SoxandPhils revelations

After yesterday's wrestling snafu, Todd Zolecki redeemed himself with today's post.

Nothing has consistently driven traffic to our humble SoxandPhils blog like people looking for the names of players' intro songs - especially Jayson Werth.

Today, Zolecki listed every Phillies' intro song. We couldn't place our finger on J-Dub's current song all season. Thanks to Zo, we know now it's Right Above It by Lil Wayne. We've also been fascinated by how Carlos Ruiz uses Phil Collins' In The Air Tonight, but we didn't know that his backup, Brian Schneider, uses the same song.

Zolecki still needs to work on his knowledge of wrestling history, but I certainly appreciate this effort.

That wasn't the only SoxandPhils theme in the news today. We've often discussed how injured both teams were this year. SoxandPhils beat writer Scott Lauber takes a look at how the Red Sox are home licking their wounds, while their brothers in pain have survived.

Even our general managers felt a kinship:

At one point during the summer, Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein and his Phillies counterpart, Ruben Amaro Jr., even had a phone conversation in which they commiserated over their teams’ respective misfortune.

"We were having some trade dialogue," Amaro recalled yesterday, "and I guess we were both woe-is-me-ing for a while."

I wonder what they were talking about ... Werth for Jonathan Papelbon, perhaps? {Ugh, the idea of Papelbon as a Phillie ... awful.}

If you're interested, Lauber has a sidebar listing every injury suffered by a Red Sox or Phillie.

Zo needs to know Mo'

Christine and I have always liked Todd Zolecki. He lives baseball, is sarcastic and knows his pop culture.

Well, that last part isn't so true anymore.

He started off tonight's blog post with such a strong theme, linking Pat Burrell's compliment of the Phillies - "To be the best you've got to beat the best" - to Charlie Manuel's reaction to the line with a Ric Flair reference.

Then, it went downhill:

Does this make the Giants the Iron Sheik?

Update: I'm told Flair and Sheik were in two different wrestling leagues. So I guess that makes the Giants "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes?

So I guess Zo isn't so good with the pop culture after all. {Zolecki's pop culture knowledge is just fine. Greg's the one who regularly doesn't know basic pop culture references.}

But that reminds me of my Iron Sheik story. I knew a guy in high school who did some low-grade professional wrestling. One night the Sheik was on his card, and afterward when we hooked up at our usual watering hole, we were told the Sheik had been there, ran up a huge tab and left, apparently thinking it was still 1983 and that he was World Champ and that wrestling was real.

Sorry for the tangent, it's been a long week.

A tribute to Andy Martino

Yes, Jon Lester and the Red Sox are battling the Yankees on MLB Network, but tonight Christine and I are obsessed with a huge piece of news that we missed: Andy Martino has left the Inquirer.

We noticed yesterday that The Phillies Zone was no longer Martino and Matt Gelb, but Gelb and Bob Brookover. We did some searching and found out that Martino is covering the Mets for the New York Daily News, replacing Adam Rubin, who went to work for ESPN, not the Mets.

So another Phillies beat writer has left the job. But unlike Todd Zolecki, Scott Lauber and even Mike Radano, we don't care. It's no secret we never liked him. He never seemed into his job. He would let his blog lapse. He seemed to always be on vacation. And he just gave off a smarmy vibe.

I think the most telling point about his stint as Phillies beat writer is this: When Lauber recently left the Wilmington News Journal to join the Boston Herald, all his colleagues mentioned it on their blogs or Twitters. We didn't see anyone mention Martino's return to New York.

See ya later, Martino. At least in New York, no one will notice if you don't write in the middle of the season because that's about the point when the Mets have officially become irrelevant.

(We may seem a little hard on Martino, but coming from journalism backgrounds, we do understand that some people just don't like some reporters.)

A good writer: I've really been enjoying the blogging of one of the Boston Globe's newer beat writers, Peter Abraham. He's been on the job since September, but I think he's really been hitting his stride lately. His style reminds us of Zolecki. Today's post had a fascinating tidbit:

I covered Pedro when he was with the Mets. After his first season was over, he handed out business cards to the beat writers with his cell phone number in case we needed to contact him. They said "Pedro J. Martinez, Right-handed pitcher." What a character.

