2024 Phillies Roster Set

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The Phillies made several moves today that have left little doubt of the makeup of the opening day roster.

Before Sunday’s penultimate Grapefruit League game, the Phillies announced that they had completed a trade.  Jake Cave was sent to the Colorado Rockies for cash considerations.

At the same time, the Phillies announced that RHPs Andrew Bellatti and Jose Ruiz were reassigned to minor league camp.  They were the last two NRIs in major league camp leaving 31 active roster players eligible to travel north after tomorrow’s final spring game.

Since Dylan Covey, Orion Kerkering, Michael Rucker, and Tijuan Walker are all expected to begin the season on the IL, the Phillies opening day pitching staff is expected to be:

  • Rotation – Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Ranger Suarez, Christopher Sanchez, Spencer Turnbull
  • Bullpen – Jose Alvarado, Connor Brogdon, Seranthony Dominguez, Jeff Hoffman, Yunior Marte, Luis Ortiz, Gregory Soto, Matt Strahm

Rafael Marchan has been sidelined with a back issue, is expected to begin the season on the IL, and was never really a threat to supplant Stubbs.  The rest of the roster is expected to be:

  • Starters – JT Realmuto, Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott, Trea Turner, Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh, Johan Rojas, Nick Castellanos, Kyle Schwarber
  • Bench – Garrett Stubbs, Edmundo Sosa, Whit Merrifield, Cristian Pache

Now, that doesn’t leave out the possibility that the Phillies could find a better pitching option or a left-handed bench bat off the waiver wire.

And, it doesn’t rule out any possible injuries that may pop up during the next few days.  Of particular note is that Ranger Suarez pitched on the back field today in a Triple-A game.  He left the game before completing his expected five innings when he took a line drive off his knee.  It happened in his third inning, and he did complete the inning.  But he did not return to the game after that.

This could be a bigger deal than any Walker injury.

It’s always something.

215 thoughts on “2024 Phillies Roster Set”

      1. Tks, interesting me thinks, the 2 guys that hit the whole spring training, 1 gets optioned, the other gets sold for cash considerations, both left handed bats (.35x & .39x) and we keep up 2 guys vying for the same position .15x & .25x both right handed bats. 

        I don’t get it and I don’t get a warm fuzzy offensive feeling about this team.

        By the way, is something wrong with Schwarber, MIA recently.

        OK,……let me have it!

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Clemens was the odd man out when Merrifield got signed. He’ll very likely be the first OF back up if something happens.

          And I’ve said this before, if the Phillies win, it’s because the starters are healthy and producing. The backups won’t matter. Did the backups play that much in the playoffs?

          We don’t want to see Sosa play 100+ games like last season. Same with Pache and especially with Garrett Stubbs.

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        2. Schwarber played on the back field today, should be in the lineup tomorrow. I forget what they said his problem was. I don’t believe them most of the time.

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            2. That’s how I roll. Nothing too good for the family. Maybe get an Ice too. Of course, splitting it.

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            3. Denny, you can probably get a free cup of ice. Just bring along a Kool-aid mix packet and you are good to go 🙂

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  2. Hope the Philies made the correct decision on Rojas…….I can remember when Matt Klentak kept Maikel Franco on the team during his offensive down sides in 2016/17….in the long run it did not work as expected. Rojas seems to have more drive and dedication I think, so maybe it will work

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      1. Maybe like Tommy Agee, Paul Blair, Curt Flood, Omar Moreno, the beginning of Garry Maddox, Cesar Geronimo, etc.

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    2. On paper it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Cave was lefthanded bat that can do multiple things and pull the occasional start in CF when Rojas is really struggling offensively. 

      If they are hard set on giving that Job to Rojas great no worries but don’t keep Pache then. 

      Again it bears repeating that team/this team finished 11 and some back from the Braves and looked pretty feeble against the D-Backs.

      I can’t envision a REALISTIC scenario where these players improve upon that. 

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      1. Well Jake Cave isn’t making up 11 games on the Braves either. They are coming off back-to-back seasons where they played in 1 WS and were 1 win from playing in a 2nd one. 

