Can Jimmy Rollins hit? "You bet your sweet ass"

Hey, Charlie, can Jimmy Rollins still hit? According to Jayson Werth, his answer is priceless:

After J-Roll went 3 for 5 with a 3-run homer on Wednesday, I'd say Charlie Manuel knows what he's talking about.

Charlie Manuel manages NL to All-Star victory

Leave it to the genius of Charlie Manuel to finally break the stranglehold the American League has had on the All-Star Game. Okay, so Manuel really didn't have that much to do with it and probably over-managed the game if anything, but he is the skipper behind the first National League win in the All-Star Game since 1996. While it wasn't a particularly thrilling game, the NL did win 3-1 and therefore have earned the home field advantage in the World Series.

As for the rest of the Phillies at the game, neither Ryan Howard nor Roy Halladay did anything of note. Howard started the game at DH and ended up 0 for 2 with a strikeout and a groundout. Given that both of his at-bats were against lefties, including one against former Phillie Cliff Lee, you couldn't really expect much from Howard. As for Halladay, he pitched 2/3rds of an inning and gave up a pair of hits before being pulled out of the game by Manuel. He only threw 17 pitches but that was plenty in a game that means almost nothing.

As a Phillies fan, I have always rooted for the NL in the All-Star Game and I am therefore thankful that the American League's long winning streak is finally over. While I also think that making the game count for something is beyond stupid, it's nice to know that the Phillies will get home field advantage if they get to their third straight World Series.

(Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Charlie Manuel gets much deserved extension

The Phillies made their first major, and possibly most important, move of the offseason today when they extended manager Charlie Manuel's contract for another season. Manuel's contract was set to expire following the 2010 season so the Phillies went ahead and gave him a one-year extension through 2011.

What a difference a championship makes. A year ago, most Phillies fans wanted to run Manuel out of town. Now, with a World Series title under his (rather large) belt, Manuel won't ever have to buy another drink in this town. While I question how much longer the 64 year-old will want to manage, the Phillies will be smart to extend him a year at a time past the current season so he doesn't become a lame-duck manager.

Congrats Charlie Manuel, you deserve all the praise you are getting after all the crap you had to put up with over the years. May your gut continue to serve you well.

Charlie Manuel finishes 2nd in NL Manager of the Year voting

The NL manager of the year award is given to the best manager of the regular season, hence the reason Lou Pinella won the award and not Charlie Manuel of the Phillies.  Pinella managed the Cubs to the NL's best record in the regular season before being making a quick exit after losing to the Dodgers in the first round of the playoffs.  Charlie Manuel proved in the postseason that he was the best manager in the league when every decision he made seemed to be the right one, from pitching changes to juggling the lineup.  

If the award for manager of the year was voted on after the playoffs, Manuel would be the obvious choice.  Instead, Manuel finished second just ahead of Fredi Gonzalez of the Marlins.  Manuel has come a long way from the bumbling fool that everyone thought he was to a guy who won't ever have to buy a meal in this town again.

Phillies upset on their off-day

The Phils have an off day after dropping back into a first place tie with the Mets, but there is still a ton of news and information to pass along:

*Manuel upset Charlie Manuel is upset with the hitters after not coming through with more offense to support Cole Hamel's good outing yesterday. He was especially upset with the clutch hitting, noting that the Phillies "situational hitting is absolutely terrible". The Phillies offense has been inconsistent all year, exploding for 20 runs at times and looking feeble at other times.

*Burrell also upset Any chance that Pat Burrell was going to come back to Philly next year is probably being ruined by Charlie Manuel. Manuel still insists on sitting Burrell in the late innings of any game where the Phils have the lead and Pat isn't happy about it, saying " "I'm upset, absolutely. I'm upset, and I have been for a long time. It's not personal. I don't want to ever come out of close games." Burrell is continually being taken out of games where he could have been up in a key situation later on so I can see why he is upset. While I understand the reasoning of removing a bad fielder during the late stages of a close game, Manuel is too quick with the hook in one run games. Losing Pat's bat is sometimes a bigger loss than any mistake he could make in the field.

*Big Mets series starts tomorrow The Phillies and Mets are once again locked into a tie for first in the NL East, but a three game series that starts Tuesday will give us a division leader, at least for now. Pedro Martinez is injured so he will miss his next start, so the pitching match-ups look like this for the series:

Tuesday: Joe Blanton vs. Johan Santana
Wednesday: Brett Myers vs. John Maine
Thursday: Jamie Moyer vs. Oliver Perez

Two interesting starts for the Phillies, with Blanton making his debut facing off against Santana and Myers making his return against a hot Mets team.

*Holliday rumors still circulating I think it's a bit of a non-story because everything I have read said the trade talks are off, but the Phillies have been rumored to be going after both Matt Holliday and Brian Fuentes of the Rockies in a possible blockbuster deal. The deal would gut the Phillies farm system, forcing them to give up Carlos Carrasco, Lou Marson and other top prospects, plus Shane Victorino. Seems like a bad deal unless the Phils can get Holliday to agree to a contract extension since he will be a free agent at seasons end.