albeit maybe a pretty back-handed one…<\/p>\n
First of all, let us get two things straight before I embark on a potentially ill-fated defense of our embattled GM.\u00a0 One, I think Ruben seems like a pretty good guy, and I have a lot of respect for him, personally.\u00a0 Two, I think Ruben is – and always has been – a pretty terrible GM.\u00a0 I think it is long past the time when we should be finding a replacement, and the fact that he is still guiding this ship is terrifying to me.\u00a0 HOWEVER…<\/p>\n
I think that the current accusations and frustrations with Ruben are totally off-base and inconsistent.\u00a0 And, it is the second part that bothers me the most.\u00a0 Because the same people that seem to question Sam Hinkie and Chip Kelly are ripping Ruben.\u00a0 It seems to me that the most often-cited wishes of the Hinkie\/Kelly regimes are exactly <\/em>how Ruben has been operating for years.\u00a0 Let me explain…<\/p>\n COMPLAINT:\u00a0 Sam Hinkie and Chip Kelly Do Not Talk Enough to the Fans<\/em> COMPLAINT:\u00a0 Hinkie and Kelly Are Too Quick to Unload Home-Grown Stars<\/em> So, if you don’t like what Hinkie and Kelly are doing, then you are intellectually dishonest with yourself if you don’t, at least, respect the job Ruben is doing.<\/p>\n And, then there are the unfair complaints about Ruben himself.<\/p>\n COMPLAINT:\u00a0 Why Hasn’t Ruben Traded Cole Hamels Yet?<\/em> COMPLAINT:\u00a0 Why Isn’t Ruben Bringing Up Guys Like Nola?<\/em> COMPLAINT:\u00a0 How Did Ruben Lead a Fall This Far This Fast?<\/em> Now, to be fair, Ruben did not exactly help the cause, but there were a lot of occurrences – out of his control – that led to this historic fall.\u00a0 Again, I do not think that Ruben is a good GM – in fact, I think he is pretty bad and should not be the Phillies GM for one more day.\u00a0 But, I also got bothered by what gets thrown at him.\u00a0 If you hate Hinkie for never talking or Chip for jettisoning not only D-Jax and Shady, but the Trent Coles and Todd Herremans of the world, then you can’t also rip Ruben for keeping Chase Utley or Ryan Howard too long.\u00a0 If you hate Ruben’s awful haul when he traded away Cliff Lee (which I do), then you can’t fault him for waiting out a better deal for Hamels.\u00a0 And, if you are one of these people who think that the Phils should call up their AA starter after 20 professional starts just because you “want to see him pitch” then, as the eloquent Ruben Amaro,\u00a0Jr.,\u00a0so aptly put it yesterday, “you just don’t get it.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" albeit maybe a pretty back-handed one… First of all, let us get two things straight before I embark on a potentially ill-fated defense of our embattled GM.\u00a0 One, I think Ruben seems like a pretty good guy, and I have … Continue reading
\nRuben is always available.\u00a0 He has a weekly spot on Angelo’s morning show.\u00a0 He is on with Gargano and even Missinelli (who has absolutely no qualms about ripping him up cross-examination style).\u00a0 He gives written journalists pretty extensive access and candid remarks.\u00a0 In fact, the most recent remarks about the “fans not getting it” is probably the exact reason why Hinkie and Kelly avoid the media.\u00a0 Because sometimes you are forced to tell the truth (and, let’s be honest – anyone who thinks that Ruben is dumb for leaving Aaron Nola in the minors after 20 starts really doesn’t “get it,” so Ruben is right), and telling the truth sometimes is the worst thing you can do.<\/p>\n
\nWhat do we keep hearing over and over about why people are sour on Hinkie and Kelly?\u00a0 It always comes back to Michael Carter-Williams, DeSean Jackson, and LeSean McCoy.\u00a0 Hinkie thought MCW’s upside was limited, and Kelly thought that Jackson and McCoy were overpaid and not “on\u00a0board.”\u00a0 If you think they’re crazy, then obviously you love the fact that RAJ decided to keep Howard, Utley, and Rollins around for so long, right?\u00a0 I mean we have to keep our stars, right?<\/p>\n
