Game 1 starters have been announced for one of the most anticipated games in recent memory. Roy Halladay will take the mound tomorrow in Clearwater as the Phillies try to redeem themselves against C.C. Sabathia and the New York Yankees. This will be the first of 5 spring training games played between the two teams that fought for the World Series title last winter.

Look for Halladay to throw around 45 pitches in tomorrow’s game. Phils’ pitching coach, Rich Dubee, says he’ll be happy if his pitchers “pound the strike zone, work on tempo and find a fluid delivery.” It’s also being reported that Kyle Kendrick and Andrew Carpenter will pitch in tomorrow’s game.

C.C. Sabathia doesn’t seem too concerned about tomorrow’s start. As for the matchup with Halladay, Sabathia said “I’ll be in the dugout eating seeds and goofing off.” And is he worried about Chase Utley taking him deep tomorrow? “Come on” Sabathia said with a laugh, “it’s spring training.” Apparently Sabathia has no respect for the importance this game will have for callers to WIP. His ignorance of that is indicative of the reason we never wanted him here anyway.

Much is being made of the fact that Jayson Werth is in the last year of his contract with the Phillies. Werth is due $7.5 million this year, which will make him the 7th-highest player on a team that has a $138 million payroll for the 2010 season. Ruben Amaro has made a lot of noise about the fact that this team is not the New York Yankees, presumably meaning that the Phillies cannot afford to have more than 4 or 5 players making more than $15 million per season. How this relates to their ability to resign Werth is unclear at this point, so let’s take a look at some of the Phillies’ payroll commitments for the near future.

In the short term, the six Phillies who will make more money than Werth this season are Ryan Howard ($19 million), Roy Halladay ($15.75), Chase Utley ($15.29), Raul Ibanez ($12.17), Brad Lidge ($12) and Jimmy Rollins ($8.5). All six of these players are under contract for the 2011 season and only two of them, Howard and Halladay, are due raises in ‘11 ($1 million and $4.25, respectively). This means that the Phillies are committed for about $88 million in 2011 for their top players and $133 million altogether.

Going a step further, Raul Ibanez’s advanced age and free agent status makes him a certain subtraction from the Phils’ payroll in 2012. Brad Lidge (who knows what he’ll be like in 2 years) is only due $1.5 million in 2012. Utley and Halladay are both under contract through the 2013 season so Jimmy Rollins will have to be renegotiated (2012 is the last year of his deal). With the bulk of the Phillies minor league talent existing in the form of outfielders, the need for Werth’s services past the 2011 season are questionable, which may make parting ways with him palatable for Amaro and the organization. But that all boils down to how much money Werth can expect from suitors in the free agency market.

Obviously, Ruben Amaro is better in touch with the mechanics of free agency than we are, so let’s just do a cursory look at what Werth, a career .265 hitter, can expect in the form of a raise. Statistically, Werth is coming off his most impressive season. He hit 50% more home runs in 2009 than in his next-most productive season (24 in 2008). He’s never tallied more than 100 RBI (max was 99 last season) and he’s never had an OPS better than .879. His career strikeout-to-walk ratio isn’t good (just about 1 BB for every 2 Ks) and while Werth does have good range in right field, his speed hasn’t translated that well to his stolen base totals: his best seasons were ‘08 and ‘09 where he stole 20 bases each season. For his career, he steals a base about once in every nine games he plays.

Let’s take Jason Bay’s signing by the Mets as a comparison. Bay’s contract will pay him $54.5 million over the next 4 years, plus a $17 million club option for 2014, meaning he’ll average about $13.63 million in his guaranteed years with the Mets. Considering Werth is making $7.5 million, should he expect a $6 million raise on par with a guy like Bay?

Like Werth, Bay has played 7 Major League seasons. His career average is .280. He hit the same number of home runs as Werth this past season (let’s consider Fenway Park and Citizens Bank Park to be washes in terms of their favorability to power hitters–two of the smallest lots in baseball). Bay has hit twice as many home runs in his career than Werth (185-93). Bay has tallied more than 100 RBI in 4 of his 7 seasons (119 in 2009) and has a career OPS of .896 which is better than Werth’s best single-season OPS. Bay’s SO-BB ratio is about 6% better than Werth’s. While Bay has a career best of 21 stolen bases (exceeding Werth’s best season), that was in 2005 and he only steals a base every 14 games.

