right about now.

***Update*** Chan Ho Park left tonight's game in Toronto, either struck by a ball or a twisted knee trying to avoid said ball. A month ago, I was nearly hoping Park would get injured - now that he has become a solid bullpen performer, it could be the body blow to the Phillies pitching staff. {No, it won't. They'll be fine, eventually.}

Less surprising, but more disturbing, is Mike Lowell's balky hip. He's had a history of hip problems, but the remedy is the disturbing part. I never heard of the injectable man-made lubricant Synvisc. It just sounds like something that would get you a 50-game suspension.

Meanwhile, Bastardo and Lowell aren't the only things in SoxandPhils-ville that were ailing tonight. Both teams' bats could use a shot of Synvisc. The Phillies were held hitless for six innings by Ricky Romero. They finished with three hits in the 6-1 loss to the Blue Jays.

"I wouldn't want to be around Charlie tonight," Christine said in reference to the media speculation that Charlie Manuel is getting ready to blow his top at his underperforming team.

Other notes ... Cole Hamels got ejected, and Brad Lidge made his first appearance since coming off the DL. He stunk - two runs on two hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning. Ironic that the Mike Lowell link contains a reference to Keith Foulke's balky knees after closing for a World Champion team.

The Red Sox bats were not as bad, but they didn't need much with Josh Beckett pitching. He blanked the Braves for seven innings. David Ortiz hit his 8th home run of the year, and the Red Sox beat the Braves 4-1.

Unbelievable

Like a movie with a dramatic ending shot in slow motion, several sights and sounds from last night keep replaying in my head.

When flu-battling Ryan Howard stepped up to pinch hit in the 7th, I asked Christine: "Home run?" She said strikeout. "Home run or long fly ball," I replied. He crushed one out to deep center. Christine, normally the more psychic of us, was stunned at my prediction (which technically was true on both counts - try to find a longer fly ball).

That capped a five-run inning, which gave the Phillies a 5-3 lead and promise of ending their recent woes at home, in June and against the American League.

Chan Ho Park pitched a 1-2-3 8th inning with two strikeouts on 10 pitches. "I'm really starting to like Park as a reliever," said Christine, who wanted him to stay out for the 9th.

That too proved prophetic as Ryan Madson gave up two home runs, blowing his third game since taking over for DL'd Brad Lidge. No sooner did the second, lead-changing blast land did we see Ryan Madson with a shocked look of disbelief on his face. Orioles up, 6-5. The camera then showed a woman in the stands with her head down. "Do you believe this?" said Christine, who wasn't convinced even after the Howard homer that the Phils would win.

The Phillies will try to avert a sweep with Cole Hamels against the Orioles this afternoon. Yes, that's correct, the Phillies may follow a sweep by the Blue Jays with a sweep by the lowly Orioles.

The Red Sox game could not have been any different. Josh Beckett, the only guy the Phillies beat last weekend, threw a 94-pitch shutout, winning the 3-0 pitching duel I was hoping for against Derek Lowe, who got a good reception from the crowd. Although Beckett pitched a shutout against the Angels in the playoffs, this was his first regular season shutout for the Red Sox.

The Red Sox, with Tim Wakefield, try to win the series against the Braves this afternoon - a national broadcast on the Braves former station, TBS.

Dice-K: The Red Sox will skip Daisuke Matsuzaka's next start for further medical tests. Stupid World Baseball Classic. Stupid Bud Selig. Stupid Chris Wheeler.

I don't know why I threw him in there. I was on a roll. Although that reminds me, in an attempt to stop the Phillies skid yesterday, Comcast let two cameramen do the pregame introduction. Attention Comcast and the Phillies organization: Yes, two guys off the street can do a better job than Wheels.

Series over

I was kidding Christine all week that Josh Beckett today would repeat his 2006 homer against the Phillies. He did. Thankfully, for the sake of being able to talk to my wife for the rest of the week, Beckett's pitching performance didn't match his offense. The Phillies salvaged the finale 11-6, decimating Beckett and young Daniel Bard.

J.A. Happ got touched up early, but survived into the 6th inning, Chan Ho Park also pitched well, preserving a depleted bullpen.