Red Sox: Lester is a little wild, and the Yankees lead the Red Sox 4-3 in the 5th. Victor Martinez hit a two-run homer in the 3rd. Speaking of V-Mart, he snapped Jason Varitek's decade-long streak of Opening Day starts, according to a Providence Journal database. (Just ignore the text, which obviously has not been updated.)

Another media buyout

Comcast SportsNet has acquired The700Level.com. Site founder Enrico Campitelli Jr. pledged the site will retain its editorial independence after joining the corporate conglomerate. He even said the site will improve.

Perhaps, but I remember hearing similar things from the Boston Dirt Dogs when it was acquired by Boston.com in 2004. But what was once an edgy, must-read source of Red Sox satire is now an afterthought for me.

Maybe things will work out better for The 700 Level.

If you ever read about SoxandPhils vowing to maintain its integrity after being bought out, it can mean only one thing: We're rich. Don't worry, we'll continue to be uncensored and unread.

A SoxandPhil who doesn't wear cleats

Other than griping about snow, I didn't have a strong feeling this morning for what I would write about until I read this little nugget on Todd Zolecki's blog:

Congratulations to Wilmington News Journal's Scott Lauber, who just got a job covering the Red Sox for the Boston Herald.

Congrats, indeed. It's always good to see a quality reporter leave Gannett on his own terms. I wish Lauber well in Boston. I don't look at it as losing a Phillies scribe, but gaining a Red Sox reporter.

This won't be the first time that Lauber, who attended Boston University, has covered the Red Sox. As I mentioned about a year ago, he previously did some work for an underground program sold outside Fenway.

Setting the record straight

The scribes made a few mistakes this week that I've been meaning to mention.

Most noticeable is the curious report I woke up to Sunday morning that the Phillies, with no real warning, signed two pitchers from Japan. It was quickly retracted by Matt Gelb:

Contrary to reports from Japan, the Phillies have not come to agreements with Japanese relievers Shigetoshi Yamakita and Naoyo Okamoto, a Phils spokesman said yesterday.

Gelb was the only American reporter who bit on the story and reported it as fact. He hasn't been heard from much since, and Andy Martino is back on the beat. Coincidence?

More discreet, but much more offensive, was this little passage in Steve Buckley's Kevin Youkilis story that I talked about yesterday:

The late Dick Radatz landed a job with a local oil company. Carl Yaztrzemski, among many other ventures, owned a car dealership. Mike Andrews became so entrenched a Bostonian that he wound up running the Jimmy Fund.

How in the world can a Boston Red Sox beat writer and his editors allow Carl Yastrzemski's name to be misspelled? I know it's a difficult name, but c'mon, we're talking about a pillar of the franchise.

Stay Hungry with a side of snark

In today's column, Nick Cafardo shoots down the idea of players playing well in their contract years, but then lists a bunch of Red Sox - primarily David Ortiz - who should have good years because they're out to prove their worth for a big payday after 2010.

I'm glad Cafardo - whose work I do respect despite today's snark - thinks that Ortiz, Josh Beckett, Adrian Beltre, Jonathan Papelbon, Victor Martinez, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Bill Hall will be motivated by dollars to have big years. But am I naive to think that contract status is a minuscule part of a formula that determines success?

If I am, then so are John Henry and Theo Epstein:

"I'm not really a believer in the theory that players can play at another level in their contract years," wrote Sox owner John Henry in an e-mail. "I think our players generally give as much as they have over 162 games. It's a long, long season. Sometimes it may not look that way because they often play injured - more often than people think, because a lot of injuries - especially nagging ones - you never hear about."

"I've never studied it myself," said general manager Theo Epstein, "but the data I have seen does not suggest a consistent pattern."

Further confounding the argument is that Cafardo cited a Maureen Mullen MLB.com report that Dice-K ditched his regimen at the Arizona Performance Institute for a week:

Dice-K spent a week there in December and is continuing his training there this month, although he unexpectedly took this week off, according to a source. The time off is not believed to be injury-related.

That doesn't sound like he's too hungry, unless he was literally hungry and took off to find something to eat. At least this topic put Stay Hungry, one of my favorite Twisted Sister songs, in my head, a vast improvement over some of the songs that have been rattling around my noggin this weekend.

