Kuzul

The Philadelphia Phillies fell to the Atlanta Braves 7-5 in their first game of the 2013 season, but it wasn't all bad news.Cole Hamels and Chad Durbin struggled on the mound, Chase Utley brought life to the offense and newcomers made their debuts. It is a much different Phillies team than a few years ago, when it had the best rotation in all of baseball and was considered a title contender. Now, the Phillies try to put a .500 season behind them as they set out to retake the NL East throne from the Washington Nationals.So, what did we learn about the Phillies on Opening Night?Begin Slideshow

The following countdown touts my best early guess of the top 20 starting pitchers heading into fantasy drafts for 2013.(Stats compiled through Sept. 13.)This off-the-cuff brainstorm may be rooted in hard numbers, but it's also a soft measurement of where the market currently stands and where it'll be in mid-to-late March.For all we know, young guns like Dylan Bundy (Orioles), Jake Odorizzi (Royals), Matt Harvey (Mets), Gerrit Cole (Pirates), Trevor Bauer (Diamondbacks) or teen prodigy Jose Fernandez (Marlins) could somehow force their way into the next countdown, thanks to a stupendous spring.But at this point, I prefer to lean on the following cast of savvy veterans, which includes a 23-year-old lefty who's primed for a big jump next season.Enjoy the show!Begin Slideshow

Philadelphia Phillies ace Cole Hamels may be a top trade target right now, but don't expect him to be dealt until the deadline is imminent.Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported on Sunday that the Phillies recently began working the phones after contract negotiations broke down with Hamels. And, as with any top names on the trade market, expect the Phillies to dangle Hamels right up until the deadline, seeking the best available offer.Hamels owns a 10-4 record with a 3.08 ERA and 1.10 WHIP this season for Philadelphia. He's recorded 111 strikeouts in 111 innings. On the other hand, he's also a free agent after the season, and with no guarantee that he'll return to Philadelphia, the Phillies must begin thinking about trading the 28-year-old.Buster Olney of ESPN noted on Tuesday that it was only natural for the Phillies to look into offers for the star left-hander, but "unless somebody calls ...

There is a great scene in the film Dr. Strangelove when George C. Scott talks to the President, played by Peter Sellers, about the advantages of starting a nuclear war.At one point he says, "The truth is not always a pleasant thing. But it is necessary now to make a choice between two admittedly regrettable but nevertheless distinguishable post-war environments."That line reminded me of the current state of the Philadelphia Phillies. Now granted, they are not dealing with something as severe as starting World War III. But they do need to make a hard choice and deal with a not very pleasant truth.The Phillies have committed too much money and too many years to keeping the likes of Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Ryan Howard with the club to realistically resign Cole Hamels to a market value contract.That means Hamels will probably not only be a free agent this offseason, ...

With the Philadelphia Phillies looking up at the rest of the National League East in the standings, they may make the decision to be sellers at the trade deadline this year. If this is the route that they choose to take, then the questions become which players would be willing to move.One of the players that the Phillies may consider dealing this winter is Cole Hamels. He is going to become a free agent after the year, and one agent believes that Hamels will be able to get a deal with a higher annual value than CC Sabathia's contract if he hits the open market (via Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports).Buster Olney of ESPN has noted that there are a number of pros and cons to both trading Hamels and to keeping him. Trading away a player of Hamels' caliber would bring back a few elite prospects, but the Phillies ...

Shane Victorino held another fashion show for a great cause, but it was pitcher Cole Hamels who stole the show. Dan Gross of The Philadelphia Daily News reports on Victorino holding his third annual fashion show to benefit the Shane Victorino Foundation. The Union League was filled with stars helping the foundation whose mission statement is,"dedicated to promoting opportunities for underserved youth. The Foundation engages in projects which provide children in need with educational, recreational and wellness programs."This year, current Phillies and their families were joined by the likes of Bernard Hopkins and Joe Piscopo. The night belonged to Hamels who wore this ensemble which is now the talk of the fashion world. Okay, it's merely the talk of people who consider capris and highly-cuffed pants to be rather silly. Hamels is making a habit of creating the fashion stir. Last year when he, as The Big Lead put it, embraced his inner Ace Ventura. I think ...

Playing Rough Something you hear a lot about from fans is the lack of an "old-school" mentality in the modern game of baseball.While many of the proponents of the so-called "old-school" are too young to know anything about it, there is some truth to the idea that the game was more hard-nosed in days gone by. Whether this is a good or bad thing is open to debate (that's what we're here for, after all). With injury concerns and millions of dollars at stake, with careers and long-term health on the line, we have seen less and less of the violent action that, in our sepia-toned memories, once punctuated the game with much greater frequency. Collisions at Home Plate Recently, the focal point of these debates has been collisions at home plate.Talented young catcher Buster Posey broke his leg blocking the plate and missed all but a few weeks of ...

Last month, Scott Hutchinson wrote an article about how the Brandon Phillips for Cole Hamels trade rumors were absurd. By now you all know about Joey Votto's contract extension and, in light of this event, I'm going to have to disagree with Mr. Hutchinson's assessment of the Phillips for Hamels swap. Don't get me wrong, I love Brandon Phillips and he's arguably my favorite player on the team. However, all of a sudden a trade for Cole Hamels is starting to make a great deal of sense to me. As you read this article, try to think strictly about the trade, and not about how much you like or dislike Brandon Phillips and/or Cole Hamels. In my opinion, the Reds will not extend Phillips past the 2012 season. I think he wants a few too many years and maybe a little too much money for the Reds to re-sign him.I ...

Baseball perfection is one of the most exciting, rare and unpredictable feats in all of sports. Yet here I am trying to predict who will hurl the next ultimate gem.The last time we saw one, Roy Halladay pulled it off in a 1-0 victory over the then Florida Marlins in May of 2010. The fact that Halladay has done it so recently makes him an automatic candidate to pull it again, never mind the postseason no-no he threw that same year.If Halladay does indeed throw another perfect game, he would make history in more than one way. He would become the only man in baseball history to be perfect more than once.That puts into perspective just how rare this is. Since 1922, there have only been 15 thrown, and only 20 in the game's history.I did some deep digging, because that is just what I love to do, and I ...

The 2012 Philadelphia Phillies look strangely similar to the 2011 version. All of the biggest contributors to the team's success will be back in the City of Brotherly Love for at least another season. Of course, this logically leads to the question as to whether or not the same top performers will have equally productive seasons. That's what I'm trying to address today. Here are my statistical projections for each of the top-six players on the Philadelphia Phillies. This is kind of a power ranking because the top five are in order, but I am also predicting each of their individual stat lines.Begin Slideshow