Horses and Phillies, live from Nana's house

This blog is coming to you live from Nana's house, from a computer that seems to be running a vintage '98 edition of internet explorer. Nana is partying down at the senior center, so I thought I'd throw out a quick blog update.

Roy Oswalt has indeed been traded to the Phillies. It's not as doom and gloom as I thought it would be, as Oswalt dropped his demand that the Phillies pick up his 2012 opion and Houston is paying $11 million of his salary for this year and next.

Though I still have many of the same concerns about Oswalt as I did in my last post, getting Oswalt for this year and next for $12 million represents good value for the Phillies. As long as Oswalt stays healthy, he'll be well worth that amount. The Phillies gave up JA Happ and some not-sure-thing prospects, and while losing Happ at his value-priced salary is a bit of a bummer, Oswalt is clearly the better pitcher, Keith Law has this to say about Happ:

"Happ is a fifth-starter type with good command and deception but fringy stuff without a real knockout pitch. He's a particularly bad fit for Houston's ballpark as a left-handed fly ball pitcher who has had some trouble with right-handed hitters. He's also coming off a forearm strain that has ruined his 2010 season. Other than that, he's everything you could ask for in a pitcher."

I pretty much echo those sentiments. I think Happ is a tough-minded pitcher who works very hard, but he's limited by his stuff. He would have to get by on guts and guile to become an elite pitcher, and that happens only rarely in the major leagues.

The Phillies are not in any shape to win it all this year, injuries and a world series hangover pretty much ensured that. But with Oswalt and the lineup waking up a bit, the Phillies do have the talent to challenge for a playoff spot. Next season looks bright as well, though I'd like the long term outlook a whole lot more if they'd have traded the same players for Dan Haren! Damn it!
By the way, Ed Wade has done his best work for the Phillies as GM of the Astros.

In horse racing news, the Haskell Stakes is this weekend. It's a tough field without any real longshots. Here are my quick picks:

1. Ice Box
2. First Dude
3. Lookin at Lucky
4. Trappe Shot
5. Uptowncharleybrown
6. Super Saver
7. Afleet Again
8. Our Dark Knight

I just recalled that I never wrote about how I did in the Belmont, so I'll recap those results when I do the Haskell finishes.