More snark: Over in Phillies-land, we can rest assured that with Opening Day 64 days away, Placido Polanco is "working on third-base skills." And I thought he was just going to wing it at a position where he logged about 330 innings in 2003 to 2005, but none since.

By the way, that was not a knock at Matt Gelb's report. At least he's writing. Whatever happened to Andy Martino?

[Photo credit: Wikipedia]

Back to work

Rob Neyer opened his morning blog post with the observation: "When I have to work every day, I want a day off. When I have days off, I want to work. Go figure ..."

I interpret that as saying that he updates his blog even if he is off. Andy Martino, however, does not. I know it's the holiday season and Phillies news has been slow, but he's gone nearly two weeks since posting. That's ridiculous. Even if he has a good excuse like a personal reason for being unable to work, you'd think a colleague would post something every couple of days to stave off the blog's stagnation.

Christine and I returned to work today after a nice holiday break. I did have time to peek at a couple of pages of The Bill James Handbook that Christine got me for Christmas.

Among the early SoxandPhils highlights is the closest vote ever for a Fielding Bible Award. At second base, Aaron Hill and Dustin Pedroia were tied at 76 points with Chase Utley in third with 73 points. Hill won the tiebreaker with more first place votes than Pedroia.

And the best two catchers at blocking bad pitches? Jason Varitek (95.9 percent) and Carlos Ruiz (95.8 percent). See, Chris Coste, maybe you getting yanked in the 9th inning was more about Chooch and less about you. (That sentiment isn't as bitter toward Coste as it sounds. I was just a little defensive about Christine's favorite Phillie.)

Red Sox still working: But Mike Lowell won't be working as much in 2010. Welcome aboard Adrian Beltre. I like that this is a one-year deal; I'm just perplexed what it means for Lowell's role with the team.

News!

Last night, hours after I suggested that the Phillies beat writers have been neglecting their blogs, Todd Zolecki posted an update on Phillies prospects in fall and winter ball. He must read our blog.

The rest of the pack followed him today with news that Ryan Howard finished 3rd in MVP voting - Chase Utley, Jayson Werth and Shane Victorino also got votes - and that the Phillies will sign Ramon Castro to replace Eric Bruntlett.

Why? He's 37, and he can't hit. Basically, he's Eric Bruntlett in six years. I have no problem jettisoning the guy who turned an unassisted triple play, but I don't understand doing so just to bring in an equally crappy player.

David Murphy tries to explain it:

For an idea of how slim the pickings are in that department, consider Omar Vizquel, another veteran short stop who was a free agent. Over his last two seasons, Vizquel's numbers aren't a whole lot different than Castro's. Castro hit .227 with a .569 OPS in 298 plate appearances for the Reds, Orioles and Dodgers. Vizquel hit .239 with a .594 OPS in 595 plate appearances for the Giants and Rangers. Vizquel recently signed a one year deal with the White Sox for a reported $1.375 million, which is nearly double the $700,000 that Castro earned with the Dodgers last season.

Last year, manager Charlie Manuel said he would love to have a bench player who might fill in for Chase Utley without presenting much of an offensive drop off. Castro would not seem to be that player, but I don't think the Phillies are looking at him as such.Keep in mind that two candidates to replace Pedro Feliz at third base are Placido Polanco and Mark DeRosa, both of whom have played extensively at second base. And while the Phillies do not view Greg Dobbs as an everyday third baseman, they do contend - at least publicly - that they are comfortable starting him there occasionally. Last year, Dobbs hit .309 with a .829 OPS in the 28 games in which he started.

OK, so maybe this makes sense if they sign a second baseman to play third. No, that really doesn't make much sense either.

At least Castro's agent, Oscar Suarez, is good at the spin:

"Who doesn't like the Phillies as an organization?" Suarez said. "You want to win. And who doesn't like Juan Castro? You want to have a superb utility man to back up the guys you have up the middle. We're trying to put this thing together. I think we're going to get it done."

He's even benching Jimmy Rollins:

"If you look at the Phillies, they have a hell of an organization," Suarez said. "And they probably need a guy who can play shortstop if Jimmy Rollins needs a day off or he gets thrown out of a game or he needs a break at the end of a game. It makes a lot of sense. When you're a veteran player you want to win. That's why he is enjoying the Dodgers. The last two years for the Phillies speak for itself."

