The Philadelphia Phillies have had a lot of drama in the offseason. However, one player hasn’t been involved in any of it. Outfielder Shane Victorino has been active in his community causes and recently hosted his annual toy drive for Christmas. With Victorino appearing in the news for the right reasons, it made me think of something. This is another guy the Phillies would be wise to re-sign before the 2012 season begins. As a Phillies fan, I hope it is settled as soon as possible.

Victorino is in the final year of his three year contract. In my opinion, he was the offensive MVP for the team in 2011. Victorino brings a lot to the table. He is an excellent defensive outfielder. He has speed on the base paths. He can hit at the plate. Victorino has been one of the biggest bargains for the Phillies over the past few years. His production in relation to his salary is among the best in baseball. Not only that, but he is a vocal leader of the team. Along with Jimmy Rollins, Victorino brings a solid personality to this team. That is pretty valuable.

Victorino is a hard worker that paid his dues before his big chance with the Phillies. It is safe to say he has made the most of those chances. I hope the team can find a way to give Victorino a deal that works for both sides. It is clear that he wants to play in Philadelphia and it is clear that Philadelphia wants him. There is no reason something can’t be worked out.

Anyone in Philadelphia can tell you how great Victorino is. He has great character on and off the field. He’s the kind of player that embodies what Philadelphia fans look for in athletes that play here. With any luck, he will have another great year at the plate and on the field. He will no doubt have a great year continuing his work off the field. Hopefully, his great year will be rewarded with a new deal.

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The Philadelphia Phillies offense was uneven last season. It was inconsistent for the first few months, steady for most of the way after the All-Star break and then went silent again by the time the playoffs arrived.

General manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. has targeted his bench in an effort to improve the team’s overall offense. That’s where the addition of Jim Thome comes into play.

The Earl of ‘Toemay’

Ed Wade’s free agent acquisition of Thome in December 2002 electrified the baseball world. That watershed decision happened for a number of reasons, including generating interest in the 2004 opening of Citizens Bank Park.

The big money deal was a signal to the fans that the team was prepared to spend money to try and build a winner.

And then there was Ryan

The Phillies new first baseman finished fourth in the National League Most Valuable Player award voting during the 2003 season. The 47 home runs that he hit that year fell one short of Mike Schmidt’s franchise record and gave the team a true clean up hitter.

Thome hit 42 bombs in 2004, but his Philadelphia run proved to be short-lived due to arrival of a 24-year-old rookie who had been mashing minor league pitching.

Ryan Howard hit two home runs in 19 games in 2004. He took over at first base for Thome in 2005 when health issues caused the veteran to spend a majority of the season on the disabled list.

Howard’s 88-game performance, during which he hit 22 home runs and had 63 RBI’s, was strong enough to earn him National League Rookie of the Year honors. That performance caused Pat Gillick to easily conclude that the team had to move in a new direction.

Now

The November 2011 free agent signing of Thome had a few things in common with his initial Phillies agreement. He left the Cleveland Indians in both instances and was obtained because he was expected to use his bat to supply left-handed power to the team.

While no longer one of the premiere sluggers in the game, Thome still has the ability to hit the ball out of the ballpark. He spent nearly his entire career as a starter in the field before becoming a designated hitter in 2006, when he was traded to the Chicago White Sox in the Aaron Rowand deal.

The Phillies have brought Thome back this time because they believe that he can fill a different type of need than the one that existed nearly a decade ago. They didn’t have a left-handed pinch hitter with power last season. Now, they are hoping that they do.

Beyond that, their marketing machine knows that his presence will help to sell merchandise in the ballpark that he once helped to open.

Sean was born in the Philadelphia region and has written professionally for over two decades. Read his Sports Blog: Insight and follow him on Twitter @ SeanyOB

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At least one member of the Philadelphia Phillies is campaigning hard for Jimmy Rollins to come back. We haven’t heard much from the members of the 2011 team. However, newly signed pitcher Dontrelle Willis has made a pitch to bring Rollins back. Willis didn’t waste any time in talking about the free agent shortstop after he was introduced as an official member of the team. I hope his campaigning works. As a Phillies fan, I know the team needs Rollins back.

Willis might have a right to discuss wanting Rollins back with the team. The two have been longtime friends. They come from the same area and both have kept in regular contact since they have played in Major League Baseball. Willis joined the Phillies and is prepared to make the transition to the bullpen. His one year deal seemingly allows him to play on the same team as his friend. Of course, that will only happen if Rollins re-signs with the Phillies.

Willis doesn’t have any inside information. He did say he talked to Rollins after signing with the Phillies and that Rollins was excited about the move. However, it’s not like Willis said that Rollins is definitely returning or that he had some inkling into his real desires. That’s not the way things work. Just because his friend signed with the Phillies doesn’t mean Rollins will. If Rollins signs with the Phillies it will be because it was the best contract and the best situation for him. That said it doesn’t hurt to have Willis on board. A little extra recruiting will only help the situation.

I liked the Willis signing when the Phillies first did it. Now I like it even more. I like how excited he sounds about joining the team and I like how realistic he is about the downward path his career took. Willis seems like a guy that genuinely loves the game of baseball and will always be grateful for playing it. There aren’t enough players out there like that. In fact, he reminds me a lot of Rollins. Rollins was always the vocal leader on this team during this successful run. I hope Rollins returns soon. I would love to see how both of these guys act with each other, the team, and the fans.

