Now, this is what I call an "off season"

And so, after spending the 2005 season as a seriel commenter on a half dozen blogs about the phillies, today I officially throw my hat/scarf/other garment into the ring with the "launching" of my on blog on the same. Why, you ask? Guilt, of course. Everyone's a got a blog but me. But more honestly, my comments are getting longer and longer and it only stands to reason that if I have serious opinions, they theoretically could sustain a dedicated home.

So, I give you "Caught Looking," in honor of many things, least of all Pat's Burrell's unprecedented ability to take a long look at the last pitch he sees before slouching back to the dugout, a victim of the K, and most of all, the entire franchise's annoying ability to work on its problems unimaginaitvely and seemingly out of order.

Case in point: conducting winter meetings and pursuing personnel issues before hiring a GM. The offseason, especially the first month after the end of play, is arguably the most important month of the year in a GM's tenure. So, if a team can navigate those waters without a GM, why bother even hiring one. If you don't need that steward for the organization's highest priorities and most pressing business, why go out and hire one for the lesser times? Logically, it makes no sense and exposes the Phillies' default existence as an organization with poor judgment.

Wait, I'll do you one better: if a team says it is looking to hire outside the organization, what possibile rationale could that organization have for saying "the GM search can wait, we'll handle these meetings in-house." Isn't that the whole problem to begin with? Does no one at the Phils' front office see how Groucho Marxian that irony really is?

Either my watch has stopped or next season is already dead.