Philadelphia Phillies: 10 Weakest Throwing Arms in Team History

Jamie Moyer will go down as having one of the floppiest elbows in Phillies history. Click ahead to find out who else made the cut.
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I'm a positive guy.

I don't dwell. I don't nitpick. I don't fume.

Not without good reason -- or invaluable material, like flimsiest-armed throwers in Phillies history.

If you're a Phillies fan, years of David Bell one-hopping put-out tries tests your patience. And your ears could power 18th-century engines after only months of Ben Francisco and Raul Ibanez.

It's inexcusable--and mildly hilarious--that some baseball players can't throw. Of all the sport's five tools, only running seems more natural, more fundamental. You'd think guys might struggle with a stick or glove first, but throwing?

It's the only thing mocked as girly. You'd figure that incentive enough for an 8-year-old to scribble notes. For those who skated by by compensating with everything else, you'd think six-figure salaries might trigger motivation.

In other words: If MLBers can't throw by now, we seamheads have free rein to heckle.

Unless, of course, players simply don't have it in them, in which case we should all share a laugh. Because "If you can't laugh at yourself..." right?

So hats off--or hate on--to the proud few who've made the cut. Or whose elbows make you wonder if something was.

Criteria: The Tosti Eye Test and Advanced Sabermetrics

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Some of these were easier than others. One quacker from John Mayberry would be all it takes to to clean out your portfolio of shares in his shoulder. Same goes for Bobby Abreu, Endy Chaves and rest of the softies.

For those, we employed the eye test, which, if the above context clues read like Mandarin, these guys epically fail.

But some took further examination. For that, we turned to FanGraphs.com, my increasingly favored source for sabermetrics. Among other nuggets, like Double-Play Runs (DPR), Range Runs (RngR) and Error Runs (ErrR) -- three of the four components of Ultimate Zone Rating (UZR) -- the site calculates the number of runs above average an outfielder saves with their arm by preventing runners to advance. Outfield Arm Runs (ARM), as it's called, is essentially the closest measure to arm strength in modern baseball.

Needless to say, we'll be looking at that.

For fielders, at least. Seem as tired as abacuses (or some journalists' habit to use them in quips) to use them, but radar gun readings suffice for tracking pitchers.

Though both still aren't everything. I tried to cover my bases, polling long(er)-time fans and baseball aficionados for a comprehensive list. But there was still debate as to who threw like subjects in muscle relaxant clinical trial, and who got the placebo.

(Or, since we're talking pharmacy, sauce.)

For that, I deferred to he who shall be called The Toasted One. (Dude's name is Mike Tosti, frequently botched as Toast-ee.)

Think: Stankowski from Glory Daze only significantly more productive, cogent, cleanly -- OK, he's actually nothing like the weed-toking degenerate, save for the expanse of his fandom. Kid -- he's 21 -- remembers a lot, most of it deep-seeded whining. Still, he's a valuable resource.

As are you. Feel free to chime in with omissions or arguments below. (Tech guys will love you for it. Makes their work worthwhile.)

Limitations

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A quick one-over of this countdown yields some pretty easy observations:

Where the hell are all the infielders? We're not sure--damn ADD...; always losing stuff--but know they're not here.

The reasons are simple. For one, there's no comprehensive statistic to quantify goo-gunned second and third basemen and short stops. A few recent catchers have their deficiencies--neither Carlos Ruiz nor Brian Schneider have the greatest arms--but they don't match Jason Varitek's mushiness. (Believe me...) Nor does Darren Daulton or any old timer.

So why force it? Especially to include position players whose roles don't place as much scrutiny on overall throwing power. Quickness, maybe--presenting an alternate measure of" strength"--but certainly not range.

That's the difference between runs. Not outs.

While our collection happens to be outfielder-heavy, and admittedly short-sighted, we feel it's accurate. You could make the case for a few omissions--Wilson Valdez and Michael Martinez don't exactly have otherworldly zip--but can't conclusively bump any of those mentioned on the list.

Yeah, they're all that mesmerizingly bad.

Bobby Abreu

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Why not clown on Abreu?

Major League Baseball's Vince Carter, the Phils former right-fielder miffed the fan base near-religiously with his apathy and inadequacy. Same as Carter, it wasn't about talent; he had all the tools. He truthfully just didn't care.

Maybe that's more culpable for his -2.0 ARM than his, well, arm. But Abreu's blasé approach won't save him a lashing here.

It's too fun, and fulfilling.

Marlon Byrd

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If he founded a sole proprietorship, Marlon Byrd might be the New York Knicks of Major League Baseball.

