It's an issue that's staring the Phillies in the face.
What will be Jim Thome's role when Interleague play, along with the freedom to have him be the designated hitter, disappears today?
It's always easier to put off the inevitable, especially when things are going so well now.
During the last seven Interleague games the Phillies have played against the Orioles, Twins and Blue Jays, Thome, 41, hit .407 (11-for-27) with three home runs, two doubles, 13 RBIs and four walks. He posted in a .815 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage.
He drove in at least one run in a season-high six consecutive games (June 6-14) and has six hits in his last nine at-bats with runners in scoring position (.667 BA, a double and 10 RBIs).
Anybody who said Thome was washed up was wrong. Clearly, the guy can still hit.
But he likely can't play in the field because of his chronic lower back problems, which only raises red flags because the number of at-bats he'll get will drastically be reduced once Interleague play ends.
"The bending over. The taking ground balls. That was obviously the biggest challenge that I had," Thome said after being activated from the disabled list, where he was from April 29 to June 6.
Consider this fact: From April 5 to June 7,the Phillies played 59 games. Thome appeared in only 14, four of which he started. During that stretch, he had fewer at-bats (20) than he did during the last six Interleague games, all of which he started (27).
And it's hard to argue that there's not a direct correlation between the regularity of which he's been getting at-bats and the success he's having.
Thome, who ranks eighth on the all-time home runs list with 607, hit only .100 (2-for-20) with no extra-base hits and no RBIs before going on the DL. That's quite the contrast from what he's done in his last seven games, all of which he was the Phillies starting DH.
That's all going to end soon, and Thome knows there's nothing easy about going back to being strictly a pinch hitter.
"Let's face it: You really tip your hat to guys who can pinch hit full time," Thome admitted. "I don't want to sit here and say yes [I can be good at it] because [the] bottom line is pinch hitting is a job you have to put a lot of time into. I think the key is to continue to work and do everything you can before BP and during the game to put yourself in a good position during the game."
Manager Charlie Manuel said Thome will take extra batting practice off of pitchers who throw hard and ones who throw a lot of breaking balls. If a pitcher is scheduled to throw on the side, he might just pitch to Thome instead.
Thome, who needs one more home run to become the fourth player in MLB history to hit 100 home runs with four different teams (Alex Rodriguez, Darrell Evans, Reggie Jackson), is also expected to hit off a machine in the cage and push the speed to between 90 and 100 mph.
Even general managerRuben Amaro Jr.isn't so sure how effective Thome will be if he's "going to be limited to" being just a pinch hitter.
"I don't know," Amaro admitted. "That's a good question. We'll find out."
There's another disconcerting issue with Thome not being able to play in the field: It puts pretty drastic restrictions on the moves Manuel can make and the flexibility that comes with those moves.
Manuel is insistent he can make it work.
"That hurts some, yeah," he said. "But we've had that guy for about two or three years."
Manuel compared the situation to the 2008-09 seasons in which Matt Stairs was limited with his field play (115 games played, 19 of which he played in the field and 15 he started) and in 2011 when Ross Gload was hampered by a hip injury and made only seven starts in the final 55 games of the regular season.
There has been some talk and chatter that the Phillies should trade Thome to an American League team if he can't play the field for the Phillies. But I don't see that happening. The coaching staff and members of the front office love his positive energy, enthusiasm and work ethic.
"He'll be the first one to tell you we're in this to win," Manuel said. "He'll pull his weight."
FOR STARTERS
In spring training when it was obvious Ryan Howard and Chase Utley would be out for extended periods of time, people, including fans and those within the organization, re-assured themselves by emphasizing how good the Phillies starting pitching was.
That hasn't been the case lately.
In the last 26 games (heading into Saturday), Phillies starters were 7-13 with a 5.30 ERA (94 ER, 159 2/3 IP) and only 10 quality starts. Opponents hit .281 (179-for-636) off them during the stretch in which the Phils were 10-16.
Compare that to the first 40 games when members of the rotation were 17-11 with a 2.93 ERA (87 ER, 267 2/3 IP). They had an opponents batting average of .241 (239-for-990) and 31 quality starts.
If this makes you feel better, things seemed to go well when Roy Halladay (right lat strain) played catch for the first time before Friday's game, which was two days shy of the three-week shutdown mark the team originally set.
According to reports, Halladay threw 30 balls from 60 feet with pitching coach Rich Dubee.
"It was a real light catch, but he felt very good," Dubee told reporters in Toronto. "He actually felt better than he expected. It was good."
Halladay, who has been doing exercises during his rehab, hasn't thrown a ball since leaving his May 27 start in St. Louis after two innings.
It is just one step in a lengthy recovery process for Halladay, who has bigger things on his mind.
"It was good … (but) I've still got a long ways to go," Halladay said to traveling writers. "I want to pitch. I'll be anxious to get out there and pitch. That's the big one."
Twitter @inthephilshouse
NUMBER
1,732: Career walks Jim Thome had entering Saturday's game. He needs only one to tie him for seventh place with Mickey Mantle on the all-time list.
FIRE
Ike Davis (New York Mets) … It's been quite the turn-around in the last week for the first baseman. In his last six games, Davis is hitting .563 (9-for-16) with two doubles, a home run, seven RBIs and six walks. He raised his season average from .158 on June 8 to .191 heading into Saturday's game.
ICE
Ryan Zimmerman (Washington Nationals) … One of the league's best hitters has had a rough go of it in his last six games, a stretch in which he hit only .167 (4-for-24) with no extra-base hits, five strikeouts and only one RBI.
CATCHING UP WITH … Brad Lidge. Since coming off the disabled list, the now Nationals reliever has yet to settle in. In his last three games (1 2/3 IP), the right-handed reliever, who was a perfect in save opportunities with the 2008 Phillies, allowed two hits and four earned runs for a 21.60 ERA. For the season, Lidge, who signed with the Nationals as a free agent in the offseason, has a 8.31 ERA in 8 2/3 innings pitched.
DID YOU KNOW?
Hunter Pence is the only Phillie with a multi-home run game this season (he has two). … Jim Thome is the only player in major league history to hit his 599th and 600th home runs in consecutive at-bats. … Michael Schwimer led all International League relievers in SO/9.0 IP with 11.38. … The Phillies have finished only six seasons with winning records in Interleague play (1999, 2002, 2007, 2010, 2011). … The Phillies are 17-7 (.708) this season when Shane Victorino scores a run … Jimmy Rollins is fourth in club history with 102 triples (most among switch-hitters) and needs only one more to tie Sam Thompson for 3rd place (103). … Juan Pierre Is hitting .375 (24-64) with three doubles, a triple and four RBIs in his last 15 games, raising his average from .299 to .325.