I know, way too much thought for a backup infielder on a team that has won the last two NL pennants.

Red Sox writers state the obvious

The Red Sox beat writers must be out of their mind with boredom. They're so bored that they decided to vote on awarding the obvious: Jonathan Papelbon is the 2009 Red Sox Fireman of the Year, as voted by the Boston Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. (I guess, like the national awards, the postseason doesn't count.)

Daniel Bard was selected top Red Sox rookie, beating out stiff competition such as Junichi Tazawa, Josh Reddick and Michael Bowden.

I heard about some winners that haven't officially been announced yet: Santa Claus will be named the jolliest big man at the North Pole, Fenway will be named best 90-year-old major league ballpark in Boston and the Phillie Phanatic, in a close contest against Smiley, the Hatfield pig, was named best mascot at Citizens Bank Park.

Man is this offseason slow.

So slow, in fact, the Phillies beat writers are playing a game of chicken to see who can go the longest without an editor demanding they update their blogs. Through Monday evening, Andy Martino leads, having last posted on Tuesday (but he did do a chat on Wednesday); Todd Zolecki's last post was Wednesday, while David Murphy and Scott Lauber each posted Thursday.

Spinning sabermetrics

Often, I enjoy the art of the argument more than the actual content in the debate. I appreciate the creativity of trying to convince someone of something they don't want to believe.

After yesterday's posting on the Cy Young awards and assessing Cole Hamels, consider these pieces by a stathead and traditionalist. Decide which one is sincere and which one is satire:

First:

So I pictured that shredded repository of all that is Scriptural about baseball, the lengthened shadow of fine print that comprises its history and greatness ...

And I muttered, "Look at how they've massacred our record book."

The only group walking the Earth scarier than the Global-Warmingistas are the Pitch-Countniks.

Second:

Yesterday was a seminal day in baseball history. When it was announced that Chris Carpenter finished second in the National League Cy Young voting despite not being named on two ballots - yes, two whole ballots - the game of baseball was irreparably changed, and not for the better. It may be hard to recognize at first but, sometime soon, we'll be looking back on this Thursday in the same way that we now look back on Opening Day 1947 or the first time Derek Jeter's dreamy smile graced the covers of the New York tabloids. I mean, this is important stuff.

The former was a piece by Bill Conlin, the crusty guy at the Daily News who I can barely read. I actually read this one, however, dumbfounded that someone would still have such an attitude without no reservations. The latter is a good spoof from Wezen-Ball that were Conlin to read it, he'd probably think it were a serious and legitimate piece of journalism.

So who won this debate without even having to break out a sophisticated mathematical formula?

Today's news: Nothing much going on in SoxandPhils-ville, but I wonder whether Christine finished buying my Christmas gifts.

Huge news

After several days devoid of any good SoxandPhils news, the incredible has happened: The Inquirer's beat writer, Andy Martino, has updated his blog. Yes, after 10 days the idle blog is no more.

Of course, it took something momentous to rouse the sleeping writer. The big news? As Todd Zolecki reported before Martino, J.A. Happ didn't win Rookie of the Year. As I predicted, the award went to a Marlins outfielder. OK, I had Cameron Maybin, not Chris Coghlan, the winner. I can't complain with the choice, but Christine will, especially because I told her in the preseason that Pablo Sandoval would still qualify as a rookie this year. I apologize again.

Of more pressing concern, one of the most vital members of the 2008 World Champions will not be back. There wasn't a blockbuster trade involving Cole Hamels or Brad Lidge, but Eric Bruntlett has been removed from the 40-man roster. We'll always fondly recall how the utility infielder just sort of became Pat Burrell's late-inning defensive outfield replacement last year.

We'll never forget his unassisted triple play against the Mets this season or his unlikely heroic moments during last year's playoffs - including scoring the last run that cinched the championship.

"Everyone hammers him, but he's one of my all-time favorite scrubby Phillies," Christine said. "He was scrubby, but I'll remember him in a good way."

Christine is also saddened that Tyler Walker is not going to be back.

