Hey, so I write here now. For those of you who know me from my previous stop, I'm glad you're still reading my work. For those of you who are reading me for the first time, I hope that this will be the first of many.
To start your Sunday off, let's take a look at some trending articles around the internet pertaining to the Phillies.
Phillies History: A Month in Hell — That Ball's Outta Here
Matt Veasey has turned the month of January into a trip down memory lane for Phillies fans, and for the most part, it's been an enjoyable one. However, as he points out, it's hard to re-visit any year in the 1990's — save for 1993 — and say anything all that positive about the team.
In this look back, he returns to June 1997, a month that he refers to as a hell. In that month, the Phillies won just four games, making it one of the worst months in the over 100 year existence of the franchise.
Why the Phillies Should Overpay for Justin Upton — The Good Phight
John Stolnis of The Good Phight, given how Justin Upton's market has failed to materialize, makes a case for the Phillies signing the free-agent outfielder.
The case, which he compares to when the Nationals signed Jayson Werth prior to 2011, is interesting, but not something that I agree with.
For as much as the Nationals have turned around with Werth and time has made his deal look less like the drastic over-payment it felt like at the time, Werth has two years left on his deal and batted just .221 in 88 games last season. Getting through the last few seasons of his deal, in which he's owed $42 million, may prove to be a struggle.
Upton is younger than Werth was at the time that he agreed to that deal, which will make him a fair signing for some team that can contend with him right away. The Phillies can't do that, and as much as he should still be at his peak in 2018 or 2019, the Phillies would be better served signing a free-agent to help them contend when they are closer to actually contending.
It's also worth noting that the organizational model seems to favor giving big free-agent deals to pitchers, not position players.
Mark Appel Glad For New Start With Phillies — Philadelphia Inquirer
While Vincent Velasquez headlined the haul that the Phillies received when they dealt closer Ken Giles to the Houston Astros, 2013 first overall pick Mark Appel was included in the deal and his success will help to determine how well history looks at the Giles deal.
In this article, Matt Gelb, who it's great to see back on the Phillies' beat, talks to Appel about getting a second shot with the Phillies after a poor showing during his time in the Astros' organization.
Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com.
