Philadelphia Phillies

This spring, there has been plenty of consternation in the Phillies organization and around the Phillies fan nation.

Seemingly everyday a new concern arises, whether it’s Chase Utley’s knee, Dominic Brown’s hand, Placido Polanco’s elbow, etc. Adding Luis Castillo will certainly give depth to the infield, but what about the outfield?

With Opening Day nearly a week away, the Philadelphia Phillies pitching staff is still the top topic of preseason predictions. On paper, the Phils should easily pitch their way to the World Series, but so many things can happen over the course of the season that nothing is certain.

Roy Oswalt's frightening experience on the hill on Wednesday proved that seasons can be altered in the swing of a bat.

When you go through Spring Training, you don't expect to have to see players go down due to injury. Nonetheless, it does happen, and when it's a line drive right back to the pitcher, it's always a very concerning moment, since you worry if the pitcher's going to be alright.

Most baseball predictions are relatively straightforward. Sure, you can argue over whether Joey Votto will be better than Albert Pujols or who will win the AL East, but as long as the focus is on just one outcome, it's at least easy to understand the train of thought.

That's why, when one person decides to power rank all 30 MLB teams, things inevitably go awry.

There's a general consensus about how the top and the bottom should look, but in between the two extremes, things can get pretty screwy. One man's top-three team is in another man's bottom five.

When Cliff Lee decided to re-join the Philadelphia Phillies in mid-December, the first thought racing through the mind of every Phils' fan rotated around a star studded rotation that would help the team get the revenge they declared they would seek following a bitter ending to the National League Championship Series.

Some closers are safe bets to perform on a year-in, year-out basis.  We all know who they are, and depending on your strategy when it comes to closers, most of us want to own them. 

For those who like waiting until the late rounds to fill the spot, you must realize that all closers are not created equal.  Just because someone appears to be a lock to close games out, it does not make him an option worth targeting.

Spring training is almost over and I know you can’t read too much into players’ spring performances, but I though it would be interesting to compare the old Phillies right fielder against what appears to be his new replacement.

Jayson Werth has appeared in 14 spring games for his new team and has accumulated 39 at-bats with 10 walks for a total of 49 plate appearances, which averages to 3.5 trips to the plate per game.

Philadelphia Phillies (2010 record: 97-65) The Phillies entered the new year as one of a handful of teams with a legitimate claim to the designation as the best team in baseball. They entered the free agency fray at the end of the process and lured southpaw Cliff Lee away from both the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees.

Major League Baseball is a funny game, it's not like the NBA where guys can just play offense and win games.  Baseball requires a franchise to have dominant pitching that will shutdown the opposing offense players.  

A top of the line pitcher is one who'll take the rubber under his control and dictate what happens next through out the course of a game.

Sadly, there aren't quite as many of these guys out there as you would think.

So who are the top 10 franchise pitchers?

Those who were hoping for an Opening Day miracle in the form of a healthy Chase Utley are going to be sorely disappointed.  The signing of veteran second baseman Luis Castillo to a minor league deal means that Utley may be down for a long time.