"I just want to know what happened with him," Christine said. We thought he was one of the Phillies more effective relievers and can't figure out why he wasn't on the playoff roster or why he's getting the boot.

Oh well, tomorrow Jon Lester will get the first of what will be many Cy Young awards. I know, it's Zack Greinke's award, but it's all Lester in 2010.

Offseason blahs

With the GM meetings concluded and still more than a month to go before Christmas, this is the first weekend that the offseason really dragged for me.

There is nothing going on. I mean, sure, Andy Martino hasn't updated his blog in more than a week now, but there were no stories in either the Boston Globe or Philadelphia Inquirer today. Not even a lame feature on what the Phanatic is doing for the holidays.

Even Christmas shopping provided bitter reminders of how the season ended. While looking at some doggie clothes (just browsing, we would never buy clothes for a dog, even if we had one), among the Phillies and Red Sox shirts was one that said 2008 World Champions, almost jeering at us that there was no need for a 2009 version.

At another store, amid the piles of books, there were ones recapping the Yankees championship. Christine flipped them over and put a different book on top of them. Reason No. 1,503,303 why I love her.

I can't even get a respite in Sports Illustrated. Every other advertisement in the magazine is congratulating them. I don't remember another champion getting treated like this. Money talks, I guess.

One beat writer is still working: In Scott Lauber's Sunday column, he offers a little disconcerting insight into the Phillies third base situation. Basically, they want to wait out the market and pick up whoever is left - kind of like getting a Christmas tree from a picked-over lot on Christmas Eve:

When they analyzed the market for third basemen, the Phillies envisioned a game of musical chairs in which there seemingly aren't enough spots for each player, a conclusion that led them to decide not to buy out their $5.5 million option on Pedro Feliz's contract.

"We could've misread the market," Amaro said, "but we just feel like there are more third basemen available than there are positions to be filled."

Great, I can't wait to see what scrawny little tree is manning third base next year. I know, I should relax and give the Phillies front office the credit it has earned during the past few seasons.

[Photo credit: Wikipedia]

Cole opens his trap

We keep Game 5 of the 2008 World Series (both the start and the conclusion) on DVR. I watched a few innings tonight and was reminded how confident, dominating and at-ease Cole Hamels was in an environment that has chewed up many young pitchers.

It seemed so easy for young Cole during last year's playoffs. It was like the game was his own personal toy, and it looked like the only questions left were how many championships and Cy Young awards were in his future.

It was quite a contrast with this year's playoff run when fans didn't even want him on the mound.

But have no fear, young Cole has learned his lesson. He's no longer going to be preoccupied with being a celebrity. He's going to focus on his job:

You know, I lived and learned a valuable lesson in what it takes to be even more of a celebrity than an actual athlete so you know it's just something I'm gonna take in strides and push towards the next level of being the best athlete I possibly can versus being the best celebrity or the most popular celebrity.

Great. The Phillies blew a chance to repeat and continue the Yankees championship drought because Cole wanted to be popular.

Part of Cole's PR problem is that he has a little (I'm really sorry I have to say this) Alex Rodriguez in him - trying too hard to say or do the right things and winding up making things worse.

I'm sure when Cole said that quote, in his mind he thought he was saying the right thing: I'm sorry I was unprepared this season. It will not happen again. Other than my family, my sole focus will be on being the best pitcher I can be to help win another championship for our great fans.

Unfortunately, he dropped a poisonous word - celebrity - that is bound to further alienate Cole with the fans who still haven't forgiven him for his mediocre season and disastrous postseason, which he admitted could not end soon enough.

Without Cole, the Phillies would be going on 30 years without a championship, so he's earned some benefit of the doubt, but he should really watch his act or his championship performance will be overshadowed by his attitude.

By the way, thanks to new philly.com blog, Pattison Ave. for catching Cole's interview on Comcast SportsNet. Hopefully its authors don't wait days or weeks between posts, unlike Andy Martino, who hasn't blogged in a week.

Thanks Zolecki

Late last month, Christine quietly tracked the Phillies magic number. I emphasize - quietly. She did this last year too, but never told me until the number was down to four. Even though they won the World Series, she still thinks she tempted fate to deal the Phils a horrible ending by mentioning their magic number.