\nRuben is out there, looking for offers.\u00a0 Now, this isn’t a Marlon Byrd situation at last\u00a0year’s trade deadline, which was\u00a0a total debacle.\u00a0 This is an ELITE pitcher in his prime with an expensive, but not outlandish and controllable contract.\u00a0 I am happy that Ruben is waiting to get the best return.\u00a0 What he is risking is a potential injury, but that risk, in my opinion, WELL worth taking if the alternative is getting 60 cents on the dollar.\u00a0 Remember the Cliff Lee trade?\u00a0 That was probably Ruben’s second-biggest blunder (slightly behind the Ryan Howard contract extension and well ahead of the Hunter Pence trade and Jonathan Papelbon signing).\u00a0 Ruben traded away an elite left-handed pitcher in his prime for a pile of nothing.\u00a0 If that happens with Hamels, then this rebuilding won’t be a phase, it could be an era.\u00a0 This whole rebuild is counting on maximizing the value of a guy like Hamels.\u00a0 He has <\/em>to hold out.<\/p>\n
\nThis is the most recent one – and, frankly, I don’t get it.\u00a0 What the hell is the point in bringing up a guy who was pitching for LSU this time LAST YEAR.\u00a0 He has 20 – yes, TWENTY – professional starts.\u00a0 Why in the world should he be up in the majors for a team that’s going to lose 90+ games.\u00a0 If the argument is that the team is going nowhere this year, then they should ABSOLUTELY NOT bring him up.\u00a0 If you told me that they were a mid-rotation starter away from contending, then maybe you take the chance.\u00a0 But, why chance stunting the growth (and add service time) to your most promising pitching prospect just because “the fans want to see him pitch.”\u00a0 Buy an f’ing Reading ticket, then, people – come on!\u00a0 If you are one of the people that want Nola up here now, then Ruben was talking about you when he said “you don’t get it.”\u00a0 And, he was right.<\/p>\n
\nThis one is fair and relevant.\u00a0 Amaro took the reins of a franchise that was in the incredible position of having great home-grown talent, a rabid fanbase that was selling out every night, and owners who were making money hand-over-fist and willing to spend it to stay at the top.\u00a0 He had a core of position players that had already won and built a pitching staff that could rival any in the history of the game.\u00a0 How did he screw this up so bad?\u00a0 Now, again, I think a lot of it was his fault (giving Howard the HUGE extension 2.5 years before he had to…trading Cliff Lee for next to nothing…COMPLETELY ignoring any analytics – this is my biggest gripe, actually), but a lot of it was not his fault.\u00a0 First of all, they had the best team in baseball – and the best team in franchise history – in 2011.\u00a0 They could have – and maybe should have – won the World Series in any of 2009, 2010, or 2011.\u00a0 They built a team around relatively young and durable starting pitchers like Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, who got old very fast and missed a lot more time than their track records would have indicated.\u00a0 In fact, look at the core of those teams and how unpredictable the falls were.\u00a0 Who would have thought that Brad Lidge would go from perfect closer in 2008 to a 7.21 ERA in 2009 to out of baseball in 2012?\u00a0 Who would have thought that Ryan Howard would go from 6 straight years of top-10 MVP finishes, averaging 44 HRs per season, including 58 in a single season.\u00a0 To hitting a TOTAL of 48 HRs from 2012 through 2014?\u00a0 Who would have known that, in order to keep former\u00a0platoon OF, Jayson Werth, the Phillies would have had to top a $123 M contract offer from the Nationals?\u00a0 Who have known that the #2 pitcher on the 2008 championship team (who was actually the ace before the Cole Hamels breakout postseason) would only win 4 more games for the Phils after that and be working on his budding country music career<\/a>\u00a0before his 33rd birthday?<\/p>\n