Now that this series is over, we can, until October, focus on our common enemies - New York teams, Bud Selig and Chris Wheeler.

Papi homered - cancel the gold watch and rocking chair

Mike Schmidt topped a recent David Ortiz-inspired list of great ball players who suddenly lost it. Christine and I were discussing this yesterday, wondering whether Big Papi could follow Michael Jack's path and abruptly retire amid early season struggles.

I don't know if retirement ever entered his thoughts, but Ortiz has considered drastic steps:

"I was about to hit righthanded," he admitted.

But last night he hit his first home run of 2009 as part of a 2-4 night that increased his OPS to a whopping .645.

"I feel like I got my confidence back," Ortiz said after the game. "I feel like a real hitter, not like the punch and judy hitter I've been the first 40 games ... swing like a man."

I hope so. The Greatest Clutch Hitter in Red Sox history, a very proud and amicable man, deserves to leave the game on his own terms (provided he has been clean).

Interestingly, this marks the 20th anniversary of Mike Schmidt's retirement. The Daily News has marked the occasion with the 1989 retirement story, a Rich Ashburn column led off by a Harry Kalas home run call and an interesting look back.

As a 12-year-old in North Jersey, I was surprised by the announcement, but I never knew the move surprised everyone, perhaps even Schmidt:

Mike Schmidt was 39 years old, in a slump, playing for a Phillies team destined for another last-place finish.

Nobody had a clue that within a week he would stun even those closest to him by abruptly announcing his retirement.

Six days later, standing near third base at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, he was about to make one of the biggest decisions of his baseball life. It was a sun-splashed Memorial Day weekend Sunday. All he needed was an omen.

[...]

Then, just like in the movies, it happened.

The score was tied at three in the bottom of the fourth. The Giants had runners on first and second with two outs when Robby Thompson hit a grounder right at third, the kind of play Schmidt had made countless times on his way to winning 10 Gold Gloves.

Except this time, the ball went through his legs for an error to load the bases. Mike Maddux relieved starter Ken Howell. And the next batter, Will Clark, hit a grand slam.

"And I'm thinking, 'I'm really getting nothing out of this. We're not a very good team. I'm not playing near to the level that I'm comfortable with. What do I do now?'" Schmidt said.

Hopefully last night signaled a better omen for Big Papi.

Catching up: Papi's home run and two by Jason Varitek helped Brad Penny beat the Jays 8-3, setting up a chance for a sweep tonight. (Behind Jon Lester, they're up 4-0 in the 4th.) Phillies couldn't come back last night, losing 5-1 to the Reds. They finished the series this afternoon with a 12-5 win. The top of the order - Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez - went 9-15. Utley, Ibanez, Ryan Howard and Greg Dobbs homered. Joe Blanton pitched well until the 5th, when he gave up all five runs the Reds scored; Chan Ho Park walked two in a scoreless inning, his first appearance as a Phillies reliever.

[Photo credit: Philadelphia Inquirer or Daily News file photo]

New kids on the block

Last year, the baseball world waited for the Tampa Bay Rays to fall apart so that the Red Sox and Yankees could assume their customary spots in the AL playoffs.

I wasn't so dismissive of the Rays (I knew they were a tough opponent capable of knocking out the Yankees), but I was confident the Red Sox would prevail. I was wrong.

This year, the Blue Jays have been leading the AL East. They have a 3.5-game lead over the Red Sox as the two teams square off for the first time tonight. Everyone expected the East to be a three-team battle among the Rays, Red Sox and Yankees. But we should have seen the Jays lurking.

Since Cito Gaston began his second stint as Blue Jays manager last year, the team has gone 78-51. That's on pace for 98 wins over a full season, which is one game better than the Rays finished in 2008.

Like the Rays last year, I don't think it's a fluke. Tony Massarotti did a tale of the tape on the division: Among the four teams, the Jays have the best starting pitching, offense and defense. The bullpen is just a tick behind Boston's.

I still have faith the Red Sox will improve their play and catch the Jays in the end, but it's not going to be easy.

