Ruben Amaro has had major impact on Phils

Getting back to the World Series in 2009 was no small feat for the Philadelphia Phillies.

In a sport where there is turnover in every roster year after year, Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. has been aggressive while tweaking the team as well as building continuity for the future.

This is no small task for a guy who took over the World Champs after then GM Pat Gillick stepped down.

Amaro has proven to be a man who goes out and gets what he wants.

Phillies fans have raved over some moves and not been so high on others.

Whether or not you like what Amaro has done, one thing is certain - there has not been much of a drop off in the teams success since Amaro took over and it does not seem likely there will be any drop off for the years to come.
Amaro has been back at tweaking the roster in the past two days, so let's take a look at how Amaro has changed the team since he took over after the 2008 season.

1) Amaro's first order of business was letting long-time and fan favorite Pat Burrell go. In his place, Amaro signed aging veteran Raul Ibanez to a three year deal. Many wondering what the 37-year old would bring to the table. Ibanez was an MVP candidate through the beginning of the season and made his first All-Star team. Although he was slowed by a groin injury, Ibanez finished with 34 home runs and 93 RBI. Meanwhile, Burrell struggled for the Tampa Bay Rays, hitting only .221 with 14home runs.

2) Amaro then sured up the future of the Phillies, signing pitcher Cole Hamels and slugger Ryan Howard to deals that will take them through 2011.

3) In what was probably his best move considering what they got for what they gave up, Amaro made a major impact at his first trade deadline, getting ace Cliff Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco for four prospects. So much focus was on the Phillies trading for Roy Halladay that this trade seemed to come out of nowhere. Three of the prospects the Phils gave up - Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, and Loe Marson should be average players at best, and pitcher Jason Knapp has a high ceiling. Not too bad for an ace and outfield depth. Lee was unbe-lee-vable, going 5-0 in his first five starts. He was unhittable in the playoffs and World Series.

3) In what was first thought to be a move that would not have much of an impact, Amaro signed Pedro Martinez after the All-Star break. Martinez pitched brilliantly during his time with the Phillies, going 5-1 with an ERA of 3.63.

4) After falling short for their second straight World Series title, Amaro struck quickly this off season. Faced with the decision to keep steady Pedro Feliz at third base, Amaro instead chose for a steady bat to balance the strikeout prone lineup, signing Placido Polanco to play third base. Polanco was a gold glove second baseman for Detroit last year, so the jury is not yet out on how he will do at third. Funny how things work out - the Phillies wanted to move Polanco to third years ago when Chase Utley made it to the majors. He declined. Not this time.

5) Amaro finally got his man, trading for one of the best pitchers in baseball, Roy Halladay. While Phillies fans dreamed of adding Halladay at the trade deadline, this deal made months later came with a lot of criticism, as the Phils traded Cliff Lee in a separate deal to the Seattle Mariners. Halladay should absolutely dominate in the National League, but the thought that the Phils could have had both Halladay and Lee has left fans wondering what a rotation with both would have looked like. Needing prospects after trading four for Lee in the summer and top pitching prospect Kyle Drabek, top catching prospect Travis D'Arnaud, and outfield prospect Michael Taylor for Halladay, Amaro chose to move Lee to Seattle for three prospects.

6) One major need heading into the 2010 season was rebuilding a bench that was absolutely useless last year. Gone are the likes of Matt Stairs and Eric Bruntlett. Greg Dobbs and Ben Francisco stay and the Phillies added Russ Gload, Brian Schneider and Juan Castro.

7) Another major need was rebuilding a bullpen that struggled last season. The Phillies were unable to re-sign Chan Ho Park and let Clay Condrey go. The Phillies signed former closer Dennys Baez and Jose Contreras.

8) Amaro continued to build continuity, picking up the 2011 option of Jimmy Rollins and signing Joe Blanton and Shane Victorino to three year deals.

Throughout the year and a half Amaro has been on the job, he has added key pieces to the team and also set them up to keep the core of their team for years to come.

While I don't like every move Amaro has made (trading Lee), I'd say he has done a pretty good job.

I expect the Phillies to compete for championships for years to come.