Curt Schilling to Test Free Agency in 2008?
Would a Curt Schilling-Philadelphia reunion make sense for either side?
Brett Myers, Cole Hamels, Adam Eaton, and Jamie Moyer are all under contract through at least 2008. While this does leave one rotation spot free, the team should also be preparing for the major league jump of J.A. Happ and Zack Segovia by then. It also necessitates the assumption that there is no real possibility of the team re-upping Freddy Garcia at some point between now and next offseason. Scott Mathieson's return from injury should make him a candidate to earn a starting spot out of camp next season. In other words...it does not look likely that Schilling willbe retiring as a Phillie as I know so many Phillies fans had hoped.
But if you are a dreamer who longs for the glory days (well, glory year anyway) then this is news that warrants some excitement - though you have to suspend belief for a minute to make it all work out, it isn't entirely implausible a scenario. Myers and Hamels are locks to be here next season, Eaton is under contract but far from a slam dunk (mostly due to durability concerns) and hardly a guy that would preclude the signing of a pitcher of Schilling's caliber (assuming the guy is still pitching at a high level), and Moyer could, in theory anyway, retire (or be gently nudged out the door by Phillies management) at any given moment. Happ could prove unfit for big league service in '08 or the Phillies could decide they want to start his career off by using him out of the bullpen...this bullpen scenario is even more likely when it comes to Segovia.
So what does all this mean? I couldn't tell you (I say that a lot, don't I? Why do people keep this silly thing if I can't even answer my own hypothetical questions? Silly readers...). I will say this...I've always had the personal hunch that Schilling would end his career in Philadelphia. I have wavered on this opinion in recent years (being in Boston has helped me get a first-hand look at how much he really enjoys playing in such a baseball crazy environment), but I still think it is what he genuinely wants. Do the Phillies want him back? Will the Phillies even think that they need him back? There are still plenty of hurt feelings within upper management even with the general manager that traded him working in San Diego...the Ed Wade regime may be over, but many of his former staffers still are employed by the Phils. I had a feeling that Mike Mussina would end up a Phillie in 2007...I was wrong. I (and I'm hardly alone here, many people much smarter than I have maintained this belief for some time) still think that Curt Schilling will find his way to Philly once again...time will tell.
Brett Myers, Cole Hamels, Adam Eaton, and Jamie Moyer are all under contract through at least 2008. While this does leave one rotation spot free, the team should also be preparing for the major league jump of J.A. Happ and Zack Segovia by then. It also necessitates the assumption that there is no real possibility of the team re-upping Freddy Garcia at some point between now and next offseason. Scott Mathieson's return from injury should make him a candidate to earn a starting spot out of camp next season. In other words...it does not look likely that Schilling willbe retiring as a Phillie as I know so many Phillies fans had hoped.
But if you are a dreamer who longs for the glory days (well, glory year anyway) then this is news that warrants some excitement - though you have to suspend belief for a minute to make it all work out, it isn't entirely implausible a scenario. Myers and Hamels are locks to be here next season, Eaton is under contract but far from a slam dunk (mostly due to durability concerns) and hardly a guy that would preclude the signing of a pitcher of Schilling's caliber (assuming the guy is still pitching at a high level), and Moyer could, in theory anyway, retire (or be gently nudged out the door by Phillies management) at any given moment. Happ could prove unfit for big league service in '08 or the Phillies could decide they want to start his career off by using him out of the bullpen...this bullpen scenario is even more likely when it comes to Segovia.
So what does all this mean? I couldn't tell you (I say that a lot, don't I? Why do people keep this silly thing if I can't even answer my own hypothetical questions? Silly readers...). I will say this...I've always had the personal hunch that Schilling would end his career in Philadelphia. I have wavered on this opinion in recent years (being in Boston has helped me get a first-hand look at how much he really enjoys playing in such a baseball crazy environment), but I still think it is what he genuinely wants. Do the Phillies want him back? Will the Phillies even think that they need him back? There are still plenty of hurt feelings within upper management even with the general manager that traded him working in San Diego...the Ed Wade regime may be over, but many of his former staffers still are employed by the Phils. I had a feeling that Mike Mussina would end up a Phillie in 2007...I was wrong. I (and I'm hardly alone here, many people much smarter than I have maintained this belief for some time) still think that Curt Schilling will find his way to Philly once again...time will tell.
posted by XXX at 6:26 PM
1 Comments:
Schill will be pretty old by then. Isn't he 42 or something now?
I hope he goes into the Hall as Phil.
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