The reason? Simply, both willingly tanked for their own benefit. The Knicks mailed in two-plus seasons leading up to Free Agency: 2010 in a cap space-clearing charade play for LeBron James--just how Bryd almost purposely bombed fielding in Philadelphia to get out of town.

Both famously blew up in their faces. Donnie Walsh premeditated himself out of New York, while Bryd sabotoged his way into a Wrigley Field dugout.

Sucks to be you guys.

What? You're not buying my suppositions of Byrd's scheme?

That's fair, given the exactly zero corroboration for that wildly fictitious narrative. (You liked it though. Yeah you did...)

But how do you explain this: Over his three years in Philadelphia, Byrd posted a -0.4, -0.3 and -1.8 ARM ratings. In his first full season removed from the team (and ballpark), Byrd stuck a 1.1 ARM with Washington. Save for a one-season implosion--he whiffed for an outlying -4.3 ARM with the Rangers in 2009--Byrd never dipped into the negative again.

So what gives? Why the discrepancy in his numbers?

Tough to say. We can rule some factors out.

Theories of Bryd's stats serving as a marker of savvier base running between leagues--a passing thought, given that ARM measures fielders' ability to logjam base runners by throwing; a contrast could've shown spotty runner awareness--are easily debunked. While Byrd's career offers an even split of five years for two teams in each league, the perfect sample for analysis, there isn't any perceptible trend.

You can't even blame it on the ballpark.

The multi-year park factor for the Old Vet--ground-zero for Byrd's shenanigans--was a wildly pitcher-friendly 93. The same stat for R.F.K. Stadium in 2005 is actually higher, at 96.

So rule out a National League national park for explanation.

And save for a freak May 21 accident that landed Bryd on the DL--Red Sox pitcher Alfredo Aceves "unintentionally" hit him in the left eye, marking the fifth time in 10 days he'd been plunked--Byrd has stayed off the trainer's table. He logged a career high in games last year (he played in 2010). But inconsistent play factored more into his diminished role than his health.

In other words: I haven't a clue why Byrd was so noodle-armed in Philly.

But I like my theory. If nothing else, it's worth a laugh.

Piddling Former Pitchers

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Jamie Moyer

In the frenzy that is synching 100-plus assignments with their writers, my editor tossed Moyer's name into an impromptu example.

"(...can even include a pitcher like Jaime Moyer because of his 83 MPH fastball near the end...)," he wrote in passing.

All I'm gonna say.

(Aside from this.)

John Lieber

According to FanGraphs.com's records of his 2007-08 season, the guy's average fastball peaked well below 90 m.p.h. In 25 records, only twice did his velocity range crack 90 m.p.h.

Lieber was 37 then, his third year in Philadelphia, about when pitchers' fastballs fade. Still, he near skipped balls across the plate during his days in red pinstripes 

Overall, he wasn't particularly bad--he went 29-30 in 64 starts with a 4.56 ERA--just not very good; Lieber cracked .500 only barely in 2005, finishing 17-13. He slide considerably thereafter, posting a 9-11 in 2006 and 3-6 in 2007.

Yeesh.

Adam Eaton

Was there a single Phillie on the 2007-08 roster who could crack 88 m.p.h.?!

To wit, Brett Meyers and your 2008 World Series MVP, Cole Hamels, logged innings and flirted with mid-90 fastballs on those teams.

And if you stop the type after the part about participation, you'd be 100 percent right about Eaton.

Technically, you could get to "mid-" and still be in the clear. But the second your tongue presses against your teeth for that "n," you've gone too far. Eighty? Maybe.

But 90? No way.

Eaton's case was easily the most curious on our list. He started 2007 at 92-93 m.p.h.--a healthily competitive velocity. But as the months dragged on, so too did it seem the anchor on his fastball. According to FanGraphs.com's PitchFx, he averaged over 90 m.p.h. only twice in 2008, and lingered mostly around 86-87 m.p.h. Look no farther for the reason he was snipped from the postseason roster.

You can't, though, blame it on injury. Admittedly a Tommy John patient, Eaton wasn't nicked at any point in the span--not from a finger strain (that bit in 2004), or from a botched family movie night. Eaton underwent reconstructive elbow surgery, and gored his stomach with the knife meant to cut the packaging on a DVD, in 2001.

Go figure...

Current and Cannon-Less

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Ben Francisco

Forget Angels in the Outfield. More like Landscapers in the Outfield when Francisco throws. His balls die so fast and so hard you'd think an invisible legion of day laborers hosed 200 horsepower winds in his face.