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When the season ended abruptly for the Philadelphia Phillies, fans of the team feared that shortstop Jimmy Rollins could have played his last game with the team. Now a free agent, Rollins has had some interest from the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals, but both of those teams went in other directions. A rumor has surfaced that Rollins could head to the Detroit Tigers, but CBS Sports has shot that one down.

Now the Phillies sign Willis, an old friend to Rollins, to be the team’s lefty specialist out of the bullpen. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports, the Rollins and Willis “grew up in the same town, attended the same high school and both had mothers who played professional softball.”

From the sound of it, the signing may help the Phils land Rollins, who is running out of options, anyway: “He was probably more excited about the deal than I was,” Willis said of Rollins, the paper reports.

Let the rumors come to you. Follow Scoop du Jour on Twitter or Facebook.

Related: Jimmy Rollins, Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals

The Philadelphia Phillies will contend for another world championship in 2012. There is little doubt about that. This offseason has been about tweaking a team that is already very good. The Phillies focused on the bullpen and depth. They succeeded in addressing those areas. There is still the matter of signing Jimmy Rollins, but most think that will get done in time. With things a little slow in the offseason right now, it is a good time to think about the players currently on the team. As a Phillies fan, the 2012 season will be critical for one guy in particular. It is do or die time for Domonic Brown.

Brown has been regarded a top prospect for years now. The Phillies refused to part with him when they had the chance to acquire Roy Halladay at the 2009 trade deadline. They were reluctant to part with him when they got Hunter Pence in 2011. The Phillies clearly value Brown as a future piece of this team. But when he has played in the majors, Brown has done nothing. Brown has appeared in 91 games over the past two years and boasts a .236 batting average. He has seven home runs in 280 plate appearances. Basically, Brown has done nothing to justify his lofty status in the organization.

I have been a Brown supporter. Even though he was disappointing in 2011, he is still young enough to be a great player. But 2012 is going to be a pivotal year for him. He will have a chance to earn a spot on the roster to start the season but there is a realistic chance he starts in the minors. Once Brown does reach the big club, he has to perform. The time for him to live up to the expectations is running out. If Brown can’t offer the Phillies a lot in 2012, I can’t imagine the team will resist trading him again. Brown is still highly regarded around baseball and when the trade deadline looms, it is possible that his name could be mentioned as the Phillies explore a deal. I would like to think that Brown will do enough to show the Phillies that they shouldn’t trade him. But the time for talk is over. Brown will have to do it on the field.

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General manager Ruben Amaro, Jr. continued to add pieces to his Philadelphia Phillies roster when he signed veteran pitcher Dontrelle Willis to a one-year contract.

The move allows the team to add a left arm that was very effective against left-handed bats last season.

From the beginning

Willis was originally selected by the Chicago Cubs in the eighth round of the 2000 amateur draft. He never pitched in the big leagues for Chicago and was later traded to the Florida (now Miami) Marlins in a multi-player transaction in 2002.

He posted the highest winning percentage of his career (.700) in 2003 when he went 14-6 for a Marlins team that defeated the New York Yankees in that season’s World Series. His efforts earned him an All-Star berth and the National League Rookie of the Year award honors. At 21, it seemed as though the Oakland, Calif. native was at the beginning of a brilliant career.

Willis’ next season actually foreshadowed others that were yet to come, as he went 10-11 with a 4.02 ERA. Then, he bounced back to produce the best year of his career in 2005. He went 22-10, made the All-Star team and finished runner-up in the Cy Young Award voting. That was his last great performance to-date.

More recently

The ‘D-train’ had a decent year in 2006, going 12-12, but followed that with a rough 2007 campaign. His 10-15 record, 5.17 ERA and a salary that was scheduled to escalate over $10 million in future years facilitated a trade to the Detroit Tigers after the season.

The Tiger years lasted through 2010 and resulted in a 2-8 record and a 6.86 ERA. Injury issues, an inability to regain mound focus and a WHIP (walks + hits per innings pitched) that amazingly ballooned over 2.000 appeared to put Willis firmly into the category of a has-been.

But, when you’re a left-handed pitcher who hasn’t yet turned 30, there’s always hope.

What about now?

After spending some time in the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants organizations, Willis signed a 2011 free agent contract with the Cincinnati Reds. This past season he started 13 games, went 1-6, had a 5.00 ERA and a 1.520 WHIP.

While his overall numbers weren’t great, he did have success against left-handed batters. Considering that Antonio Bastardo is the team’s only current left-handed reliever with more than a few games of major league bullpen experience, the Phillies are likely to give Willis the chance to serve as a lefty specialist.

Pitching coach Rich Dubee has helped many men play to their strengths during his time with the team. That type of positive influence should put Willis in position to make further progress in 2012.

After earning a Communications degree from Penn State in 1990, Sean started his career in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons front office. At that time they were the Philadelphia Phillies Triple-A farm team. He has written professionally for over two decades. Read his Sports Blog: Insight and follow him on Twitter @ SeanyOB

More from Sean O’Brien and the Yahoo Contributor Network:

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