        Need to quit worrying about catching the Braves in the division and worry about getting into the playoffs with good health. Once there they need to get better performances from some of their top hitters at the right time.

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  3. If this team is depending on offense from Rojas to win there are much bigger problems. In a sss he’s the best defensive centerfielder I’ve seen in a Phillies uniform, (I go back to the mid 50’s). Elite play in centerfield can make up for a lot of issues in the corners – especially in right. I have high hopes for him. An aside – does anyone have any word about Hinkie?

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  4. I never saw Ben Brown pitch before we traded him. I knew of him and what opinions around here were. Happened on a Cubs/Brewers game yesterday morning and there he was on the mound for the Cubs. He looked really good and his stuff was very impressive.

    That on the heels of Walker going down with a shoulder. I rarely if ever forget a trade.

    I’m sure that is one that might linger with some soreness for quite a while. From the Cubs perspective getting that type of upside starter for a relief pitching rental was a great move.

    Also I was singing the praises of the Soto trade a few weeks back. Then he pops into a game against his old club and manages to lose the game with 4 runs in the 9th on just 7 pitches. Yikes…

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      1. LOL when it comes to trades I don’t believe in carrying the past forward.

        I just stick to the current regimes and what their trades look like. 

        In terms of this regime 2X they traded highly likely MLBers for relief rentals and that is always a losing formula IMO. 

        Even Klentak’s trade of Mead for Sanchez is paying some dividends. 

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          1. I agree 3UP and I think that is my point. If this FO needs to make trades like that with this payroll there is a more systemic problem.

            I mean how can you outspend the Braves by what you do and still not even be in contention for the division in August and September?

            You say we shouldn’t worry about winning the division and I say fair enough (if they were outspending us by $40 million but its the other way around.)

            We’ll see the Braves have an exceptional LU compared to ours but after Strider they could really struggle to get IP out of their rotation.

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            1. Guess I don’t understand what outspending the Braves has to do with anything. The last 2 years, the Phillies have beaten the Braves in the playoffs which is when it matters. I’m sure Braves fans are happy with their regular season division championship banners.

              Atlanta is a well-run team and their GM has done a good job locking up their young players to team friendly contracts. DD has been forced to use $$$ to make up for the failures in drafting/development of players for a stretch. Now, they they have caught up with Atlanta in that regards and by most accounts, have a higher rated minor league system. They are and will soon be supplementing the big-league roster with prospects like Painter, Kerkering, Stott, Abel, Etc. while Alanta will need to spend $$$ to fill their holes, especially within the rotation.

              Just don’t get why anyone would be unhappy with the current state of the organization.

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    2. The tough thing about the Ben Brown move is that I’m pretty sure that McGarry would have been enough to get that done, but, at the time, McGarry was a hotter name than Brown. Brown has control issues, but if he figures it out, he’s a guy who could anchor the middle of a good rotation for a long time – a potential workhorse starter.

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      1. As much as anything, it’s imperative for a team to scout (i.e., correctly evaluate) its own players. The reason the Mariners were able to get Randy Johnson is that the Expos’ scouts had guys like Brian Holman rated ahead of him. The Phillies were able to trade for Bobby Abreu because the Astros felt they were all set with Richard Hidalgo. The Mets traded Jeff Reardon to the Expos because they thought Neal Allen was a better choice (the list goes on and on and on).

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      2. catch – I hear that. That’s said, oddly for the 1st time in my fandom, the Phillies were “able” to miss fire on this trade and still keep their trajectory. imo, there is no room for Brown. I say this fully expecting Painter to win the spot. I don’t think Brown would’ve prevent the resigning/extending of Wheeler & Nola. Suarez is a beast and needs to be extended/resigned. Sanchez has a chance to make you easily forget about Brown. Then add in Painter and Abel. I don’t see room for him in this window. You can argue that they should have gotten more for him but he was expendable, which is really weird to say as a Phillies Phan… what is going on around here! Great rebuild/window

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        1. Tac not being a smart a$$ but not sure they maintained any trajectory. They haven’t gained on wins against either of the 2 NL powerhouses. One they outspend and the other they will never be able to outspend.