Greg's personal trivia: Between cementing my disdain for the Yankees and deciding on the Red Sox, I tried out several teams. I was strong on the Blue Jays for awhile. I even had a hat.

NKOTB (Phillies rotation version): As strongly suggested this week, J.A. Happ is trading roles with Chan Ho Park. His first start is Saturday in the Evil Empire's empty new stadium.

OKOTB: Chris Wheeler likened a hitting or pitching coach to the senior member of a broadcast team. Tom McCarthy asked him how that was working out for him. "Not good," Wheeler said.

Well, don't stick around on our behalf. I hate Wheels.

Tonight's games: The Red Sox-Blue Jays rivalry looks to be off to a good start with a pitching duel, 2-1 in the 8th. The Phillies are up 4-3 over the Reds in the 7th.

Mixed bag

If I said Ramon Ramirez and Brad Lidge would each pitch 2/3 of an inning and one would get a save and the other a loss, who would have tabbed Ramirez (ERA less than 1.00) as the loser and Lidge (ERA more than 8.00) with a two-pitch save?

Baseball's funny that way.

The Phillies completed a four-game sweep of the Nationals, 8-6, despite Chan Ho Park reverting to his early-season struggles. He was knocked out in the 2nd inning. Sergio Escalona (the surprise call-up to take Andrew Carpentar's roster spot) got the win in his major league debut.

Luckily, the Phillies were playing weak competition and were able to withstand Park's poor outing in a back-and-forth game fueled by the Nationals (then up 6-5) botching a sacrifice bunt by Pedro Feliz in the 8th. The pitcher threw it away, allowing two runs to score. Feliz later scored on an Eric Bruntlett double.

In the 9th, Charlie Manuel let Scott Eyre pitch to two lefties before bringing in Lidge with one out and one on. On his second pitch, Josh Willingham grounded into a double play.

Funny, I started my day watching the DVR of Brad Lidge getting a double play against the Nationals with the bases loaded to clinch the 2008 NL East. Unfortunately, that game was on Fox, so I was stuck with Tim McCarver saying Carlos Roo-is, instead of listening to Harry Kalas' joy.

Red Sox: No joy today. Mariners 3, Red Sox 2. Justin Masterson pitched well in what probably will be his last start because Daisuke Matsuzaka is expected to return from the DL. A 2-2 game on the road isn't very comforting, but I felt good knowing Ramirez was pitching the 9th with Jonathan Papelbon still in the pen.

Alas, for the second time this year, Ramirez allowed a run. It was unearned, and his ERA stands at 0.43. He got the first two men out before allowing an infield hit to Yuniesky Betancourt, who went to second on a throwing error. An intentional walk and then a base hit ended the game.

There's no guarantee the run wouldn't have scored without the error. It was a tough loss, but I cannot blame Ramirez; he's pitched too well this year.

Human interest stories

The effects of Jose Offerman's attack are still being felt by former independent leaguer John Nathans. He was the catcher Offerman hit with a bat while charging the mound against former Phillie Matt Beech. I didn't realize he was so severely injured until reading this account of how the incident has changed Nathans' life:

"He's still in the game, playing baseball. I have not been allowed to live my life the way it was intended. My life is changed forever."

Nathans probably wouldn't have made the majors even if this attack didn't occurred, but you get the sense he wouldn't have given up his dream and would still be playing ball somewhere, not rehabbing from the concussion.

He'd be a player like Matt Stairs, milking all that he could out of whatever natural ability he had. If you're saddened by Nathans' story, take heart in the story of the Wonder Hamster, a true player of the people:

"As a player, the biggest thing is don't give fans an excuse not to like you. That's the biggest thing. But it is nice when you hit that big home run and the fans say, 'Hey, he's just like us. He's not one of those guys who hits it and showboats. He's very humble about it.'"

Funny, this story, centered on the fact Stairs tries to hit only homers, comes a day after Christine remarked: "They should have a home run derby just with guys like Stairs who hit only home runs." I said, "Yeah, the type of guys who would never back out of a derby."

Tonight's games: The Red Sox are on the road against the Angels (after my bedtime). The Phillies beat the Dodgers 5-3. Chan Ho Park pitched a quality game, getting his first win of the season. Brad Lidge gave up a run, but managed the save.

