End of the Year Phillies Awards
It was an up and down year for the 2016 Philadelphia Phillies, who finished the season with a 71-91 record (4th in the NL East), but we learned a lot about some young players, and the most successful era in Phillies history came to an end eight years after the historic 2008 season. The Phillies started out the year incredibly hot and actually held the top Wild Card spot throughout the month of May, but eventually came down to Earth in June.
The Phillies skated by in the first month and a half with a lot of low-scoring, one run victories. This allowed for first time closer Jeanmar Gomez to rack up plenty of saves, and he went on to finish the year with 37, which is the 9th most in a season in team history. Cesar Hernandez finished with a team high .294 batting average, while Maikel Franco and Ryan Howard tied for the team lead in HRs with 25.
This 2016 Phillies season will forever be known as the end to the greatest era of Phillies baseball. The Phillies entered this season with just two remaining players from the 2008 World Series Championship roster, Howard and Carlos Ruiz. With the beloved Chooch dealt to the Dodgers in August, it was only the Big Piece who remained from that storied 2008 team. And when the season concluded last week against the Mets, so did Howard’s time in Philly, and one of the most exciting chapters in team history came to an end as well.
Even though the team’s record wasn’t great, this season was a major step for the organization as a whole. The organization can finally begin a new chapter of Phillies baseball, and they got a good look at some young players who will help this team contend in (hopefully) the not so near future.
So, without further adieu, here are my team awards for the 2016 Philadelphia Phillies:
MVP – SP Jerad Eickhoff
His record may not suggest it, but Jerad Eickhoff was the most consistent pitcher in the rotation, and the most consistent player on the team, so that’s why he’s my pick for team MVP. Eickhoff finished the season with an 11-14 record with a 3.65 ERA. Eickhoff was a workhorse all year, not missing a single start, and throwing 197 and 1/3 innings in 33 starts. Eickhoff struggled with his command at times this season, but he also racked up a bunch of strikeouts (167) and he posted an excellent strikeout to walk ratio that was just a tick under four. If the Phillies don’t retain Jeremy Hellickson, which myself and other members of the media predict, and the Phillies don’t go out and sign a bona fide ace, which is even less likely, then Jerad Eickhoff will have pitched his way to being the Opening Day starter next year. Eickhoff has proven that he can be the solid #3 starter on this team when it is ready to compete again. He doesn’t have the type of stuff that Vince Velasquez does, but you know what you’re going to get overtime he steps on the mound. Eickhoff showed this season that he is going to be a guy that will consistently give this team 200+ innings a year, and that is extremely valuable for any ball club.
Top Rookie – 1B Tommy Joseph
This was the most clear cut choice for any of the awards I’ve given out, and a year ago no one would’ve believed this would happen. Tommy Joseph was removed from the 40-man roster last winter and was eligible to be picked in the MLB’s Rule 5 Draft, but not a single team took a flier. Joseph began his season in Triple-A and after dominating the International League, he received the call-up to the big club. Joseph continued to show off his raw power, and his power numbers were sensational for a guy who appeared in just a little over 100 games. Joseph finished the season with .257/.308/.505 stat line with 21 homers and 47 runs batted in. While players like Rhys Hoskins shined in the minors this year, Joseph will in all likelihood be the starting first baseman for the Phillies next season and he won’t have to share time with Howard, so it will be interesting to watch how Joseph responds to being the everyday starter.
Top Reliever – Hector Neris
Many people might go with Jeanmar Gomez simply because he was the closer of the team and he racked up close to 40 saves in his first time being a closer. However, Gomez’s September struggles are still fresh in my mind, and Neris was simply a more consistent and dominant pitcher all season long. It also helps Neris’ cause that he has much better stuff, too. Neris likes to attack hitters with his fastball early in the count, but his devastating splitter is his strikeout pitch that he loves to use. Neris was the 8th inning man for the Phils all year long, recording just two saves on the year, but he liked his role in the 8th, and he excelled at it. Neris finished the year with a 4-4 record and a 2.58 ERA in 79 appearances. He also racked up over 100 strikeouts for the first time in his career, and he finished tied for 4th in the MLB in holds with 28. It will be interesting to see what role Neris has with the Phillies next season. Whether or not he keeps his 8th inning role or expands to the closer role, Neris will look to continue his growth as a solid relief pitcher in today’s game.
Biggest Surprise – C Cameron Rupp
While Cameron Rupp certainly ins’t the Phillies’ long-term future behind the plate, he showed this season that he has real value for a team that is lacking offensive production from the catcher position. While his defense still isn’t the greatest, Rupp improved tremendously at the plate, and he became one of the better hitting catchers in the NL this season. Rupp appeared in over 100 games for the first time in his career, and all of his offensive numbers boosted because of it. Rupp finished the season with a .252/.303/.447 stat line in 389 plate appearances, all career highs. He also saw an increase in his power numbers, hitting a career high 16 homers and driving in a career high 54 runs. Whether or not the Phillies will try and dangle Rupp to a team in need of a solid, offensive-minded catcher in the offseason is yet to be seen, but Rupp really surprised a lot of people in the fact that he was able to sustain his offensive success over the course of the season.
Photo: Brule Laker (Flickr.com)
Tyler King covers the Phillies for PHLSportsNation.com. He can be contacted via email at tylerking2623@gmail.com or on Twitter (@t_king26).
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