Our good friend Tom G. (who blogs at Balls, Sticks, & Stuff) is a Phillies fan, and recently I asked him for his perspective on Eric Milton, since he watched Milton throw for the Phils last year. Here was his response:
There are two schools of thought amongst Phillies fans in regards to Milton:
The most prevalent: He was the most consistent starter in ’04, led the team in wins (14), strikeouts (161), and innings pitched (201+) and therefore, the Phillies were crazy to let him go.
Less prominent: He may have pitched the most innings, but he gave up HR’s in bunches (23 on the road, 20 at home) and got a lot of help from the Phils good defense when the ball DID stay in the park as his DIPS or FIP ERA’s were considerably higher than his traditional 4.75
ERA.I subscribe to the latter school of thought and if I were a Reds fan, I think I would worry about his weakness for the long ball. Milton is probably better suited to some place like Pac Bell or Seattle’s park. He seems like a good guy and a hard worker, but he has his limitations.
Interesting. Any thoughts, Reds fans?
This is probably the most interesting and controversial acquisition in recent Reds memory.
The fans have been screaming for the team to open the pocket books and get a front line starter; what’s happened is fans are disappointed that someone like Pedro Martinez wasn’t signed.
I’m surprised folks have been as angry about this as they seem; did fandom really think the #1’s and 2’s would be beating down the door to play for what’s been a second division for about the last decade?
We were in a seller’s market competing with other buyers…it will be interesting to see what happens.
That was true, for the reasons I listed…we were not a primary destination for those wanting to win…