What has happened to the ‘Phightin Phils?’ What has happened to a team that has basically knocked themselves out not with home runs but rather with self-inflicting strikeouts and non-clutch hitting?

In Pat Gillick’s final year as general manager, the former World Series winner with Toronto should be realizing that this is his last chance at a championship. Management must allow him to make some serious changes and not penny-pinch like they normally would. Revenue is always good, but championships last forever.

However, the lineup is a total disaster.

Despite the fact that Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Pat Burrell all have 20+ home runs each, Utley is still in a massive slump and Ryan Howard is being paid $10 million to strike out all the time. Clearly, the lineup is clearly not condusive for winning but for scoring runs when they count the most. There is no way a team can rely on scoring runs by way of the long-ball all the time.

So, what statement should the Phillies make? Here are three emphatic ones…each one more shocking than the other.

First, the Phillies need to trade Jason Werth.

Yes, I know this is harsh, but even though he had the game of his life hitting three home runs and driving in eight against Toronto…lately it’s either been ‘tie the game’ or ‘fail to get the hit when it counts the most.’ Of course Werth surprised us by hitting two home runs against the Mets which tied games, but in both instances, in at-bats which were more important, Werth has failed miserably. Before the All-Star break, Werth was at the plate when the Phillies rallied against the Mets to close the deficit from 10-1 to 10-9. Promptly, Werth flied out to right field to end the game, and gave the Mets all the fuel they needed to zoom up into first place. Then, this week, with the bases loaded in a 1-1 tie, Werth flied out to center field…and you know what happened after that. Ask JC Romero. Despite 13 home runs, he is valuable and can play good outfield defense for a team that may not have much of it.

Second, manager Charlie Manuel MUST be fired.

After Friday night’s debacle against the Braves where Brad Lidge was brought into NOT a tie game, but LOSING 1-0 in the 9th—disaster was doomed to happen. All of us knew that Lidge would have a bad game inevitably. Well, what do you know…Lidge faced 5 batters, got nobody out, and in the process gave up a grand slam to Brian McCann—his 2nd homer of the night. To me, that is clearly a fireable offense. What was ‘sorry Charlie’ thinking? Besides, if the Mets were able to fire Willie Randolph when they did—and ultimately turn their season around—right now, it is Jerry, NOT Charlie, whom is the best managing ‘Manuel’ in the National League East. Having said that, Jimy Williams should take the reigns once this happens.

Finally, the Phillies need to make the biggest statement of all…trade Jimmy Rollins.

Forget about the MVP award which he did not deserve (that should have belonged to Matt Holliday for the September he had). Forget about the 20 doubles, triples, home runs, and stolen bases he had last year with Curtis Granderson of the Tigers. He has allowed his past MVP season to go to his head.

By still playing while hurt, which inevitably cost him a month rather than 15 days earlier in the season, Rollins was on the road to emphatic doom. Now, by showing up late not once, but twice…most recently against the Mets when first place was on the line, Rollins has proven that his self-serving ego is more important to him than winning. Now it’s time to send him to a team that could build around him so that everyone could have a fresh start…maybe teams like Cleveland, Seattle, Oakland, and San Francisco could use someone like Rollins and build around him so that he can prove his leadership qualities.

Right now, Jimmy is not a leader, and this year has proven just that—he has killed this team. It all started when he predicted the Phillies would win 100 games. From there, it’s been all downhill. Chase Utley, rather, is the best player on the team and should be the captain because he plays the game the right way…even if he slips up in the language department once in a while. However, he should use his George Carlin-esque vocabulary to his teammates when things are not going well…especially now.

The Phillies have been in ‘phree-phall’ mode since last month, having nearly a 4 ½ game first place lead. Now, as of Saturday morning, they are two games back of the Mets and tied with Florida for 2nd place in the East…with no end in sight as they are falling down the tunnel a la ‘Journey To The Center Of The Earth.’ They better know that the wild card is not coming from the East this year.

The current Phillies’ ownership has been all about ‘comfort.’ Under the current regime, that ‘comfort’ has only produced once accidental division championship last year. Other times they’ve fallen short…and have allowed teams like the Astros to sneak into the wild-card spot and get to the World Series (thanks again, Billy Wagner) along with the Marlins—who did the same exact thing but won a World Series.

Can someone ask current management why teams such as Florida and Minnesota have more baseball championships than us? The fan base deserves an answer. The fans know that ‘comfort’ did not win the Phillies their only World Series in 1980. Dallas Green made sure of it with a meeting in July which ultimately turned their fortunes around. If current management had even half a clue, they’d realize that this ‘comfort’ within the organization does not win championships.

The trade deadline is only days away. Remember, while the Phillies are sinking, the Yankees (along with their infinite payroll) just acquired Xavier Nady from class-AAAA Pittsburgh.

It’s time to make the changes NOW…while there’s still time…and hope. But that is even stretching it a bit.

OK, this may sound totally crazy.

Just days after Julio Franco announced his retirement from baseball, Phillies’ pitcher Jamie Moyer not only pitches 7 strong innings to defeat Arizona (the team with the best record in the majors), but also gets a multi-hit game including an RBI double!

Hmmm…maybe Julio might want to reconsider retirement and try to latch on to a team one more time and then call it quits when the season is over. After all, you’re never too old to accomplish something that nobody would ever expect.