Summary judgments: Nola vs. Braves’ bullpen investments, Maxey vs. the world, the Eagles vs. history
Brief opinions on big matters, including an interesting philosophical debate regarding the Braves and Phillies' offseasons.
I’m not going to sit here and try to convince you that Thanksgiving turkey is a wildly overrated holiday entree. But let’s be real. If I wanted to sink my teeth into something dry, bland, and difficult to swallow, I’d read one of my columns. Don’t get me wrong, I love Thanksgiving. The traditional spread is just way too ... beige.
Three slightly less spicy takes to hold you over until it is socially acceptable to eat that turkey as God intended: between a couple of slices of bread...
I’d be awfully surprised if the Phillies make a serious play for Yoshinobu Yamamoto. But they still have some work to do on the pitching front.
A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned the Braves as a potential model for how the Phillies could replace Aaron Nola. Instead of paying big money to a free starter, spread that investment around in the form of multiple relievers. Since then, the Phillies have signed Nola, while the Braves have added Reynaldo Lopez to their bullpen shopping spree. It’ll be interesting to compare the strategies over the next few years.
Thus far, Atlanta has spent a combined $70.25 million over eight seasons on Lopez, Joe Jimenez, and Pierce Johnson. Next year, they’ll spend a combined $26.3 million on those three players. That’s roughly $2 million more than what the Phillies will spend on Nola after signing him to a seven-year, $172 million contract.
If the Braves’ relievers perform as they did last season, Atlanta will be getting pretty close to the same number of innings as the Phillies got from Nola.
Lopez/Jimenez/Johnson in 2023: 185 innings, 3.45 ERA, 246 strikeouts, 78 walks, 27 home runs
Nola in 2023: 193 2/3 innings, 4.46 ERA, 202 strikeouts, 45 walks, 32 home runs
It makes you think, doesn’t it? The big advantage the Phillies have in Nola is that all of that production is coming from one roster spot. An honest comparison would somehow factor in whatever performance the Phillies get out of those extra couple of roster spots. On the flip side, the Braves’ advantage lies in the diffusion of risk. If Nola gets hurt, the Phillies lose all of that production. If one of the Braves’ relievers gets hurt, Atlanta’s investment is still two-thirds intact.
Part of the reason I doubt the Phillies will end up winning the Yamamoto bidding is the lack of incentive. Bringing him into the fold would require them to either start the season with a six-man rotation, send Cristopher Sanchez to the bullpen, or pay Taijuan Walker $18 million a year to do nothing. As good as Yamamoto may be, the Phillies might be better off spending that money on another bullpen piece or two plus a right-handed bat.
Tyrese Maxey’s next step on the road to superstardom: dealing with superstar treatment.
He gave us a good glimpse of his potential when he dropped 50 against the Pacers on Nov. 12. He also got the attention of opposing game planners. Especially the Pacers, who remained in town after Maxey’s outburst and were back at the Wells Fargo Center two days later. Maxey shot just 9-for-23 from the field against a Pacers defense that was determined not to let history happen twice. That heightened awareness is something that Maxey will have to contend with from here on out. Over the last six games, he has averaged just 22.8 points while shooting 39% from the field and 37% from three-point range. That’s down from 28.6 points per game on 50.5% shooting and 43.1% from three-point range in his first nine games. His assist-to-turnover ratio has also fallen by about 40%. The league adjusts. True superstars adjust back.
The Eagles are on the verge of establishing themselves as one of the best regular season teams in NFL history.
They have a chance to enter some rare territory against the Bills this weekend. Win, and they’ll become the first team since the 2005-06 Colts to start two consecutive seasons 10-1 or better. Tom Brady never did it. Patrick Mahomes has never done it. Manning only did it that one time in Indianapolis. So, yeah, Jalen Hurts deserves all of the MVP hype and more.
Keep in mind, Hurts himself has only lost three games total in his last 28 starts: the Jets this regular season, the Commanders last regular season, and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. Another interesting fact: three of the last four Eagles coaches had a season where they started 10-1. Andy Reid did it with the 2004 team, Doug Pederson in 2017, and Nick Sirianni did it last season. All three of those teams made the Super Bowl. Remember that on Sunday.