          And they lost to an inferior team in the NLCS after going to the WS the year before.

          Also not sure the farm system is improving all that much. I see Painter, Crawford and Miller as being capable of AS level play and Abel a capable 3 or 4 type starter but outside of that its still pretty barren.

          Again we’ll see as the old cliche that’s why they play the games is divine wisdom.

          But today I don’t see a rosy pinstripe picture ahead!

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          1. DMAR…if Rojas is their future CFer….then prior to 2025 season may be the time to dangle Crawford….a guy like Preller may give up a Dylan Lesko or Robby Snelling for him…I’d pull the trigger on that.

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            1. Yikes Romus. The last player I loved as much as Crawford was another Crawford LOL. 

              That’s not entirely true I was sold on Bohm fairly quickly if you remember.

              Would Preller do that deal for Rojas? I would!

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          2. DMAR, you’re entitled to your opinion…even if it’s wrong 🤪. It’s a fair viewpoint, but I’d say the Phillies have closed the gap on the braves. Dodgers for all the additions still have some holes. As long as the Phil’s win in the playoffs… I’m not so concerned about the rest. To me, having Harper & Wheeler on your post season roster… no better combination out there. What follows them ain’t too shabby either. They are built for the postseason, not division titles or top farm teams. Though their farm team is a nice bonus late”y, better than expected

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          3. It’s kind of wild to me that you have Crawford as a potential All Star but cap Abel at a #3. Abel doesn’t lose to basically anyone in terms of raw talent, and he’s closer to his ceiling than Crawford is.

            You’re also doing a disservice to Kerkering, Caba, Rincon, and Rincones by calling that “barren”. And this is assuming you’re just not a believer in McGarry (fair), or counting the rookie league prospects (of which we have a handful of very promising guys).

            Our farm system isn’t the strongest it’s ever been, but it’s definitely been pumping out some talent for us and looks like it will continue to do so.

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            1. Fair points Dan so I’ll try to clarify what I meant. Today based on what little I have seen of Crawford and Miller; and what some of the SSS numbers show factoring in age and level etc. I see them both as having the potential for a very high ceiling.

              Abel I should of said his floor appears to be that of a 3/4 and then added it would not surprise me if he grows into something more. I’m not down on Abel at all in fact if Turnball doesn’t cut it I would get Abels MLB career going and allow him to take his lumps this season as the #5 starter.

              Ricones Jr I give a very low probability on him becoming anything special in the MLB. That’s not to say he won’t have any type of MLB career. He has enough tools to catch on with somebody as a 4th OF or platoon player. Personally I am really squinting to see it.

              Everyone seems really excited about Caba and I hope to share in that excitement at some point. I just don’t have my own personal opinion yet.

              I really like both Bergolla and Rincon. I think they both are MLB players at some point but maybe not impact players. Not to insult them by comparing them to Cesar because I know how polarizing a player he was around these parts but you catch my drift.

              And then there is McGarry. I’m with V1 on him. Over the years you may have heard me say “never say 0 chance” and I don’t and I am not but McGarry for me is a very low probability pitcher in the MLB at this point.

              As for Kerkering I really like him and by my own rules I’ve already graduated him to the MLB so I no longer consider him a prospect.

              Lastly I’m just a schmo and nobody cares what I think. At least not anyone that matters on the subject LOL.

              I’ve been off the Starbucks for a while! sorry guys I went on a bender this morning and purchased 2 Ventes.

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  6. I’d like to thank posters here for not doing the WIP SIGN MONTGOMERY NOW!!!!!!!!!!! lunacy. Draft consequences too severe not to go with Turnbull with the hope that Abel will be ready in the summer. Sacrificing picks for Ibanez and Papelbon really contributed to the cliff when the injuries and age kicked in.

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    1. With Ibanez, it was more about giving him a 3 year deal (at age 36/37) when everybody else was only willing to go 2. Ibanez had a monstrous first half which culminated in him going to the AS game, but after that, he totally self destructed for the remaining 2.5 years.

      So the morale of the story is not giving the FA player an extra year to get him to sign with you. Or better yet, try not to give long contracts to players in their 30s.