But it would have been my fault, of course.

If the fates do so this year, she will blame Todd Zolecki. On Sept. 4, he gushed about the Phillies dominant pitching in a blog that ended with "The magic number is 22."

Since then, the Phillies have gone 3-5 against the tough Astros, Nationals and Mets. In a week, that number has been reduced by only five to 17.

Zo, you may be the Phillies best beat writer, but if the Phillies don't get going soon, you're going to have some dirty looks coming from South Jersey.

We'll probably be out of the loop today as the SoxandPhils take on their division rivals, the Rays and the Mets.

SoxandPhils should have been in the bibliography

I read a couple more chapters today of The Rocket that Fell to Earth. It was the part that describes how Roger Clemens made the leap from an awful human being to a cheating drugged-up loser in the mid-1990s, thanks to some help from Jose Canseco.

As he looked around the clubhouse, Clemens surely noticed that he was surrounded by aging and adequate players. What he also noticed was that one older player who seemed to be getting bigger, stronger and better was Jose Canseco.

The book describes how Canseco tried hard to become a B-list celebrity with a fling with Madonna, a 1-900 line and mansions on each coast.

It also noted the 1995 Red Sox yearbook, whose juiced-up contents was duly noted on this blog a year ago. Here's what Jeff Pearlman wrote:

On the cover of the 1995 Red Sox Yearbook, Canseco posed in a black tank top, arms folded, biceps popping (wrote Mark Newman in the Sporting News, "It looks less like a team yearbook than, say, the latest issue of Playgirl").

OK, Newman beat us by more than a decade, but we were the first with the steroid link. And, unfortunately, this is not the cover shot, but one from inside the yearbook. But I think you still get the picture of what he was talking about.

Today's news: Red Sox are off; Phillies play late in San Diego. ... Gannett's furloughs don't exempt sports baseball beat writers. ... Jerry Remy sounds good in an audio Tweet released today. ... Todd Zolecki, not furloughed, reports: Raul Ibanez is now second in All-Star voting; Ryan Howard was co-player of the week; Kyle Drabek was promoted to Double-A Reading; and you shouldn't trust a Tweet from a Phillie other than Chad Durbin or Jamie Moyer.

Working his way up

The other day, Scott Lauber mentioned he used to cover minor league baseball, which reminded me I hadn't posted this little nugget I found while cleaning my junk out of my parents' attic.

Flipping through a 1998 issue of Boston Baseball, an underground scorebook and magazine tailored to cheap Red Sox fans like me, I saw a story on Mike Benjamin written by Lauber, who is now the only Gannett beat writer covering the Phillies.

It's pure SoxandPhils, mentioning Benjamin's 1996 stint with the Phillies and how he was currently third on the Red Sox in batting average.

He also wrote a profile of defensive whiz Darren Lewis, which contained a rip on SoxandPhil Wes Chamberlain. "In other words, he's not Wes Chamberlain, whose two-year Red Sox career could fill a baseball bloopers video," Lauber wrote.

He also wrote that Dusty Baker likened Lewis to former Phillie Garry Maddox.

It's like he was auditioning for his future job.

Current Boston Globe columnist Tony Massarotti wrote the lead story on Pedro.

Mike Gimbel, the statistician who by then had been ridiculed out of the Red Sox front office, didn't do himself any favors with his ranking of the top minor leaguers of 1998 - Peter Bergeron and Alex Escober topped the list of position players ahead of Troy Glaus, Eric Chavez and Adrian Beltre. The top pitching prospect? Bruce Chen.

Ah, the Dan Duquette era.

The battle of the Phillies beat writers continues

The other day, the Inquirer's new guy, Andy Martino, reported the Phillies made an offer to Will Ohman, which was promptly shot down by MLB's Todd Zolecki, who reported the rumor was probably just Ohman's agent trying to drum up interest.

Today, the Phillies did sign a lefty who once pitched for the Padres, but it wasn't Will Ohman. It was Rodrigo Lopez. Both scribes had the news, but Zolecki got the big scoop first, posting the move at 3:23 p.m. Martino had it up at 3:32 p.m.

In today's more substantial news: Kyle Kendrick took a step back in his quest for redemption. Josh Bard hit 100 mph during a game today. And Alex Rodriguez's hip injury is worse than expected and could miss months. I won't mention steroids.