We know the Mets are a relatively free-spending team when it comes to free agency. Considering they are spending less than $15 on Jason Bay (who has had a markedly better offensive career than Werth), can we really project that Werth will be able to command a contract that pays him in excess of $15 million per season? And assuming we can’t, how should we take Amaro’s argument that a likely parting with Werth will happen because the Phillies don’t want to overspend, on par with a team like the Yankees?

Jayson Werth is a very good outfielder who is coming off his best season. But it seems unlikely to me that Werth will command the kind of money that will prevent the Phillies from making him a competitive offer in free agency. So if the magic number is $140 million for 2011 and the Phillies are already committed to $133 million (with all the other top players under contract), it will be interesting to see how far over $140 Amaro will be willing to go to resign Werth.

Let me start by saying that I will certainly not be unhappy in any way with Roy Halladay as the Phillies’ ace. I argued extensively last season for the Phils to make a move to get him and he is one of the top-5 pitchers in baseball, perhaps made even better in the short run by being a veteran of baseball’s best division. And now Halladay will land in the N.L. which by recent experience should mean he’ll get even more of a boost. From a performance perspective, Halladay probably becomes the best pitcher in the National League going into 2010.

But there are questions surrounding this move and its timing that can’t be ignored. First and foremost is the issue of what the Phillies have given up to acquire Halladay. Because Cliff Lee is gone as a result of this trade, the Phillies are simply replacing one ace with another. Let’s start with the trade that rented Cliff Lee for 12 starts to close out the 2009 season (and 4 brilliant playoff starts). According to mlb.com the Phillies will part with previously “untouchable” top pitching prospect, Kyle Drabek, as well as outfielder Michael Taylor and catcher Travis d’Arnaud. Combine that with the players they sent to Cleveland in the Lee deal (pitchers Jason Knapp and Carlos Carrasco, catcher Lou Marson and infielder Jason Donald) and you have a pretty high price paid for what amounts to be one pitcher.

In fairness, prospects are exactly that: an unknown commodity. But emptying close to your entire minor league tank to fill one rotation spot seems to be a bold gamble, even moreso when you consider the fact that Roy Halladay is negligably better than Cliff Lee. To boot, Roy Halladay has pitched 4 more seasons than Cliff Lee and has pitched exactly 850 innings more than Lee, meaning his treads are a lot more worn than Lee’s.

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When you hit .266 in the bottom of the order and play an excellent defensive third base (and jack a huge World Series home run) you force management to look for your replacement. Leading the team in average with runners in scoring position isn’t worth much either. Nope. If you’re Pedro Feliz, you’re wondering why solid production at the back end of the best offense in the N.L. isn’t enough to keep you employed. Ditto for your defensive prowess.

Other than Alex Rodriguez and David Wright, just about every third baseman in baseball has been rumored to be Feliz’s replacement. From Chone Figgins to Kevin Kouzmanoff to Garrett Atkins to Adrian Beltre. Now Mike Lowell’s name is in the mix.

The Phillies have officially become the National League’s version of the Yankees. This is the kind of thing rich people do because they’re bored. Sick of your BMW? Go get a Bentley. Your 96-inch HD Plasma is boring you? Install an IMAX in your basement. There is no need to replace Pedro Feliz, but Amaro has to keep the Phils relevant during the off season. That’s what this move is, I just hope they don’t get bitten by the if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it bug.

Johnny Goodtimes did all of our sentiments a service with his great piece on how things feel today and how they’ll be remembered going forward. The only thing I can add to that is the expression of a sense of pride I have in how well this team performed and how gracious and classy Philly has been in defeat. When you think about it objectively, the odds of winning a World Series are never good, no matter how strong a team is on paper. This Phillies team not only won 1, but they returned to the big stage and showed not only how good they have been but how promising they are for the years to come.