      Harper, Turner, Nola are here long term. How that will play out, nobody knows but it will likely not be the good at the tail end.

      Giving Wheeler a 3 year extension is fine.

      AFTER this season, Schwarber and JT have 1 more year, Castellanos (2), Walker (2). This is the type of contracts we need to avoid or at least shorten.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. There is no draft compensation tied to Montgomery.

      It isn’t lunacy to sign him. I would love to sign him. He would be a huge upgrade over both of our 5th starting options.

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      1. Agree on Montgomery one a 1-year deal but suspect he’s still holding out for a multi-year offer which I don’t think the Phillies are interested in.

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        1. 3up…….I can see Boras doing a deal with the Phillies with Monty…..2 yrs $55M.

          Snell , who is better, got a 2 yr/$62M from the Giants…..Boras plays it by the same play-book with Monty.

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          1. Maybe Romus but I think the Phillies want to keep that 5th spot in the rotation available for Painter in 2025 and don’t want to make a big $$$ commitment to another starter, even for 2 years.

            They see the 2025 rotation being Wheeler, Nola, Ranger, Sanchez, and Painter, with Abel being the stop-gap if Painter needs more time early in 2025.

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            1. I can see your point with Painter and Abel in play there. But sometimes you do need more than 6, maybe 7 healthy starting arms thru a season.  And Painter is really the wild card….he will be throwing off the mound probably in Septor Oct in Clearwater, but come spring who knows how it plays out for him.

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          2. Would do that deal – 2yr / $50m in a minute. Stated prior, I’m not sold on Sanchez / Walker as 4 and 5. Turnbull has upside, but in win-now-year, consistency is important. 

            As far as wait to July / trading deadline, the price often gets higher especially if trading from a ‘6 back in loss column’ position.

            Liked by 1 person

      2. But there is a draft penalty for passing the next level of the luxury tax, which is what I should have specified.

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          1. no one is trading for Walker at this point to help us get under third level of luxury tax. It is not that easy. Walker right now in FA would get 1 year, 8-10 million

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          2. Mr Anytics…you know aloy but keep dying on this hill….repeate after me….Noone wants Walker for 3 more years 20M per…even if the phillies pay half…he is here and just hope for a backend guy…we are not trading walker…he has negative value

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            1. Last year there were only 113 starting pitchers in all MLB that had a WAR greater than zero. 95 that had a WAR greater than 1. Tijuan had a WAR of 1.5, 2.6 and 2.5 the past three years. Obviously if he is seriously hurt no one wants him. But if he is healthy, plenty of teams would love that production.

              As a comp, Lucas Giolito just got a 2yr $38m contract with his last three years WAR of 4.1, 1.8 and 1.0.

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      3. Boras is using the Phillies to get his guys signed. The Phillies offered a similarly structured contract to Snell for 60M and he took 62M from SF. If Montgomery doesn’t get his long-term deal, I expect the Phillies to offer a Snell-like deal and lose out to another team for a nominal increase, again.

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        1. Yeah….see that happening …Dave D already said the other day, something to the effect, Monty is not on their radar. Boras probably does not like that admission from the PoBO.

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        2. If Boras used the Phillies then it didn’t really work. Montgomery got a 1 year deal and Snell a 2 year deal. Very surprising imo. Was no market for them I guess.

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  7. My take is that DD decided to run it back with a team that beat the Braves in the playoffs and was 1 home win away from the WS. And of course, we can always add at the trade deadline. I am very excited about this team. Hopefully Harper plays a full season and Trea with be his normal elite self for the entire year. If we stay healthy, we are guaranteed to make the playoffs. And as we have seen, this team is built for a short series.

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    1. forward with Ronald Acuna……he has in the vernacula….’out performed his contract’ and is not all that happy going into the last two years of that contract-$17M AAV….with on top of it all…team options for ’27 and ’28.

      Phillies can let Casty and Schwarber both walk and maybe jump into the fray for Acuna in 2/3 years. They have after all…..a lot of his family already in the system.

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      2. If Acuna wants to play hardball, he can, but it rarely works out for the player. And if the Braves want to trade Acuna, there’s no way he’s going to the NL East, let alone the Phllies. He’s ticketed for the AL.

