Team to Beat: Phillies or Mets

Mrs. tmmullen says I shouldn't pick on The Evening Bulletin so much. But if you're going to debate whether or not the Phillies are the team to beat in the NL East, it helps to have a point. Or, at the very least, know what you're talking about.


Are The Phillies Still The Team To Beat In The N.L. East?

Yes - By Drew Silverman

Yes, the Phillies are the team to beat in the National League East this year. Just like the Mets were really the team to beat last season, the Phillies are rightfully atop the NL East perch this time around.

Huh? Oh, okay, I think I get it. The whole "defending division champs" thing. I understand now. Still it might have helped if you actually wrote, "As defending champs, the Mets were the team to beat last season. Now, entering this season as defending champs, the Phillies have rightfully laid claim to that title." Or something else better than what you wrote.


Granted, the Mets added Johan Santana in a blockbuster trade with the Twins.

So magnanimous of you to grant that. He is pretty good.


And New York's Carlos Beltran proclaimed his team the favorite to take down the division crown. But that is just talk.

A lot like this argument so far. Any actual facts you want to use to back up your claim?


The Mets still have plenty of issues to deal with, not the least of which is the pressure Santana is going to face in his transition from Minneapolis to the Big Apple.

Yeah, that commute is a bitch. But I'm sure they'll spring for a hotel when he's in town.


And while Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine are accomplished veterans, their age and injury issues have to be a concern at this point.

Very true. Whether or not Pedro can recapture his brilliance is a big question. And Tom Glavine's age will be a serious factor to deal with . . . for the Atlanta Braves! Are you kidding? Come on!


Offensively, the Mets should be solid, but then again, they were solid for much of last year before their bats went silent in September.

He thinks they might hit well, but then again, they might not. Hard to argue with that.


Obviously, the Phillies have their question marks, as well. But as evidenced by things like the Pat Burrell t-shirts and the Kyle Kendrick prank, this team is loose and ready to go.

Well obviously. And I have heard laughter is the best medicine for lack of pitching. So, here's a joke: Two guys are strolling down the street. One walks into a bar. The other one ducks. Yes, a joke as lame as this article.


No - By Dan Murphy

No, the Phillies are not the team to beat this season. And not simply because Carlos Beltran came out over the weekend and said the Mets were the team to beat.

Really? Just saying something doesn't make it true? Do tell.


The Mets didn't make as many moves in the offseason as the Phils, but their moves appropriately filled their needs and complemented the rest of the roster, such as RF Ryan Church and C Brian Schneider replacing an aging Shawn Green and Paul Lo Duca.

Hey - look at that! Some actual baseball analysis. Now I admit that I have not taken the time to look up at any stats, but off the top of my head, I will agree that Ryan Church is an upgrade over Shawn Green and [ugh] Lastings Milledge. Plus on a completely unrelated note, I'm a big Brian Schneider fan [I played American Legion Ball for his uncle in the Lehigh Valley]. Does this mean he's better than Paul LoDuca? No, because, as I said, stats are needed to back up this argument. But at least he tried to make one, unlike the other knucklehead. So kudos.


Trading for Brad Lidge was Philadelphia's best offseason move, because it gives them a capable closer.

Well, it actually allowed them to move Myers back to the rotation so some people say it was one move that filled two holes. I don't exactly agree [a post for another time], but Myers was a more than "capable" closer.


They blew it, however, in the outfield. The Phils let go of a huge fan favorite in Aaron Rowand, switched Shane Victorino from right to center field and brought in Geoff Jenkins, who is a decent player, but he is no Rowand.

Why? You offer no evidence to support this. And as you so aptly stated in the beginning, just saying something doesn't make it true. Oh wait, that was me. My bad.


A lot is made about the Phillies' infield trio of Chase Utley, and MVPs Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard, but the Mets' infield isn't half-bad, either, with David Wright and Jose Reyes patrolling the left side of the diamond and sure-handed Luis Castillo taking care of business at second base. 1B Carlos Delgado can only go upward after a disastrous 2007 campaign.

For what it's worth, IMHO, the infields are a push. But merely mentioning names is not an analysis. Why am I still reading this?


The only piece missing was a quality ace. Enter Feb. 1, when Omar Minaya traded for two-time Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana, signed him to a six-year, $137.5 million contract and gave New York a strikeout machine who has far out-performed any starting pitcher in the Phillies rotation.

Great point, terrible writing. Seriously, can a date (Feb. 1) enter? I think he should have written, "Enter two-time Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana, a strikeout machine who has far out-performed any starting pitcher in the Phillies rotation and signed a six-year, $137.5 million contract with New York on Feb. 1." But he didn't. I did. Therefore I should get some of the money he was paid for this column.


Does this mean the Mets will win the division and the Phillies will struggle? Of course not, because you can't foresee injuries and slumps.

And because he wants to equivocate in case he is wrong.


But the Mets have made a talented team even better by combining good business smarts with aggressive wheeling and dealing.

For the love of... They were one of the few teams that could afford the best starting pitcher on the market. That's not "business smarts" or "aggressive wheeling and dealing." Like you, I'm so glad this is over.

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