When I was a wee young BeefLoaf I remember watching the Phillies, this was before interleague play and it was back when it was MUCH EASIER to watch the Cubs play, than to watch the WhiteSox play.  Two major deterrents for a poor kid from the inner city (Bridgeport is technically the inner city so gfy) from watching the White Sox.  #1 – The White Sox played a fair amount of road games on the West Coast.  Which meant that you had to stay up REALLY, REALLY late to catch Joe Cowley throw one of the sloppiest no-hitters I can remember in Anaheim.  #2 – Sportsvision…..yea right we could afford that.  Anywho, this brings us to the Phillies, see when you end up watching a fair amount of Cubs games as a kid, you end up ingesting a fair amount of Phillies.  This was the Phillies team that played at the rickety old Vet, this was the Phillies team with Von Hayes, Juan Samuel and the HOFer Mike Schmidt.  This was a damn decent team.  This was also at a time when the Phillie Phanatic was at the height of his powers and the Cosby’s were the family most revered in America.

Fast forward to today, where the Philadelphia Phillies are the only team cockblocking our White Sox from the #1 pick in the 2018 draft.  

The damn Phillies have been ostensibly rebuilding since 2014 and the 2015 trade of Cole Hamels was supposed to kick this thing into high gear………..but here we are in 2017 and the Phillies are still a pile of baby diaper fill.  The Phillies are near the bottom in all major offensive and pitching categories in the NL.  They have a roster filled with supposed to be prospects and some that are still languishing in AAA.  Like, I know JP Crawford hasn’t hit much, but do we really need to see more of Freddy Galvis.  Maikel Franco was supposed to be a big power hitter for this team, but alas he has a .387 SLG this year (for those not into the numbers part of the game, this is atrocious for a power hitter).  At least they have FINALLY brought up Rhys Hoskins (who is hitting a home run basically everyday and it still isn’t helping) and Jorge Alfaro to help them out.  And for as bad as all this sounds, their pitching is worse!!!  I know what you are saying, but BeefLoaf, I don’t give a fuck about who these Phillies are and why they are so bad.  Here’s the point. I look at these Phillies and get mad for two reasons.

1. I don’t want the White Sox to be a BAD team for much more than parts of two seasons (2017 and 2018…..I’d like the ass end of 2018 to be starting to excite as we’ll have a decent chunk of the future pitching staff in Chicago and a few of the young position players as well).  If you are reading this blog, you are WAAAAY into the White Sox and lumbering through these bad seasons is tough sledding, I don’t want you or I to have to trudge through more of that than necessary.  For all the “Ricky’s Boys Don’t Quit” talk, it’s still tough to go into the stretch run shooting for last place.  So, while the White Sox are going to be BAD, I’d like they to capitalize and that means getting the number one overall pick.  Why not be the BEST WORST team while we are at it.  And as fun as the White Sox are sometimes to watch, the season was going to plan, except for the gosh darn Phils.  They are gumming up the works, like a John McClane to a Hans Gruber.

2. I look at the Phils and see how a rebuild could go wrong.  I look at some of their “prospects” and see how they haven’t gotten better or haven’t gotten to the big leagues on the appropriate trajectory.  I see failed free agent signings (Michael Saunders, Jeremy Hellickson, Howie Kendrick, etc).  There are just too many parallels to how this White Sox rebuild could go terribly wrong.  I admit, the White Sox are starting from a much better prospect position than the Phillies were, but still, it is a reminder, that in 2020 the White Sox might NOT be in contention for a division.  It is entirely possible that a couple prospects flop, an injury or two wipes out some others and the 2020 White Sox look like the 2017 Phillies.

“I don’t want that, and you don’t want that, and Ringo over here, DEFINITELY doesn’t want that!” (hopefully we won’t get in trouble over this Pulp Fiction quote)

What to do?? I assume nothing, I’m still going to keep checking scores (Phils lose), and I’ll still keep crushing Modelos in the 108, but I figured since I’m doing all this worrying that maybe you(s) can share in the anxiety.

– BeefLoaf