Random thoughts

I woke up this morning to screaming headlines about Brad Penny's bum shoulder. I was terrified. But then I remembered: This isn't 2003. The Red Sox don't always choke in October, and the Phillies no longer end their seasons in September.

Plus, we have ample depth at starting pitcher: John Smoltz, Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden or even Justin Masterson could be the team's fifth starter if needed.

Now, if J.D. Drew's back doesn't respond to these injections, then you can write off the season. I'm just kidding. It's just nice that these tidbits would have seemed disastrous five years ago, but after championships there's a calming sense that the front office has it all under control. Ditto for the Phillies.

He's fallen that far: Scott Lauber notes that Matt Stairs and Geoff Jenkins have become redundant and that one of them won't be in Philadelphia this year. I wonder whether Jenkins would have been considered one of the Phillies' worst free agent signings ever if Jayson Werth hadn't picked up his slack.

Showdown: We have some disagreement between current and former Philly.com writers. This afternoon, the Inquirer's new guy, Andy Martino, reported that the Phillies made an offer to free agent reliever Will Ohman. He cited the lefty's agent as the source.

Two hours later, Martino's predecessor, Todd Zolecki, reporting for MLB.com, shot him down: "A Phillies source told MLB.com today that they 'are not on Ohman.' The source indicated that Ohman's agent might be trying to generate interest in his client."

An hour after that, the Daily News' David Murphy reported that the Phillies have kicked the tires on Ohman all offseason but that a deal is unlikely.

I can't wait to see whether Zolecki or his replacement is correct.

Brett's new diet

A couple weeks ago, I suggested that Brett Myers should share his weight-loss secrets with the world. I thought it would be funny for us, and a way for young Brett to supplement his income in case the downtrodden economy forces him to accept a pay cut next year.

But he's giving away his tips for free:

"Making smarter choices while you drink beer," the righthander said after his first start of the spring yesterday. "Instead of pizza, eat salad. Play for the tie, you know."

Myers, who described his weight as "beer-thirty" hasn't convinced Rich Dubee that this new healthy lifestyle will stick:

"I've seen him come in in good shape before and not maintain it," Dubee said. "It's about consistency with Brett. Be the same guy every day, stay away from the roller coaster, from the way he prepares to the way he executes."

Regardless, Brett is already feeling the difference:

Myers laughed off a question about whether he felt any differently physically due to weight loss.

"I felt really fat out there," he said. "I was having a problem getting the ball to the outer half of the plate because my belly was in the way."

Now we just need to get him in a sweatsuit in front of a mountain or stream to teach us yoga exercises.

Game day: Or maybe Brett lost his weight playing a lot of basketball. On Sunday, I went to my first basketball game since I was a kid when I saw a contest featuring the Harlem Wizards. {I was a big Duke fan for a while and never realized at the time how much they are universally detested. I saw them lose to Temple at the Spectrum in 1996.}

Christine and I watched St. Joe's beat St. Bonaventure 72-63 at the Palestra. I enjoyed it even though I'm a bit naive to basketball (I had to ask Christine if they play quarters or halves in college). Christine enjoyed it too - especially watching the hawk mascot. {He never stopped flapping his wings!} We both liked Bryant Irwin, who seemed like the least talented guy who got any minutes for St. Joe's. No one passed him the ball. Give him some time, he's just a freshman.

FNG: The acronym is homage to a former colleague. NG stands for New Guy, you can figure out the first letter. The Philadelphia Inquirer's FNG Phillies beat writer is Andy Martino. He introduced himself Sunday:

My job is to aggressively dig up news and deliver it to readers in a fair and objective way; in other words, I work for you, so if you ever have questions, complaints, compliments or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to email or comment.

Well, Andy, we here at SoxandPhils always like Todd Zolecki, but there is one thing he kept us hanging on. I cite SoxandPhils from July 11, 2008:

After Shane Victorino tripled in the 8th to tie the game at five, Jimmy Rollins kept waving a bottle of baby oil at him from the dugout. I can't wait to hear the explanation of that one.

I never got an answer, even after e-mailing Zolecki. Maybe the new guy can dig out the truth on this one.