Thank You Phillies for Keeping Ryan Howard

.......and Fuck Bill James




**This is a Guest Blog written by my boy Jeff Katz who will become a weekly contributor mainly dedicated to Baseball and Fantasy Baseball**

I Don’t have to rack my brain to remember when the Philadelphia Phillies organization represented all I hated in sports. Not only was their product a disgrace, but they did nothing to improve and sat on their hands, year after year, while we the fans spent 11 seasons ('94-'04) focusing on anything but baseball. It was just too painful to watch. The only thing that would've made us fans happy was to see Bill Giles and David Montgomery strung up from the gallows outside City Hall.


But then came 2005 and Ryan Howard arrived for good in the Seventy-Fifth game of that season, taking his place alongside Chase Utley for the next decade (now we are sure of this). We all hoped that we were seeing something special, something different, something other than another overweight, heavy-footed, home run specialist who would be 50 pounds too heavy to play the field by his 30th birthday. Young Ryan snuck into the 2005 Rookie of the Year race despite not playing until almost half way into the season, and never looked back. 22 home runs, 63 RBI, .288 avg. And all that in his first 312 major league at-bats (excluding his 39 from '04 during his late September call up). We watched in 2006 as our rising young star, just 26 years old, followed up his ROY campaign with 58 home runs, 149 RBI and a .313 avg. Oh yea, and his first MVP award.


In the 3 years since that MVP season, all Ryan has done is average 47 home runs, 141 RBI, 102 runs, and a .928 OPS. (OPS = on base % plus slugging %). His power numbers dwarf those of any other power hitter in baseball over that span. Just as a basis for comparison, Matt Holliday has a total of 152 home runs in his first 6 seasons, this being his seventh. Ryan Braun, in his 5th season, has a total of 108 home runs and 337 RBI. Below are stats from the only players in baseball that even come remotely close to Howard's production in those 3 years ('07-'09).

Howard - 140 HR, 423 RBI

Prince Fielder - 130 HR, 362 RBI

Alex Rodriguez - 119 HR, 359 RBI

Albert Pujols - 116 HR, 354 RBI

Adrian Gonzalez - 106 HR, 318 RBI

Now go back and re-read those numbers. Seriously! Fielder is the only player within 10 home runs of Howard in that span. And he drove in 61 less runs. The great Albert Pujols trails Howard by 24 home runs and 69 RBI. Alex Rodriguez is a cheater so while I did put his numbers up there, I am not bothering to address the cheater more than I already have.


So the Philadelphia Phillies, in a move that was possibly more out-of-character than the Eagles signing of Mike Vick, went and signed Ryan Howard to a 5-year extension while Howard still had almost 2 full years remaining on his current deal. This means that the Phillies are locked in to paying Ryan Howard until just weeks before his 37th birthday.


Needless to say, the move sparked nationwide reaction from sportswriters and talking heads everywhere. (See links for enlightening thoughts about Howard’s new mega-deal).
http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/3345/phillies-pay-top-dollar-for-rbis

http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/features/rumors?date=20100426#5526

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/what-are-the-phillies-thinking/

Any response other than congratulations to the Phillies is ludacris. This move is by far the best decision the Phillies have made since singing Jayson Werth to a long term deal after the Dodgers non-tendered him following the 2006 season (now we just better sign him this summer).


Ryan Howard has not only been the game's greatest power hitter since he reached the Bigs, but he has improved every other facet of his game in each sequential year. Howard signed a 3-year, 54 million dollar contract after their World Series victory and then showed up to camp 2 weeks early and 20 pounds lighther. He has improved his defense year after year, and might be the best baserunner of any big man in the game. For those of us who are lucky enough to get to watch Howard night in and night out, we can all attest to the fact that he never gets caught doing something dumb on the bases, and almost always finds a way to score once he’s on. And none of that even matters in the scope of this new $125 million dollar deal. What is most important is that a professional sports team actually did the right thing. Other than the Twins re-signing Joe Mauer, the Phillies have put themselves in an elite class of Organizations. This decision may have the fans and writers debating whether the Phillies overpaid at a stacked position. Or if it was smart to guarantee a ton of money to a position that history has shown to be filled with players who quickly deteriorate physically after 30 years old. But the fact remains that, to other players in baseball, the most important group watching a team’s decision making, this decision was outstanding. The Phillies showed all their current players, and any potential free agents, that they WILL do the right thing when a player is worth it.
(definitely worth it)

So Fuck Bill James and his Sabermetrics. Fuck his WAR (wins above replacement player). And fuck his other bullshit stats. They don’t matter here and we don’t care if Baseball Prospectus, or the Billy Beane disciples that value OPS as a direct line to heaven, think otherwise. Ryan Howard is an All-Timer. A King of Kings both on and off the field, and the Phillies recognize that. They watched his dedication and his ability to always come through in the clutch. And they decided he was worth it. The Phillies used Howard as a precedent so that all are on notice - the Phillies are not fucking around, and we are here to stay. Thank you David Montgomery. Thank you all you other un-named rich folks. Thank you Ruben Amaro. Thank you Casey Close. Thanks for insuring that all of us will get to enjoy watching Ryan Howard hit his 300th, 400th, and 500th home runs while wearing “Our” uniform. (maybe even 600th and 700th). And one last thing; If anyone is unsure of Howard’s value, do me a favor and poll all the pitchers in the National League about how excited they are that he won’t be swinging for the Yankees or Sox anytime soon. Exactly.

Well done. Thanks Jeff,
-The Esquire