christmas wreath

I made a wreath yesterday afternoon just as the snow started falling in earnest. I used grape vine that had attacked one of the pussy willow trees as a base and covered that with evergreens I cut on Friday, then added some holly, juniper, a red shovel and tongs, and a bow. I thought the whole thing might blow away overnight, or just become undone, but it was still hanging on the storm door this morning, covered with snow. We had maybe 10 inches of snow. Philadelphia had 23.

blizzard

Driving to Quakertown this morning as the snow was just starting to fly, I heard a weather forecaster say that the word 'blizzard' was not originally used for weather. He said it was a baseball term from 1871 and referred to a high scoring game, as in a blizzard of hits. That led me later to a Google search, which led to several other origins, including a volley of shots (cannon, etc.) , a hard strike (baseball) , and a rapid round of hits (boxing). Some time in the late 1800's, maybe in Iowa, it was first used to refer to snow, specifically to conditions of low temperatures, strong winds, blowing snow, and limited visibility.

Thanks to the weather, I had to bag my drive up north to see the Met simulcast of Offenbach's Tales of Hoffmann.

2011 option exercised on rollins

The Phillies have exercised their $8.5 million option on Jimmy Rollins for 2011. This is good news. Rollins, a key leader on the team, is ridiculously underpaid. It's hard to think about what the team will be like when he and the rest of the core are gone. A staggering number of these guys are eligible for free agency after 2011. Sigh. Baseball is a business.

"it was a true team"

It was certainly sad to hear Cliff Lee yesterday talking about his trade from Philadelphia and about how shocked he was to get the call from Ruben Amaro. The guy still sounded crushed, though stoic in that way that the best athletes are. He said that he wanted to stay in Philadelphia and retire as a Phillie and thought that negotiations were under way to make that happen. At the same time, he said that he understood totally why the Phillies went with Roy Halladay over himself, saying that anyone who knows baseball knows Halladay's the best pitcher in the game.

One stand-out quote about playing with the Phillies: "Those guys are the real deal. It was a true team and I can't say enough about them." Cliff, we miss you and, again, wish you well. It would be great if you ended up, unlikely as that is, again in Philly. I really cannot imagine liking a player who basically passed through more than I did Cliff Lee.

When Chris Coste signed earlier with the Mets, he actually said to the New York media that he was a Philadelphia Phillie and would always be a Philadelphia Phillie. You can imagine how that went over with the NY fans.

baseball prospectus on the halladay trade

Joe Sheehan at Baseball Prospectus has a great piece about why the contract extension Roy Halladay signed with the Phillies is unprecedented: http://baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=9861

2010 winter caravan

The IronPigs are hosting the annual winter caravan for the Phillies in the Lehigh Valley. The card announcing it arrived in today's mail.

I saw a friend today who was still bummed out about the Cliff Lee trade. There was nothing to say really as it's done and he's gone. She lamented that players just move around these days. I said that I'd felt bad for Lee because he's now been traded three times, despite having been stellar in his short stint with the Phillies. He and his family seemed to take to the city as much as the city took to him. At least he gets to go to a team that has a good chance to contend and to a great ballpark, my fave in the American League.

It was interesting to read print accounts this morning of yesterday's Halladay presser. When Halladay said "we", he meant it. His family was very much part of the decision. His nine-year-old son Braden last week was printing out the Phillies' roster and memorizing it. His wife Brandy was quoted as saying, "We've got money. We want a ring." When reporters pointed out that Halladay would be wearing Lee's former number, she countered that the number belonged to them, that it should have been theirs this summer.

While I was driving home this afternoon, I heard assistant-GM Scott Proefrock being interviewed about the trade on Philly radio. At the end he said he could understand fan ambivalence because his own wife and kids were upset that Cliff Lee was gone.

Thanks again, Jim Thome, for coming to Philadelphia in 2004. Lots of things have contributed to making the town a destination for players, not the least of which is Citizens Bank Park. There's no better place to watch baseball in all of the majors. But Jim Thome's coming to play was a pivotal point in the fortunes of the team. So of course was the heady influx of homegrown players the ilk of Jimmy Rollins, Pat Burrell, Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, and on and on. Still it's nothing short of a stunning turnaround that the best right-handed pitcher in baseball would waive his no-trade clause and agree to an extension at less than market value to come play in Philadelphia. Even better, he and his wife seem to be totally genuine.

"where we wanted to be"

"This is where we wanted to be." So said Roy Halladay at his press conference this afternoon at Citizens Bank Park. While giving love to Toronto, his baseball home till now, he made it clear, again and again, that Philadelphia was where he wanted to be. Asked about his extension, he said simply that winning was what mattered to him. That's why he was in Philadelphia, to win--not once but for years.

