July 20, 2012; Philadelphia, PA USA; San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval (48) during the game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Giants defeated the Phillies, 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Yesterday morning, FanSided’s Philadelphia Phillies Editor Justin Klugh (of That Ball’s Outta Here fame) and I sat down to talk baseball, specifically San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia Phillies baseball. Well, that was our intent.
Somewhere along the line, we skipped off track which lead to me stealing Lou Seal’s pants and Justin talking about Roy Halladay‘s scarecrow elbow – which by the way was still intact when these questions were poised, so stop the death threats Philly fans.
If you’re interested in our response to Justin’s Q&A, head over to That Ball’s Outta Here. For Justin’s responses, have a gander below:
It’s been a rough few years for Chase Utley, but the start to his 2013 season looks like he’s returned to somewhat of a similar form. Can he maintain it?
I was telling – well, shouting at – someone last night at a bar that Utley gives you a high level of production, unless he’s hurt. As he ages, this will happen more often. But if he can crawl onto the diamond, he’ll just give you that fantastic level of Chase Utley baseball, even if he’s the only one doing it as the rest of team crumbles around him. His output will maintain as long as his health does.
What player has been the biggest surprise to you and Philly fans so far?
Well, we’ve got this pitcher named Roy Halladay, and he’ll probably in the Hall of Fame, but now he’s kind of at a point where instead of Hall of Fame caliber, he’s getting shelled by the worst team in baseball. I mean, you want to talk about a surprise. It’s like having a surprise birthday party, but then the clown kills himself immediately after the lights turn on, after threatening to do so for weeks.
What player has been the biggest disappointment?
Oh, whoops, I see. You meant for “surprise” to be a good thing. I can probably come up with another bad player on this team though – oh! How about Chad Durbin, Jeremy Horst‘s luck, Ben Revere nullifies his own speed by refusing to get on base, Ryan Howard and Domonic Brown had promising springs and are ruining that by having terrible late springs, Mike Adams has been far from bulletproof, aaaaaaaaand Delmon Young plays right field.
Roy Halladay, statistically, is off to a rough start with his 6.75 ERA. However, his BAA is only .240. Is it just a matter of some bad luck with his two poor starts? Or is it something more?
As we learned today, it was a shoulder injury that he kept hidden from everybody. Which makes sense for the following reasons:
1. Toughness
Man, it was just the wrong decision. Now he’s gotta go see Dr. Lewis Yocum, a man whose name makes players and trainers and probably the president shudder. Awesome.
Being we wont see you guys again until after the All-Star break, what Phillies do you expect to make their way to New York for the Mid-Summer Classic?
Ha ha ha ha ha. I don’t know, who on the Phillies has an uncle in the commissioner’s office? Probably, like, Papelbon or something. Jesus.