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  8. A lot of talk on here about Rojas…but IMO the biggest risk to this season is Harper. I don’t have a lot of confidence that he will stay healthy all year. I certainly hope so. But I am much more concerned about Harper’s health than Rojas’s bat.

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    1. I agree, but I also don’t. Two years ago, we made the world series as a flawed team with a ton of question marks…SS, CF, Bryce only played 99 games, Kyle Gibson, etc.,. Last year, we had fewer question marks and Bryce managed 126 games.

      I feel pretty good about this team moving forward. From two years ago, we got better defensively, we’ve added more speed, and our bullpen looks a lot better.

      So while I agree a Harper injury could totally derail us, I also feel that we have enough talent on all sides of the ball to still be a playoff caliber team. I also feel like we are primed to land whatever we need at the deadline.

      I’m cautiously optimistic for this year.

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      1. We got lucky that Bryce’s injuries only occurred during the regular season and we had him back for the playoffs.

        I am optimistic too. But definitely concerned.

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        1. Yeah, sure, it’s a concern, but one was an injury (elbow ligament replacement) that was sort of a weird one-off injury few position players get, and the other was being hit with a pitched ball, that has nothing to do with being injury prone. So, sure Harper is an injury risk, but I don’t think it’s really any greater than any other fit 31 year-old player. 

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    2. Not worried about Rojas’s bat because they have kept plan B and plan C in place if he really struggles. They have Pache as fallback option 1 with Marsh moving to C and Merrifield playing LF as option 2 if Pache also struggles.

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  9. Rojas & Pache in the OF with Marsh in the late innings ….

    sooo much better than Moniak, Schwarber, and Castellanos

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  10. what’s your guys thoughts on the Orioles? Team is scary good imo. I don’t want to bemoan last year, but … that is a missed opportunity not drawling them in the Series. To me, they are the new Astros. They going to run the tables in the AL. 

    Phillies & Orioles going to meet in the WS, in 1 of the next 3 years.

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    1. The Orioles are good now but they stunk from 1998-2011 (14 years) and 2017-2021 (5 years). It’s about time that they are good, and that they are doing it the right way through the draft. Peter Angelos was one of the worst owners in baseball.

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    2. Tac…they hit on at least half of their first round picks over the last 10 years…five I would think…..Holliday, Westburg, Rutschman, Rodriguez, and Mountcastle…a few remain to be seen….amd one 2nd rounder …Henderson, and Jud Fabian is yet to be seen what happens.

      And they now spend in the interbational market and have management with a viable plan for the future.

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      1. The Orioles hired Elias away from Houston in November 2018. He’s done a fine job in scouting and player development and rebuilding the process from the ground up. A solid 5 year plan.

        Now they have a new ownership group and should be able to spend money as needed.

        This is where the rubber meets the road however. Once you’re good you’re no longer getting top 10 picks. To sustain being good you have to get creative and drive up payroll.

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        1. Agree…….they still will not be able to spend like the Yankees or Sox in their division, but if they plan and scout well, with luck also involved, they should compete as the Rays do in the future.

          Even in the NL-East…the Braves cannot spend like the Phillies or Mets, but know how to put a winning team together. Still there is that element of luck…starter and reliever pitching have to stay healthy.

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          1. Yes they clearly lacked the Aces they needed in the rotation for the playoffs and they were so young like the 07 Phillies they needed to get bounced hard to learn from the experience.

            Burnes will help and that is another dimension of the next step which is managing to make the right trades from your pool of young talent.

            Or the patience to let it grow into what it can become.

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  11. Alright – let’s hear’em

    Ohtani

    Great player, terrible liar

    or

    Great player, terrible judge of character?

    I’m leaning “liar” pretty hard for me to fathom someone not noticing “millions” missing from your bank account.

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    2. I also lean liar, but it’s still in the realm of plausibility. Dude makes so much money every day that it’s entirely possible someone could steal a few million dollars from him and he just didn’t realize his bank account didn’t go up as much that day.

      Keep in mind this is the same guy that was fine deferring 99% of his billion dollars to the heat death of the universe.