And that's was whittled done some; I checked in with the NASA, who swears it's not toying with wind tunnel technologies in Citizen's Bank Park.

Francisco, 29, isn't likely to improve his arm strength, leaving his -1.5 ARM an indelible fixture in team history.

But John Mayberry's rise--dude's allergic to singles--and buoyant hopes for Brown, Francisco might not be as permanent on the roster. Speaking of...

John Mayberry

While Mayberry (22) has more extra-base hits than Jason Bay (20), he's not out-throwing him. With a -2.0 ARM, it looks like Mayberry isn't throwing anybody out either.

Domonic Brown

The term "five-tool" is often thrown around to express promising players' upside--even at the expense of accuracy. Consider Dom Brown one of those hyperboles.

Easily projected best among young Phillies, if not MLBers, Brown's raw running, hitting, fielding and catching abilities are serviceable enough. They're shaky now, but be patient; they'll improve over time.

Not so sure about that noodle arm, though. With a -2.7 ARM for his young career, Brown ties for worst among all Phillies who qualify. Yikes.

Raul Ibanez

Rumor has it that Mars originally pinged Ibanez for its Milky Way: Caramel spot. Alas, it had to settle for no-name bozos flopping into a pool.

Problem wasn't availability; it's said that higher ups thought Ibanez already looked like a guy neck-deep in confectionery syrup when he throws. Would've killed the irony.

Needless to say, that's complete bull. But Ibanez' -1.0 ARM is a little more legit, and telling to the degree of Ibanez' wobbly-armedness.

The Debate: Jayson Werth

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I contended that Jayson Werth was atrocious in the outfield. Said his arm looked like Adam Sandler's flap in Click. Was sure about it, too. If I was a gambling man, and had cash enough to let that settle itself, I'd have laid money that the numbers would back me.

Sure enough, they did. FanGraphs.com showed that Werth's career--starting in 2002 with Toronto, through his present-day $126 million green shackles in Washington--yielded a composite -2.8 ARM, -2.7 of which he tabbed in Philly, good for worst in team history of the stat. It was over, I figured. Not sure what self-effacing slice of humble pie you'll be stuffing youself with, but I'll be the zest of my sweet victory.

Then I poked around.

Didn't take long to figure that the scarlet -2.8 was his résumé at centerfielder--not his cozy spot in right. And once you saw the disparity in his numbers--he racked an aggregate 25.9 ARM over the years.

I knew there'd be an upswing; the positions aren't interchangeable, after all, and a corner outfielder's decision-making isn't a replica of the man in the middle's. They're different--different plays, different throws, and, seemingly, different outcomes.

But the discrepancy proved absurd, far stronger than I'd imagined. It also bolstered Toast's argument, that Werth was packing more than a .22 caliber up his right sleeve.

Still, I pushed back. While the article is entitled, "weakest arms in Phillies history," implying raw arm strength, it could easily be connoted to mean effectiveness. Did you read the plays? Could you make make the throws?

It seemed he did and could in right field.

But positions and demands and Werth's suitedness for them aside: The plate still got silty on Werth's watch. His Walther cost his team runs--if not games. That's got to be on Werth.

You can't even use the inconclusive sample size argument, given his comparably lesser duty in right. While he logged some 5,000-plus innings over 10 years in right, his 725 innings in left isn't too thin a sliver of duty to judge. Even then, while per-year averages of 72-plus innings might be a little lean, 194 and 171 are more-than-hefty a body of work for analysis.

Those two seasons, when he notched his Nos. 2 and 3 right field totals, Werth's wimpy arm docked -1.4 runs per season from team leads. He's got to be held accountable for that.

Plus, he's the only one who seems to experience the drop-off. While many of baseball's top ARMs haven't the plays for comparison--Nos. 1 and 2 Alex Gordon and Jeff Francoeur didn't clock enough innings outside their comfy left and right fields, respectively--Jose Bautista did, and with no perceptible dip.

In his only 300-plus inning seasons away from his conventional right field nook, Bautista's numbers held. That even translated across teams (he played 418 in center for the Pirates in 2006, and 322 with Toronto in 2009), even leagues. Slicing his 13 ARM aggregate six ways gives you a per-year ARM just over 2.0--about where he's at in both left (2.6 in 2009) and center (1.9 in 2006).

So if Bautista's pipe held, why didn't Werth's?

In the end, we call this one a push. Or at least a conditional exemption.

While cred for his defense from the right side is indelible--speaking of, Werth's 5.1 ARM is ranked No. 3 in baseball in 2011--he's got to get at least a little heckled for his atrocity in center, all things considered. Slap an asterisk on it.

And because we feel like it.