Pitching Problems

Demote him!

The Phillies have serious pitching concerns that need to be addressed sooner rather than later if they have any instinct to make the post-season. First, they need to demote Gavin Floyd to the minor leagues. Amazingly, Floyd is somehow 4-3, but every other stat is laughable. His ERA is a bloated 7.29( and it's JUNE!), he's only got two more strikeouts (34) than walks (32), and he's given up 14 homeruns in 54.1 innings pitched. Newsflash for Charlie Manuel and Pat Gillick: these aren't major league numbers! Do something about it, now.

If the Phillies are bent on having a minor leaguer fill that spot in the rotation, then I say bring up another minor leaguer and give him a shot. Floyd has had more than ample opportunity this year. At the very least, it's time to give someone else a fair shot.

The only reason that the Phillies are hovering just above .500 is because of Brett Myers. He hasn't surrendered more than three earned runs in any of his 11 starts so far this year and at times he's looked downright dominant. Lately, it seems like the Phils lose two or three in a row and then Myers' turn comes up and he stops the bleeding. Myers is becoming reminiscent of what Curt Schilling did for the miserable Phillies teams of the mid/late 90s. Entering Sunday's start against L.A., Myers has a 2.80 ERA and only a 4-2 record to show for it.

I wrote it in my 2006 season preview: pitching would utlimately decide the 2006 Phillies' fate. The pitching staff HAS to step up for the Phillies--or they need to be replaced. Clearly the hitting isn't the problem, although their hitting with runners in scoring position could improve somewhat. The time is now for the Phillies to shake things up with this uninspired pitching staff. Get some hungry minor leaguers up here and see if they can do something. As long as the Phils are going to give up these large quantities of runs--Lieber, 5.79 ERA; Lidle, 4.86 ERA; Madson, 6.04 ERA--they might as well let a few younger guys get some ML experience.