      (obviously there’s a fair bit of hyperbole in this post, but it does illustrate the point that he simply doesn’t live in the same financial world as the rest of us)

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      1. Dan fair points, when I factor in his endorsement money, I get more lenient but then I’d also be surprised if he didn’t have some type of financial advisor/accountant … that would be like … “Hey Ohtani, we’re down 5 million” since there pay is based off performance. If I was pulling in 40 mil + a year in endorsement, salary, interest.. I could see his “I’m innocent”‘stance but I’m still thinking he could be Pete Rose 2.0. it just so happens to be game 2 of 700 million dollar 10 yr contract … sooo, theres that to factor in to.

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        1. Addictions are serious illnesses so who knows. If it was Ippei he clearly had a problem because $4.5 million is what he makes in a year so to get into that hole is not good.

          If it was Ohtani and he thought he was clever enough to do it by proxy $4.5 million is a hefty sum but not crazy based on his income.

          These two were so close its hard to imagine Shohei didn’t know something.

          And clearly his financial handlers are very smart in the way they worked that contract. By deferring that large sum he will avoid a whopping amount of taxes assuming he moves back to Japan once his career is over.

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          1. ,DMAR….In Japan, most forms of gambling are generally banned by their Criminal Code chap 23; however, there are exceptions, including betting on horse racing and certain motor sports, maybe Ippei thought it was quite alright to bet the horses, or whatever, was legal there….and he fronted for Ohtani…. but also agree Ohtani should have known about his friends’ activitiess.

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            1. They love Horse Racing They have a is island. Where they train horses bought at Kentucky sales.

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            3. Yes Rocco that is very interesting I didn’t know that. I think you are right though. In the end they (they being the entire franchise of MLB and the Dodgers) will circle the wagons and shield Ohtani himself from any culpability.

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          2. I read differently about the income of the interpreter

            Mizuhara told ESPN he had been paid between $300,000 and $500,000 annually while working as Ohtani’s interpreter for the Angels and the Dodgers.

            https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2024/03/ab3618d5bd28-focus-mlb-superstar-interpreter-ties-crumble-over-money.html#:~:text=Mizuhara%20told%20ESPN%20he%20had,the%20Angels%20and%20the%20Dodgers.

            if you thought the gambling loss was 1x his salary, what are you thoughts now that it may be 9x-15x his income?

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            2. That’s definitely my error Tom. I am known to have a short attention span at times and heard the $4.5 million and confused that phrasing with his salary.

              But if Ippei did have a problem at 1X or 9X his pay structure it doesn’t change my opinion.

              I am on the side of it seems unrealistic that Shohei didn’t have a clue. I mean these two were very close.

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    3. The guy taking the fall for Otani, Will get a lot of money, for taking the fall, Otahi will give him money thru a third party, and he will get a book deal, you watch, but i believe Otani is lying,

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      1. rocco…LOL,

        ……it is called ‘plausible denialability’…..politicians are master at it. ….deny knowledge or any responsibilty to a said nefarious action surrounfing them………anyway he would never face suspension or being banned….he is a MLB cash cow and a national treasure in Japan. MLB needs that Japamese pipeline flowing.

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  12. My wife will often ask me if I ever get tired of watching all things baseball. She basically means anything other than a Phillies game which she happens to enjoy.

    My response is always very little is as interesting as things happening in real time. And it is true reality TV with many subplots and unique characters. 

    I have many other interests and hobbies but as far as programming is concerned MLB is my main squeeze.

    And we live in a day and age where reality surpasses fiction by a wide margin.

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      1. I don’t think the AAA/AA rosters are finalized yet because there’s lots of guys on the LHV roster and not that many on Reading’s. However, the obvious observation is that we have very few prospects in either location to start the season. Abel, Phillips and Mercado maybe, is it at LHV and Reading doesn’t have much either. DeLaCruz looks to be staying at Reading so he can play 1b (Hall at LHV). It says Simmons is at LHV but I’m expecting him to start at Reading. We’ll see. Jersey Shore will probably be the first box score to check every night. They and CWater have most of our healthy prospects.
        It’s time to check boxscores again! Yay!!