Ruben Amaro Jr., who has been both aggressive and brilliant in his young tenure as GM, was beaming at Halladay's side. You've got to give kudos to the three GM's who made these trades possible. Alex Anthopoulos in Toronto got the most that he could for a pitcher who may well be irreplaceable and Jack Zduriencik in Seattle can only be happy with his part in the blockbuster. You'd have to say that on the face of it the Phillies got the best of it, but Seattle's now got a great complement to their ace and Toronto got some real rebuilding blocks.

Amaro made it clear today that the Phillies could have stretched the budget to keep Cliff Lee for the 2010 season but he felt compelled to address the larger issue of the farm system. In the two trades, for Lee this summer and Halladay this week, the Phillies have lost seven of their top 10 prospects. Trading Lee was, ultimately, a "baseball decision", a way to help restock the farm. He also seemed to suggest that the three minor leaguers acquired from Seattle might start the season in double-A Reading. Yes!

I hope that MLBN---do I love that channel!---carries the Lee presser, when it happens. Sad though it is to see Lee, and his 1.56 postseason ERA, go, it's great that he's going to a team that is very much in the hunt and to one of my fave ballparks not CBP.

Ironically, Roy Halladay will wear 34, Lee's former number. Halladay's number, 32, is retired in Philadelphia. It belonged to Steve Carlton.

the cy guys

As has been pointed out endlessly, the Halladay-Lee trades are historic. One Cy Young award winner went from Toronto to Philadelphia. Another went from Philadelphia to Seattle. And the son of a Cy Young winner went from Philadelphia to Toronto. It's all pretty dizzying, especially when a fourth team--the Oakland A's--joins the fray. Once the physicals of all those involved are taken and passed, the Blue Jays will reportedly send outfielder Michael Taylor to the A's for prospect Brett Wallace. And the Phillies will hold a presser to introduce Halladay. Let's do it today.

Cliff Lee's agent now says that his client is being misrepresented, that he wanted to stay in Philadelphia. Sounds like the agent should have been more on top of things when he met with Amaro last week at the winter meetings. No matter, all the best to Lee. It was a thrill watching him pitch for the Phillies.

the big trade

It's official, though not yet done, and quite different in the details than first presented. But Halladay is pretty much a Phillie and Lee a Mariner. I get the reasons for it all but it's still devastating to give up Cliff Lee, who dazzled during the season and was brilliant in the post-season.

p.s. Hats off to Ken Rosenthal, who on Saturday floated the idea of this trade as a "hunch". Rosenthal proved again that he's just about the best out there.

good-bye, cliff lee

It's been Rumor Central in Philadelphia today, with the news that Roy Halladay and his agent had checked into a city hotel. Pending a physical and the details of a contract extension, it seems to be a done deal, with Halladay coming to the Phillies, Cliff Lee (maybe) going to the Mariners, and a package of prospects going to Toronto. I've got totally mixed feelings about this deal, if true. Why can't we keep Lee for at least the rest of his contract? I get that Halladay wants a contract extension if he waives his no-trade clause and that Lee had already stated while in Cleveland that he planned on testing free agency in 2011. But, if the deal is real, I shall miss Mr. Lee, a mercenary, but one with the icy single-mindedness of an assassin. I've never before watched a guy who smiled while pitching.

As for Roy Halladay, he may be the first major league player who said that he wanted to be near his family and actually meant it. As much as the Phillies have targeted Halladay, it seems that he has long targeted them, for the chance to win and for geographic convenience. He lives within minutes of the Phillies' Clearwater spring training complex, which is quite fine with Mr. H. He's got young children and wants to spend as much time with them as possible.

spelt bread

A couple of years ago the woman at one of the farms where I shop in season started making spelt bread. This year she is taking orders through the winter, which will give me a reason to drive out that way once a month. It's good bread. I usually slice it, then freeze it.

good-bye, clay?

Non-tendered last night by the Phillies, Clay Condrey is now a free agent. Condrey, who battled injury last season, did yeoman's work as a mop-up guy in his seasons with the Phils. He was also featured early this season in a poignant episode of The Pen, MLBN's mini-doc about the Phillies' bullpen If Condrey is not resigned (could happen but maybe not likely), who takes his role? Flux continues to rule the 2010 pitching.