The real story, of course, was Jayson Werth. He had four stolen bases, including one of home. I can't believe both of our teams have had steals of home this year. Werth's came when the catcher was tossing the ball back to the pitcher - I can't remember seeing one like that before.

Unexpected

Any Phillies fan would have love it if I had guaranteed that the Phillies would give up just one run in tonight's game started by the struggling Chan Ho Park. And that's what happened as Park pitched six scoreless innings before Scott Eyre and Chad Durbin yielded an unearned run.

Unfortunately, Johan Santana was a tick better, pitching seven dominant innings and winning 1-0.

And if I had predicted there would be just one unearned run for both teams, who would have guessed it was caused by an error by Pedro Feliz and a misplay by Jayson Werth?

It wasn't the greatest start for the Phils in new Ebbets Field, but if it gets Park on track, I'll take it.

Red Sox: They got whupped by Carl Pavano and the Indians tonight, 9-2. Maybe they're just saddened by the news about Jerry Remy, who announced he has lung cancer. “I hope that disclosing my bout with cancer will reinforce the dangers of smoking to every member of Red Sox Nation, especially children,” Remy said.

Losing to the rivals

Both our teams lost to their rivals tonight.

Chan Ho Park was the big goat for the Phillies in their 7-4 loss against the Mets.

Christine: How long are we going to be stuck with Chan Ho Park in the rotation?

Me: Judging by Adam Eaton, a year and a half.

He was pretty darn bad tonight: seven runs on six walks and eight hits over 4 2/3 innings. I've said since spring training he shouldn't be a starter - now I no longer have faith that he would be serviceable in the bullpen. Christine thinks he'd be fine switching spots with J.A. Happ.

In the 6th I was starting to believe in mystique and aura when the Mets over threw third base. I believed for all of two seconds until Greg Dobbs ran past second on his way to third, forcing Chris Coste to try to score when he had no chance.

Ryan Howard struck out to end the game with a poor swing at a bad pitch. "What the (insert Chase Utley's favorite word here) was that?" Christine said.

Red Sox: All I know about this 6-2 loss to the Rays is this: When flipping to MLB Network to try to find a mid-game update, they were talking about where Evan Longoria ranks among third basemen. They mentioned he hit a grand slam tonight. Ugh.

Justin Masterson pitched almost as poorly as Chan Ho Park, but Manny Delcarmen and Ramon Ramirez each pitched a scoreless inning, preserving their 0.00 ERAs.

Tomorrow: We're going to our first game. A colleague mentioned the rainy forecast. "No biggie," I said. "It won't be any worse than the last game we went to."

Craziness

Between adoption class and final preparation for our charity walk and little gathering, Christine and I had little time to sit and watch the games today. We missed two doozies.

The Red Sox outlasted the Yankees, 16-11. I finished cutting the grass just in time to see Mike Lowell's three-run home run in the 7th, which put the Red Sox up for good. This game looked like a painful one to watch.

We saw a little more of the Phillies' 6-4 10-inning win over the Marlins - the second straight night the Marlins took a lead into the top of the 9th but wound up losing to the champions.

Funny moment: Driving in the car, I was zoning out as I heard a home run call. Christine started laughing - it was Chan Ho Park.

Not-so-funny moment: Brad Lidge's 10th inning. He had three strikeouts. But he threw 34 pitches and loaded the bases.

Can we get a pair of sweeps tomorrow? If so, the Phils will be at .500 and the Red Sox will have run their winning streak to 10 and could be tied for first. In other words, the SoxandPhils 2009 World Series is back on!

I really saw this coming

As predicted on this very blog, Geoff Jenkins beat out last year's playoff hero Matt Stairs for the role of mediocre left-handed backup outfielder. Also as predicted here, Chan Ho Park has no business opening a season in a starting rotation unless we're still in 2001.

Oops, maybe I was wrong. There's another reason you shouldn't bet your dwindling 401(k) on my predictions.