The odds for next year’s World Series champion are out. The Phillies stand at 10-1. In shocking fashion the yearly ritual, the Yankees and Red Sox are the favorites to win at 3-1 and 7-1, respectively. Like the Phillies the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County of California are listed at 10-1 as are the Cardinals, the other N.L. team in the top-5. Other N.L. aspirants are the Dodgers (12-1), the Cubs (15-1), the Rockies (20-1) and the Braves (20-1). And in case you were wondering, the Mets are listed at 15-1.

So our favorite sport here at iSportacus is in hibernation for the next 3 months which gives us time to refocus on a very good Flyers team, an Eagles team that is as inconsistent as my putter and a Sixers team which we’re forced to cover periodically. Penn State football should get a boost here in the coming weeks; they have a huge game at home this Saturday against Ohio State in which they’re favored by 3.5. Because they have a loss to Iowa on their card and the Hawkeyes are undefeated, hopes for a trip to the Rose Bowl are distant but hey, they could finish their season with 1 loss which is pretty damned good. And finally, look for a little Temple football coverage. Quietly, they’ve won 6 straight and are bowl eligible for the first time in a long time.

It’s been a great baseball season. Until the proverbial pitchers-and-catchers date, let’s try and enjoy the bounty of other quality sports taking place around Philly.

My colleague, Johnny Goodtimes, is among a group of misguided optimists who believe that because Andy Pettitte is pitching on 3-days rest tonight he will be ineffective. It’s an easy storyline to get behind: “37-year old man pitches on short rest;” think about it, the old fogie goes out there with a tired arm, both because of his age and the fact that he’s only had 3 days to digest all his geritol. In reality, this assumption is at best wishful thinking and at worst, the sports equivalent of jingoistic thinking.

Let’s look at the facts. Andy Pettitte will be opposed by Pedro Martinez tonight. It is true that Pedro has more rest than Pettitte (which would seem to be an advantage for the Phillies right hander) but let’s not forget the fact that Pedro is no spring chicken himself. In fact, he’s older than Pettitte. I would be more comfortable with the anti-Pettitte argument if he’s been going on short rest consistently but the fact is that tonight will be the first start he will have had all season with fewer than 4-days rest.

What’s more, Pettitte’s start in Game 3 (let’s not forget he won that game) only saw him pitch 6 innings and throw 104 pitches, hardly a herculean effort. In his last 3 starts including Saturday’s game, he’s thrown 95, 99 and 104 pitches. None of those outings would suggest that Pettitte over-exerted himself. If anything, he may be the most reliable Yankees starter after having recorded 3 wins in his 4 playoff starts this year (including an 81-pitch win against the Twins in the ALDS). And let’s also keep one other small thing in mind: Andy Pettitte has won more postseason games than any pitcher in baseball history.

I’m not trying to suggest that Pettitte is in line for a magnificent start or even that the Yankees will win the game. I certainly hope A.P. goes out there and gets rocked by the Phillies. But without even talking about Pedro Martinez and what he’ll bring tonight, I make this point simply to show why mortgaging the house on the assumption that Andy Pettitte is pitching on short rest is probably making a mountain out of a molehill.

I could never figure out why the “Why Can’t Us?” thing didn’t really catch on during last year’s playoffs. If you don’t remember it, well maybe that’s because we opted for more creative and original playoff themes like “Red October.” In any event, the semi-famous phrase was uttered by a caller to an XM radio show and when asked whether the Philles could win the whole thing, he said “Why Can’t Us?” It’s perfect for this town because it’s spontaneous, organic, unique and frankly, a little stupid. Hell, in a town where we’ve virtually banned the preposition (”down the shore,” “done my homework”), that little hint of illiteracy is just so wonderfully Philly.

Another thing flying around last night and today that makes no sense is all the yapping about who will start for the Phillies in Game 7. Both Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels were asked this question in multiple forms after the Phils win last night and (predictably) both seemed confident they were the guy for the job. There’s just one problem: there won’t be a game 7 unless the Phillies win tomorrow night. It’s utterly amazing that everyone (myself included) is patching together dozens of pitching permutations in order to figure out which hurler will be the Phillies best bet on Thursday night. Who cares? As of right now there is no such thing as a Game 7. There is Game 6 tomorrow night in New York and that is the only thing that matters.

