GaryMrMets
08-03-2004, 12:51 AM
http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/sports/9299697.htm
Posted on Mon, Aug. 02, 2004
Rich Hofmann | Thome is the only real hope
By Rich Hofmann
hofmanr@phillynews.com
CHICAGO - Like Connie Mack with his rolled-up program or Mike Schmidt at the end of a majestic swing, the Ed Wade statue can now be commissioned. The title will be "Deadline Day" and it will feature the Phillies' general manager, shoeless, feet on the desk, with all of his fingers and toes crossed.
On the plaque beneath will be a short inscription, just two Latin words:
Carpe relievem
Fingers crossed, toes crossed, Wade is all about hope now, not reality. Forevermore, all of his vacations will be taken in Wishing Springs, Ark. He will make all future purchases in yen.
Wade would appear to have one chance now, one chance to have his public vision of this Phillies team come true. The chance wears uniform No. 25 - Jim Thome.
And, so, you ask:
Can he carry them again?
On at least some level - especially after last season, when Thome hoisted the team on his broad-as-Broad-Street back for the last 2 months of the year - Thome knows it, too. He is a star, and he understands the implications perfectly. He doesn't even blink when you ask the question, even as you acknowledge how unfair it is to ask about one man and not 25.
"As a player, sure, you always want to rise to the occasion," he said yesterday, after another loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, another loss on this 1-6 road trip, another loss before another long plane ride and six more road games that could determine all kinds of unpleasant things.
"You always want to get the big hit," Thome said. "You always want to get the big hit that turns the thing around. I think the bottom line is, hopefully, we can put the last two series behind us...
"But not just me - it could be anybody. If we could get anybody to do that, it would be great."
No one else has shown the ability to do it, to carry this team for any significant period of time - and Bobby Abreu is the only other real possibility. But that's what it will take at this point. The Braves have now sprinted out to a 5 ½-game lead in the National League East, and everyone has to know by now that the Braves are superb front-runners.
Put another way: To get to the mythical 90 wins that Phils manager Larry Bowa thought, coming out of the All-Star break, would win the National League East, the Phils would have to play just about .650 baseball the rest of the way. And even then, 90 wins might not do it, given the Braves' current incandescence.
Still, at the trade deadline, Wade held on to his most valuable future prospects, added some legitimate bullpen help in Todd Jones and Felix Rodriguez, and left his starting pitching and centerfield unaided. The startling, kick-starting gamble was not taken. The philosophy of years past remains in place. Offseasons are active and productive but, on July 31, the future is not now, not ever.
And so, as he looks at the names of Cole Hamels and Gavin Floyd in his minor league directory, Wade repeats the famous line from "Gone With the Wind": "Tomorrow is another day." When he listens to music, it is of the old, old hit by Zager and Evans, "In the Year 2525." When he contributes to a political organization, it is to anybody but NOW.
And as for those left behind in the Phillies' clubhouse - whatever their hopes for a deal to improve the team - they have to turn the page. It goes beyond saying that injured starter Vicente Padilla needs to get back and be productive. They need an offensive spark, and you wonder: If not Thome, then who?
Last week, Bowa caused a ruckus by proclaiming himself "embarrassed" in the midst of getting swept again by the Florida Marlins at Pro Player Stadium. Five games (and four losses) later, the team's record is 53-52 and Thome says it is getting a "little embarrassing," too.
As he told a group of reporters:
"That's disappointing because there are a lot of high expectations, obviously from you guys, from us, from the city. To be honest, it's a little embarrassing because we want to play better for that city. We do have a good club. We're just not doing it. We're not doing it."
And, on top of that, Thome had a really unproductive month of July. With 31 homers and 72 RBI, he is still having a fine year - but July was tough. His four homers, 15 RBI and .229 average in that month were way down for him, and there was no hiding it. The Phils have tried hard to steal bases and sacrifice in the last couple of weeks in an attempt to manufacture runs, but it hasn't really worked. The truth is, they are built to be bombers. They need the homers again. They need Thome again.
"To be honest, I really haven't felt real good," he said. "Sometimes you go through spurts like that. This game is a marathon, it really is. It's a marathon. You're going to go through some times when you feel great and there's going to be times where you stink. Sometimes I've stunk here the last while. Hopefully today (a walk and two doubles in four plate appearances) will get it going.
"It's a feeling at the plate, and you get out of that feel at the plate...You want to try to find that groove and, when you do find it, you want to maintain it and understand how you're doing it.
"Sometimes it goes away," Thome said. "It's unfortunate that it's right now."
It is just one in a series of unfortunate events - which had better stop for the Phillies soon, as in immediately. As Ed Wade might say, here's hoping.
