Phillies Finally Sign a New Third Baseman in Pedro Feliz

Even after finally winning the NL East in 2007, the Phillies are still working to fill several holes. The Phillies did not get the ace pitcher they wanted, however, and the departure of Aaron Rowand might be hard to make up for. But their most annoying weak position was at third base, where a platoon of third basemen did little for the Phillies in 2007. The Phillies think they have fixed that today by signing Pedro Feliz, the former third baseman of Rowand's new team, the San Francisco Giants.

According to the Associated Press, Feliz is signed for two seasons at about $8.5 million. They are not numbers that suggest Feliz is a big name, but he does have better past stats than the Phillies previous third basemen. Feliz batted .253 with 20 home runs and 72 RBI's in 2007 for the Giants. As for the Phillies, third basemen Wes Helms, Greg Dobbs, and Abraham Nunez combined to bat .255 with 11 home runs and 76 RBI's. However, although it seems pathetic that one man can outdo three combined, it was still not by a very large margin. If the Phillies get the same numbers from Feliz that he gave the Giants last year, it will be an improvement, but not by a huge amount. Perhaps it might not be big enough to make up for the other areas the Phillies need to improve in. If Feliz is to stabilize the third base position for the Phillies, he may need to over achieve a bit.

As for the Giants, they need to fill a new hole at third base. The opening could be filled by Kevin Frandsen, a Giants second baseman who was competing with Ray Durham for the starting spot. This could let the Giants keeps Frandsen and Durham, although Durham batted a career low .213 last season. Frandsen will be 26 in May, which would help give the Giants a more youthful starting lineup in the post Barry Bonds era. 36-year-old veteran Rich Aurilla can help the young Frandsen as a backup, as the Giants face a rebuilding effort that will have to take some time.

Sources

Associated Press- "Phillies Fill Hole at 3rd With Feliz" ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jQNsHHGUM-ftXHcb1-gT4Ar_K2ZAD8UF5N680

MLB.com- Notes: Bullpen facelift unlikely mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp