It's one day until the opener, and the Phils have already sealed their fate as also-rans this season. The devil's in the details: the Phils' final decisions of spring dealt with two young players And in both case the made the wrong decision.

The lesser of the two decisions was to move Brett Myers to the number two spot in the rotation, instead of number four (with Randy Wolf at number two). Myers had a 5.52 ERA last year, 21% worse than the park-adjusted league average. He also owns a 7.66 ERA in 22.1 innings this spring, the second highest in the mediocre at best rotation. He is just 24 and won 14 games two years ago (albeit with a 4.43 ERA), but that's not enough to outweigh his recent history.

However, manager Charlie Manuel, Ed Wade's lackey, according to the Philadelphia Daily News, wanted to show Myers "that he had confidence in him after his struggles the past season and a half." Said Manuel:

"I kind of like it that way [Myers second]- even before we had Padilla get hurt. It kind of gives the rotation more balance."

Yeah, it sucks from top to bottom.

OK, maybe with an aging team like the Phils, perhaps it is best to give your young players a boost, which brings me to Exhibit B, Marlon Byrd. Byrd was supposed to be the Phils' starting center fielder and potential leadoff hitter even after they signed aging Kenny Lofton ostensibly as a backup playoff and spot starter.

Byrd has had an up-and-down career in Philadelphia. After the Phils jettisoned offensively challenged Doug Glanville and awarded the starting spot to Byrd, a 25-year-old rookie, he slumped in the first half but finished strong to register .303 batting average and an OPS 9% better than park-adjusted average.

Last year, Byrd along with most of the Phillies' offense struggled early, but Byrd was singled out as the scapegoat. First, the superannuated Doug Glanville was brought back and somehow made the team on the last cut as the sixth outfielder. On April 18, Glanville won an extra-inning game for the Phils with a walk-off homer, and that was the beginning of the end for Byrd. Larry Bowa yo-yoed Byrd up and down and in and out of the lineup. And after he continued to slump—surprise!—was optioned to the minors by the end of June. After an undistinguished month in Triple-A, Byrd was reinstated as the Phils starting center fielder, and he finished up the year like the shock therapy patient that he had become.

This year with Bowa gone, he was supposed to have a new lease on life. He batted .390 this spring, third on the team behind Jim Thome and Placido Palanco with 10 RBI in just 41 at-bats. He missed some time with injuries but returned to go 2-for-5 with a homer in his first game. So he must have solidified his position in the lineup and quelled the Phillies' fears especially with the forgiving Manuel the manager, right?

"I think we need to see him hit in Triple A," said Manuel. So Byrd returns to the minors to prove himself and the execrable, hardly-ever-has-been Jose Offerman makes the team.

This year the Phils go with four outfielders, including Lofton, who was out for most of the spring . Last year they went with six. Last year, the Phils trade the most credible choice to play center (Ricky Ledee) and then inserted Byrd as the starting center fielder after he did nothing to prove himself in the minors. This year, he loses his job completely after proving himself in the spring. It's all more shock treatment to insure that the fragile Byrd will never fulfill whatever potential he has. And the end result is Jose Awful-man?!?

This is all just par for the course for the Phils. And this season will be more stultifying mediocrity in Philadelphia.

By the way from an historic standpoint, the Phils haven't developed a successful major-league center fielder since Richie Ashburn, unless you can't Bobby "White Lightning" Dernier. In the last 30 years, the Phils have had three center fielders that enjoyed long tenures, Garry Maddux, Lenny Dykstra, and Glanville, all of whom broke in with other organizations. Dykstra had the best season of the three, in 1993, but was often injured. Maddox had the best career with the Phils of any center fielder since Ashburn, but became an offensive liability over the second half of his Phils' career. Glanville had one good year, 1999, but was horrible at the plate for four of his six seasons, usually while amassing 600 at-bats. And that's the best of the crop.

It appears that the Marlon Byrd era will end like the Ricky Otero, Wendall Magee, Midre Cummings eras all ended, poorly.

By the way, here are all the men to play at least 25 games for the Phils in center over the last 30 years. It's a proud history:

Name	Yr	G	GS
Marlon Byrd	2004	92	86
Doug Glanville	2004	56	24
Jason Michaels	2004	44	40
Marlon Byrd	2003	131	124
Ricky Ledee	2003	42	35
Doug Glanville	2002	117	95
Ricky Ledee	2002	40	35
Doug Glanville	2001	150	147
Doug Glanville	2000	150	145
Doug Glanville	1999	148
Doug Glanville	1998	158
Midre Cummings	1997	53
Ricky Otero	1997	40
Wendell Magee	1997	38
Ruben Amaro	1997	37
Ricky Otero	1996	100
Lenny Dykstra	1996	39
Andy Van Slyke	1995	56
Lenny Dykstra	1995	52
Lenny Dykstra	1994	83
Billy Hatcher	1994	26
Lenny Dykstra	1993	160
Lenny Dykstra	1992	85
Stan Javier	1992	49
Ruben Amaro	1992	27
Lenny Dykstra	1991	63
Von Hayes	1991	49
John Morris	1991	27
Lenny Dykstra	1990	149
Sil Campusano	1990	25
Lenny Dykstra	1989	89
Juan Samuel	1989	50
Bob Dernier	1989	29
Milt Thompson	1988	112
Bob Dernier	1988	53
Chris James	1988	27
Milt Thompson	1987	145
Von Hayes	1987	29
Milt Thompson	1986	89
Ron Roenicke	1986	63
Jeff Stone	1986	25
Von Hayes	1985	123
Garry Maddox	1985	93
Von Hayes	1984	116
Garry Maddox	1984	69
Garry Maddox	1983	95
Bob Dernier	1983	68
Von Hayes	1983	39
Greg Gross	1983	27
Garry Maddox	1982	111
Bob Dernier	1982	70
Garry Maddox	1981	93
Lonnie Smith	1981	23
Garry Maddox	1980	143
Garry Maddox	1979	140
Garry Maddox	1978	154
Garry Maddox	1977	138
Garry Maddox	1976	144
Garry Maddox	1975	97
Jerry Martin	1975	41