Deadline day

Obviously, Sunday was a really busy day with the trade of Bobby Abreu and the speculation that there will be one, maybe two more today. That means the thoughts on steroids and doping will have to wait until later this week. There's just too much going on in regard to dismantling the Phillies.

Anyway, it's a shame that Abreu's end came the way it did because the stats show that he would have re-written the franchise's record books. It's also a shame that a certain segment of the fan base just didn't get it or understand modern baseball.

Oh well. Abreu is gone now and the Phillies are a far worse team. Sure, the Phillies save a lot of money, but it's not as if they are going to use it to land a big-time free agent. It's more like they can use some of that money to help pay another team to take on someone like Pat Burrell.

It's also a shame that money is more important than talent.

In that regard, expect more deals today. Rheal Cormier is likely on the way out, though as a 5-and-10 man he can veto any deal. There are also renewed rumblings that Jon Lieber might not make today's scheduled start even though general manager Pat Gillick said there was nothing going on in regard to the pitcher as of 5 p.m. yesterday.

But something changed between 5 p.m. and the end of yesterday's second game. Tuesday's probable pitcher Scott Mathieson was in the clubhouse just hanging out when he was asked about his next outing when he let it slip that he was told to "be ready to go tomorrow... "

In other words, Mathieson was pulled out of Sunday's start at Triple-A to be in Philadelphia to stand at alert.

As an aside, the Phillies clubhouse has a decidedly different look about it now. It's hard not to look around at the spots once occupied by Jim Thome, Billy Wagner, David Bell and Bobby Abreu and wonder, "who are these guys." It will be much more different next season when Mike Lieberthal, Randy Wolf and maybe Pat Burrell are gone.

As far as Wolf goes, it was really cool to see him back on the field after 13 tough months of rehab. Just getting back out there is achievement enough and the lefty deserves all the kudos he gets. With guys like Wolfie, Thome, Rolen and Doug Glanville, it's hard to be objective.

Now here's a theory: expect another year with Charlie Manuel... more later