Farewell, too, to Mike Cervenak, late of the IronPigs. A fan favorite, Cervenak has signed a minor league deal with the Mets. Really, Mike!

no halladay cheer

I've had it with the hot stove. After reading this morning that Ken Rosenthal was suggesting that the Phillies will try to shop Cliff Lee for prospects in order to trade for Roy Halladay, I howled. Please say it isn't so. I can see where it makes some sense as Lee want to test free agency after 2009 while Halladay wants to sign an extension if he is traded. But Lee has been super with the Phillies and who knows what Halladay would be. Who knows too what the rest of the rotation would end up being? Blanton has been rumored to be possible trade bait in an effort to cut salary. Happ might be part of a trade. It's too much! The Phillies lost the World Series this year because, except for Cliff Lee, their starting pitching floundered. Their bullpen also floundered. So far, no upgrades in sight. Instead, nothing but rumors that, if true, might end up gutting the rotation even more. I can't take it anymore.

most watched in the nl?

Bast fibers in a shop in Yonezawa, Yamagata prefecture. The shop was a quasi-museum, run by an ageing couple. He was prickly and she was soapy; they made me tired. A better memory was the soba shop not far away, which was famous for its sobagaki.

Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated has a must-read article online today about how the Phillies are raising the bar in the National League. Among other things, he says that they are now the most-watched team, in terms of TV ratings, in the National League, trailing only the Yankees and Red Sox. You can see it at: www.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mlb/

Somewhere Jimmy Rollins must be beaming. On the other hand, I'm sure that come spring, SI will again pick the Mets to win it all and the Phillies will be, as ever, underdog picks. And that's fine with me.

organization of the year

The Red Mill Museum, aka Clinton Historical Museum, is the other museum in Clinton, New Jersey, across the river from the Hunterdon Art Museum.

All that's left of the winter meetings are the Rule 5 draft picks---and already the Phillies have lost Carlos Monasterios to the Mets, who then shipped him to the Dodgers for cash. The Phillies came out of the meetings with two bits of news. One, they received the Organization of the Year award for 2009 from Baseball America. The award reflects well on the state of the minor league system, recently rated by BA as the fourth-best in baseball. Second, the Phillies secured the last bench piece with the signing, pending a physical, of Ross Gload.

Otherwise, it was three days of rumors. Reliever Brandon Lyon, a reputed object of Philadelphia interest, was signed late last night by the Astros. Talks with Chan Ho Park and Scott Eyre seem to be going nowhere. Park still wants to start and Eyre is getting interest from other clubs. How soon we forget. Wasn't it a tearful Eyre who said at the end of the World Series that he would resign with the Phillies or he would retire?

The Halladay rumors continue. Early this morning sources reported that the Angels and Phillies were in the lead. Ruben Amaro Jr. later squashed talk of his club being in the mix. Yawn.

My fave comment was by Jim Leyland, talking about Placido Polanco. He called him "an old shoe", saying that every now and then you might want a shiny, new one but in the end the old shoe was more comfortable. Leyland made it clear that he considered Polanco to be some kind of ball player.

phillies sign ross gload

Cornstalks in a field late late this autumn.

The Phillies have signed utility outfielder Ross Gload, last with the Marlins. The 34-year-old Gload is a career .300 hitter. The signing would seem to round out the bench, with Ben Francisco and Juan Castro hitting right and Dobbs, Schneider, and Gload hitting left.

The news that Brad Lidge and J.C. Romero may not be ready until after the season opens leaves more questions about the bullpen. Rumors about deals for Joe Blanton and Roy Halladay continue to go round and round. Giving up prospects for one year of Halladay is iffy. Sad as it is to contemplate, soon enough the Phillies are going to start replacing guys in the starting line-up.

canada geese

Canada geese taking the waters in Clinton, New Jersey, a couple of weeks ago. Did Clinton, I wonder, get any snow this past weekend? Here everything is still covered and a wintry mix is in the forecast for tonight.

Allen Iverson made his return last night and provided a spark for the Sixers. Despite a spirited effort, they went down to their 10th loss in a row, outworked in the fourth period by the superior Nuggets.

winter meetings

Some late habaneros about a month ago at my favorite farm.

The winter meetings start today in Indianapolis. (Indianapolis? Can that be right?) Nothing much seems to be doing for the Phillies, unless Ruben Amaro has a surprise. The hot stove so far has been quite tepid.

more than we expected

There was enough snow yesterday for the neighbor to come down this morning to plow the driveway. He said that, according to his measurements, we had had seven inches. It was a wet heavy snow. When I went out in clogs later to clean off the car, I sank into mud where the drive had been cleared. There's still plenty of snow everywhere else. It was, unexpectedly, a beautiful weekend.

open house at pine creek pottery

Willi Singleton is having an open house this weekend at his pottery in Kempton, Pennsylvania, featuring new pots from the fall firing. I visited Willi a couple of weeks ago as he was unloading pots from the kiln. These rags were drying outside his studio.