Jayson Werth: ‘I’ll probably have a game’ when Phillies celebrate 2008 title

By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor

Though it's not clear yet how they will celebrate, 2018 will be the 10-year anniversary of the Philadelphia Phillies winning the 2008 World Series title. Throughout the course of the season, the team will probably have various events to honor the second team to win a championship in franchise history, with August's alumni weekend likely to be the biggest celebration. 

Regardless of when the celebration takes place or what it entails, the Phillies franchise leader in playoff home runs doesn't appear likely to be present.

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After this weekend's Phillies-Washington Nationals series concluded, Jayson Werth told the collective media, which included MASN's Dan Kolko, that he'll probably have a prior commitment when the championship is celebrated: 

Werth was asked if he thinks he'll be welcome in Philly for 10-year anniversary of '08 title. "I'll probably have a game that day," he said

— Dan Kolko (@masnKolko) May 7, 2017

While Werth has become public enemy No. 1 in Philadelphia since joining the Nationals in 2011, he was extremely successful in his four years with the Phillies. From 2007-2010, Werth hit 95 home runs, drove in 300 runs, was an All-Star in 2009 and posted a combined WAR of 18.1 (per FanGraphs). And as mentioned above, his 11 playoff home runs with the Phillies are more than Mike Schmidt, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley or any player to ever wear a Phillies uniform. 

The Phillies didn't deliver a competitive offer to Werth after 2011, instead choosing to allocate their money towards bringing back Cliff Lee. Werth, as most would have done, signed a seven-year/$126 deal in Washington and has been largely booed in returns to the stadium that he would once trot out to Lil Wayne's "Right Above it" in. 

Those boos don't seem to have affected Werth much, as he's hitting .478 with three home runs and eight RBIs in 23 at-bats at Citizens Bank Park this year. In fact, since joining the Nationals in 2011, Werth has hit 15 home runs in Citizens Bank Park alone. 

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Werth is correct in stating that he will probably have a game when the Phillies honor the 2008 team, although it's unclear who he will be playing for because he can become a free-agent after the season. Regardless of that, the idea that he shouldn't be welcomed to an event if he had interest in coming is quite silly. 

When the team does celebrate the 10-year anniversary of their most recent title, most of the team should be able to be present. Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, Carlos Ruiz and Joe Blanton could all be in the final seasons of their careers in 2017. Ryan Madson, Cole Hamels, J.A. Haap and Werth appear to be the only locks to still be in the league next year. Perhaps Hamels and Madson could be excused from their respective teams for a night. Haap really wasn't a big part of the 2008 team, so it wouldn't seem necessary for him to be there.

Werth, well, he probably won't be at the event, unless he's playing for the other team and reminds everyone of what 2008 was like by hitting another home run at Citizens Bank Park.