Posted on Mon, Aug. 02, 2004
Rich Hofmann | Thome is the only real hope
By Rich Hofmann
hofmanr@phillynews.com
CHICAGO - Like Connie Mack with his rolled-up program or Mike Schmidt at the end of a majestic swing, the Ed Wade statue can now be commissioned. The title will be "Deadline Day" and it will feature the Phillies' general manager, shoeless, feet on the desk, with all of his fingers and toes crossed.
On the plaque beneath will be a short inscription, just two Latin words:
Carpe relievem
Fingers crossed, toes crossed, Wade is all about hope now, not reality. Forevermore, all of his vacations will be taken in Wishing Springs, Ark. He will make all future purchases in yen.
Wade would appear to have one chance now, one chance to have his public vision of this Phillies team come true. The chance wears uniform No. 25 - Jim Thome.
And, so, you ask:
Can he carry them again?
On at least some level - especially after last season, when Thome hoisted the team on his broad-as-Broad-Street back for the last 2 months of the year - Thome knows it, too. He is a star, and he understands the implications perfectly. He doesn't even blink when you ask the question, even as you acknowledge how unfair it is to ask about one man and not 25.
"As a player, sure, you always want to rise to the occasion," he said yesterday, after another loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, another loss on this 1-6 road trip, another loss before another long plane ride and six more road games that could determine all kinds of unpleasant things.
"You always want to get the big hit," Thome said. "You always want to get the big hit that turns the thing around. I think the bottom line is, hopefully, we can put the last two series behind us...
"But not just me - it could be anybody. If we could get anybody to do that, it would be great."
No one else has shown the ability to do it, to carry this team for any significant period of time - and Bobby Abreu is the only other real possibility. But that's what it will take at this point. The Braves have now sprinted out to a 5 ½-game lead in the National League East, and everyone has to know by now that the Braves are superb front-runners.
Put another way: To get to the mythical 90 wins that Phils manager Larry Bowa thought, coming out of the All-Star break, would win the National League East, the Phils would have to play just about .650 baseball the rest of the way. And even then, 90 wins might not do it, given the Braves' current incandescence.
Still, at the trade deadline, Wade held on to his most valuable future prospects, added some legitimate bullpen help in Todd Jones and Felix Rodriguez, and left his starting pitching and centerfield unaided. The startling, kick-starting gamble was not taken. The philosophy of years past remains in place. Offseasons are active and productive but, on July 31, the future is not now, not ever.
And so, as he looks at the names of Cole Hamels and Gavin Floyd in his minor league directory, Wade repeats the famous line from "Gone With the Wind": "Tomorrow is another day." When he listens to music, it is of the old, old hit by Zager and Evans, "In the Year 2525." When he contributes to a political organization, it is to anybody but NOW.
And as for those left behind in the Phillies' clubhouse - whatever their hopes for a deal to improve the team - they have to turn the page. It goes beyond saying that injured starter Vicente Padilla needs to get back and be productive. They need an offensive spark, and you wonder: If not Thome, then who?
Last week, Bowa caused a ruckus by proclaiming himself "embarrassed" in the midst of getting swept again by the Florida Marlins at Pro Player Stadium. Five games (and four losses) later, the team's record is 53-52 and Thome says it is getting a "little embarrassing," too.
As he told a group of reporters:
"That's disappointing because there are a lot of high expectations, obviously from you guys, from us, from the city. To be honest, it's a little embarrassing because we want to play better for that city. We do have a good club. We're just not doing it. We're not doing it."
And, on top of that, Thome had a really unproductive month of July. With 31 homers and 72 RBI, he is still having a fine year - but July was tough. His four homers, 15 RBI and .229 average in that month were way down for him, and there was no hiding it. The Phils have tried hard to steal bases and sacrifice in the last couple of weeks in an attempt to manufacture runs, but it hasn't really worked. The truth is, they are built to be bombers. They need the homers again. They need Thome again.
"To be honest, I really haven't felt real good," he said. "Sometimes you go through spurts like that. This game is a marathon, it really is. It's a marathon. You're going to go through some times when you feel great and there's going to be times where you stink. Sometimes I've stunk here the last while. Hopefully today (a walk and two doubles in four plate appearances) will get it going.
"It's a feeling at the plate, and you get out of that feel at the plate...You want to try to find that groove and, when you do find it, you want to maintain it and understand how you're doing it.
"Sometimes it goes away," Thome said. "It's unfortunate that it's right now."
It is just one in a series of unfortunate events - which had better stop for the Phillies soon, as in immediately. As Ed Wade might say, here's hoping.