I’d explain the methodology of the coolstandings.com game simulations but most of the people reading this site wouldn’t understand. After all, statistical analysis is only slightly below speaking English properly on the list of things Philadelphians do well so you’ll just have to trust us on this. Before the start of the series, the Yankees were a 60.7% favorite to win it all. After the Phillies won Game 1, the Yanks became a 41.9% likely winner. As of right now, the Yankees are an 80.1% favorite to win. The initial odds on the Yankees winning the series in 6 games was a 55.4%. The other two statistically-significant outcome percentages are Phillies in 7 (19.9%, duh) and the Yankees in 7 (24.7%). Because I live in Philadelphia, I don’t know what this means but it doesn’t look good.

Let me start by noting the obvious: the following discussion is trivial, premature and theoretical. If for no other simple reason that we still haven’t seen Game 6 of the World Series played yet, there’s no way to really say who the MVP of the Series is. But for the sake of illustrating just how great Chase Utley has been so far, let’s entertain the notion that he’s been the the most valuable (read: greatest impact on the Series of any player) participant in this year’s Series.

The Phillies’ second baseman has an OPS of 1.651. That is unheard of. He’s accumulated 22 total bases and his slugging percentage is 1.222. Through 5 games, these numbers are stratospheric. He’s reached base 43% of the time he’s been at the plate. And, as everyone knows by now, he’s tied Reggie Jackson’s mark of 5 home runs in a World Series. Most importantly, Utley’s produced 8 runs with his bat.

Who else has had an impact so significant? Well, Johnny Damon has been the definition of a professional hitter, having drawn-out at-bats in late inning situations. But Damon’s clutch hitting hasn’t resulted in the raw production Utley’s has. Damon’s OPS is .911, not anywhere close to Utley’s. His OBP is fantastic (.435, .006 better than Utley’s) but he’s only driven in 4 runs and has hit no homers.

Alex Rodriguez has also come alive in the past few games. But like Damon’s OPS, his is well under 1.000. To his credit, A-Rod has made himself into a intimidating figure at the plate and while the Phillies may be wise to simply put him on base every time he’s up, his numbers don’t shine as brightly as Utley’s. He has fewer RBI (6), less than half the total bases Utley has (10) and has an OBP .65 less than Utley.

Jayson Werth has (relatively) quietly put up number better than both Damon’s and A-Rod’s. He’s hit for 11 total bases, a .400 OBP and a 1.047 OPS. The only other reasonable contestant is Derek Jeter but his numbers are comparable to or worse than both his aforementioned Yankees teammates.

I don’t think a starting pitcher can be mentioned in this discussion if for no other reason the fact that they impact fewer than half the games. Unless a pitcher is single-handedly responsible for multiple wins, he shouldn’t be in the discussion, a big part of the reason I’m leaving Cliff Lee out of the conversation. For as great as he was in Game 1, last night’s performance should be best described as solid. None of the Yankees’ pitchers’ starts can be characterized as superlative, and while Mariano Rivera scares the pants off everyone, he’s only pitched 3 and 2/3 innings. I’m sorry but that just isn’t good enough when compared against a guy like Utley who’s played in 40 innings.

Chase Utley’s performance in this World Series is the only reason it’s still going on. If the Phillies find a way to get it to a Game 7 and Utley delivers a clutch hit, win or lose his performance in this year’s Fall Classic will be remembered as one of the great efforts of all time.

Maybe it’s because I’m a glutton for frustration that I continue to do this to myself. Or maybe it’s because, as a professional journalist, I have to know what’s going on in the major media outlets in this town. But when I do subject myself to the sports “news” outlet in this town that is the information equivalent of anti-matter, I always end up wanting to throw my radio (and myself) down a flight of stairs. You guessed it, I’m listening to WIP.