In a surprise move that will cost them $8 million, the Phillies cut Jenkins, fueling speculation that Gary Sheffield, released today by the Tigers, could wind up in Philadelphia. I don't think the Phillies - despite their longing for a right-handed bat - would take a chance on Sheffield's character, nor do I think Sheffield would come to Philly, where he would be relegated to pinch hitting. Either way, I think Matt Stairs has a job with the defending World Champions.

Christine isn't so sure, even though unnamed sources say there's only a "very slim" chance that Sheffield will be a Phillie. She thinks it's suspicious that two surprise cuts - Jenkins and Sheffield - happened so close together. And, she is worried about taking on Sheffield's bad attitude when the team already jettisoned another good-hit, no-field, right-handed bat who happened to be a good clubhouse guy.

I predict Sheffield will find another home, but you've just read how well I predict. Park is "happy" that my fifth starter prediction was wrong; J.A. Happ isn't.

Two Phillies pitchers' off-field concerns

I've been skeptical since Chan Ho Park said he came to the Phillies to start.

He was a decent starter a decade ago, but he hasn't made 30 starts in a season since 2001 - the year before he left the Dodgers for the Rangers, who signed him to that ridiculous contract. And he's now 35 years old, coming off a pretty good year out of the bullpen, and the Phillies have several younger options to fill the rotation.

But now we know why he is so determined to start again: The fate of the free world, or Korea's economy, depends on it:

He hopes to provide Koreans with a break from the bad economic news.

In 1998, he said, the South Korean economy was weak, and his countrymen looked forward to his starts. This week, economists estimated that the country's economy could shrink by 5 to 8 percent this quarter. Park wants to do his part to provide relief again.

"In 1998, they were happy watching my games every five days," he said. "That's why [starting] is very important. That's why I'm still working hard, being here."

Great. It took Charlie Manuel nearly three years to win over the Philadelphia fans, and now he's going to be vilified in Korea if he decides Park is better suited for the pen. Cholly seems to be treading very carefully with this one:

"It's where we think we need him most," manager Charlie Manuel said about Park possibly being the fifth starter. "If he's better than someone else [as a starter, we're] very open to it."

Now we know: Recently, I read somewhere that Jamie Moyer was befuddled why reporters asked him during the World Series celebration if he planned to retire and go out on a high note. The 46-year-old then signed a two-year contract in the offseason, which if he fulfills, would leave him sixth all-time on the list of oldest major league players.

He's like a cockroach: Countless younger and better pitchers have come and gone, while he has thrived. {I just yelled at Greg for this comparison. Cockroaches are disgusting and everybody hates them. Not quite the same as J-Moy.}

Now, we know why. He wants to hang on to be part of baseball's third-ever set of father and son (or sons) active at the same time. OK, his oldest is just 17 and no one's quite talking about it yet, but judging from the old man's gumption, I wouldn't be surprised if during spring training in a few years we see two "Moyers" in some team's camp.

Pat Burrell isn't bitter, but we are

At last, Pat Burrell spoke in a lengthy, matter-of-fact interview with Paul Hagen.

I'm disappointed. I can't lie about that. But I can't say I'm upset about it, either, because when I think about my time there I have nothing but good things to say. The city, the fans, have been behind me from the very beginning. That's the hard part, especially with respect to what happened last year, with us winning the whole thing. It was very meaningful to me to be a part of something like that. But you have to move on.

You know, there's a business [aspect] to this sport. And as a player you'd better learn to accept that or else it's going to be pretty frustrating for you. I was aware that, most likely, the team was going to go the other way. At the same time, I thought there was a chance I might be back.

I could have accepted letting Burrell go, but I don't understand replacing him with Raul Ibanez. Baseball Prospectus backs that feeling up. I wish I could get the whole article, but the free portion convinces me:

Let's be clear about this: the Phillies didn't get any better with this deal. They got an outfielder who is just as poor a glove man as the guy he's replacing, likely a worse hitter, somewhat older, and at a cost of two additional seasons and maybe $14 million.

Other news: Jamie Moyer is coming back for two years. Chan Ho Park will sign a one-year deal. Dustin Pedroia decided not to repeat as MVP next year to take Chase Utley's spot in the World Baseball Classic.