The 10 best MLB teams of the now-concluding 2010s
By Bill Felber
The 10 best MLB teams of the now-concluding 2010s
T-9. 2011 Philadelphia Phillies, 10 points
Three years removed from their 2008 World Series win, the 2011 Phillies had the talent to repeat. They sailed through the regular season, winning an MLB-best 102 games to claim the NL East by 13 games. With an All-Star staff including Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Roy Oswalt, the Phils dominated pitching stats in 2011, compiling a 127 ERA+ that was a full 10 points better than any other team.
Halladay went 19-6 with a 2.35 ERA, and Lee complimented him with a 17-8 record and 2.40 ERA.
Although the offense did not produce at the rate of the team’s 2008 world championship club, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Jimmy Rollins were still good enough to constitute a legitimate middle of the order. Howard delivered 33 home runs and 116 RBIs.
Unfortunately, the St. Louis Cardinals did just enough damage to take out the Phils in the NLDS. After the favorites won two of the first three games, Edwin Jackson beat Oswalt in a 5-3 fourth game victory sealed on David Freese’s two-run home run.
Two days later, Chris Carpenter out-pitched Halladay in a stirring 1-0 duel in which the Phillies managed just three hits. The Cardinals went on to beat Texas in the World Series, intensifying the wonderment among Phillies fans of what might have been.