All through the day today callers to the various shows on 610 AM were basing their predictions for a Phillies World Series on the assumption that the Phillies have “heart” and the Yankees don’t. Of course, having “heart” is universally the first intangible that any local fan will go to to describe why his/her team is in the driver’s seat. The reason is that “heart” is the most readily identifiable trait that a fan can have with a team. After all, fans can’t hit a Major League pitch, run faster than Shane Victorino or make a diving play in the hole like Jimmy Rollins. But what fans can do is emote and will that their team somehow, some way will find the guidance to do exactly what they themselves are doing in their armchairs: wanting it more than the other guy.

As I write this I realize it may sound like I don’t believe that the Phillies have heart or that heart doesn’t matter in sports. Quite the opposite is true on both counts. Few teams get where the Phillies are by playing aloof or disliking each other or failing to overcome obstacles. Their individual talents are nothing without the emotional trust they have in each other and the collective focus and drive to win. Some teams are blessed with this more than others and I most definitely think of this Phillies team as one that plays ball the right way and shows that magic on the field that we call heart.

But so do the Yankees. Perhaps because of their image as a team comprised of hired guns, fans of their opponents see them as emotionally vacuous, as mercenaries along for the ride less out of love of the game and more out of greed and vanity. While this is certainly true of some players on the Yankees (and players on just about every sports team that’s ever existed), the 2009 Yankees are not some heartless machine. They went 35-8 at home after the All-Star break. They came back from a 4-0 deficit against the Angels’ best pitcher in Game 4 of the ALCS. They had the most come-from-behind wins in baseball this year. And they feature (at least) three guys who are legends of post season baseball in Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera.

Look, the Phillies are the defending World Champs and one of the best two teams in baseball. And most of the people who read this site have watched scores of Phillies games this year and associate both on a statistical and emotional level with their beloved team. But for every Phillies fan who bleeds red, there’s a Yankees fan who knows his team just as well and bleeds just as much, if only in a different color.

As a Red Sox fan, I have years of Yankee hating in my blood. I detest that franchise and am rooting as hard as I can for the Phillies to win. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years in watching the core of the New York team as closely as I have, it’s that they’re not the heartless robot we like to think of them as. In fact, they’re a lot like the Phillies. They’re talented, hit for power, pitch well up front and play excellent defense. And they’ve got a lot of heart.

So I’ll be watching the World Series, hoping the Phillies win and probably doing all kinds of irrational stuff in the process. But this year I’ll try and keep in mind what my dad has always told me (he played minor league ball in the Dodgers system back in the day when Dodgers-Yankees made Eagles-Cowboys look like erotica): as a fan don’t forget that the other team is also trying to win the game.

The New York Post is doing its part to stir the pot. In today’s paper, the Post announces that Pedro Martinez will start Game 2 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium and they title the story “Twos Your Daddy.” That news is dressed in memories of Pedro’s days with the Red Sox when he sheepishly admitted that the Yankees were in fact his daddy.

Also, WIP and thefightins.com are reporting that the cover of today’s Post is adorned with a picture of Shane Victorino in a cheerleader’s outfit. The headline reads “Gotham Trembles: The Frillies are coming to town.”

Still unsatisfied with its inability to stir enough negative energy in the Phillies’ direction, the Post gives its readers “8 reasons NYC Kicks Philly’s Ass” with the subheader “Their fans are second rate and so is their city.” And to be sure they cover all the bases, the Post opines that “the Phanatic is a Pain in the Mascot.”

The Post quotes some nincompoop man-on-the-street as saying “Philly fans are a bunch of whiners and should learn how to dress. They should try reading GQ.” As far as I can tell, Yankees fans either dress like sophomores at Penn or blinged-out clowns with their caps at a 30 degree tilt. I’d like to see a comparison of the sartorial failures of Yankees fans vs. Mets fans. We know the preferred costume of the Mets fan: white sneakers, tube socks, jeans shorts and neck hair. Is that better or worse than the Yankees fan uniform which is just a facsimile of whatever hip hop video is currently in vogue?

I will give this to the Post: their headline after Tupac got shot: “It’s a Rap.”