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        1. From Bucks County Jersey Shore is only about an hour. I’ll definitely be making my way out there a few times this season. Beautiful ball park.

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  15. I wanted to give a shout out to a former PP prospect JP Crawford. I saw quite a bit of him this spring and at age 29 he really appears to be coming into his own.

    This spring he’s hit 341/408/805 OPS. He’s K’d 4x and BBd 4x. And his 2023 was line was pretty good too 266/380/818 OPS with 19 HRs.

    After a year or so of having him in our system I always imagined him doing that for us. 

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      1. Then again……Turner may have not been an option to sign as a free agent if JPC was entrenched at shortstop already.

        Stott otoh, IMO would still have been drafted at 14 in 2019 since he was the best available player…rated number 9 pre-draft- at that selection.

        But who knows what would have happened when one does revisionist history.

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        1. Stott is 5.5 WAR in 2 seasons JP is 15.5 WAR in 7. I think both are pretty much the same player but I’d give the edge as a SS to JP but it would be splitting hairs.

          Stott is a dynamic fielding 2B.

          But yeah if you had those two at the time we signed Trea you would have traded JP or not signed Trea at all. That $$$ would have be allocated somewhere else.

          My post wasn’t to lament the trade. This is a prospect site and JP was a great PP Prospect. I felt he deserved to be recognized for the MLB player he has become.

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      2. revisionist history, but JP may have been moved to third, Hoskins either moved out by bohm or he got the DH spot.. likely no schwarber & castellanos that off-season… just one of them.

        who knows, but it seems to have worked out for the Phils

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    1. Turns 28 tomorrow…..not sure that length was a wise deal.  Perhaps they feel in 5/6 years he will be able to transition to another position if catching starts to wear him down.

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      1. Joe Mauer essentially became a 1B/DH at age 31. And from that point on, he averaged 2.1 WAR for the next 5 years until he retired. That’s way below average for a 1B/DH, and we’ll talking about a Hall of Famer.

        Will Smith is not a HOF talent. He’s going to decline fast and I seriously doubt he’s going to spend the full 10 years in Dodger blue.

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    2. That’s a crazy contract for a catcher, since catchers don’t age well at all. Will Smith will be 29 tomorrow.

      Realmuto has already started slowing down at age 32. Posey retired after age 34. Yadier Molina had one 3+ WAR season after age 31 (the rest were under 2). You have the have to figure the last 5 years of that deal will be replacement level at best.

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      1. Thanks for the correction..read his birth date wrong…..Dodgers are really going off the deep end with these contracts……max for him IMO would have been 6 years at maybe $16M AAV.

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    1. rocco…they will need pitching, with experience at some point……Kershaw, Buehler wil need to come back strong…..Urias is out of the pix I think now.

      Yamamoto would be the ace now. And not sure how their BP will shake out.

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      1. Romus is correct, the Dodgers need pitching badly. The Dodgers only have 2 prospects in the Pipeline top 100, and Frasso is their top pitching prospect (#80). However, Frasso is already 25 and he’s going to miss most of this season due to labrum surgery last November. So if the Dodgers are lucky, he’ll be ready to pitch sometime next year at age 26.

        It now makes sense why the Dogers went hard after Yamamoto.

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        1. you gents seemed to have left out some tire kicker that the Dodgers traded for, I think his name was Glasgow… 🙂

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          1. True, fair point….however he still is a career 7WAR pitcher over 8 years…and needs to top at least 150 innings pitched another time in a season. Last season was the first time with 162. So see how he fares with the big bats behind him in LA.

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    2. Rocco………….say Trifecta or Daily Double in Japanese for me……….I want to gage your progress! Now say……Window closed…..you bet no more!

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  18. I am just seeing now that Phillies vs Braves Opening Day is postponed till Friday. I was so ready. I had looked up what channel it was on. 

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  19. just saw Noah Song is done for the season with TJ. What is going on in baseball that so many pitchers are having TJ surgery? Almost feels like it’s an elective surgery these days.

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    1. Max velocity. Major league baseball has changed substantially over the last 15-20 years. Pitchers, especially righties, need to throw much harder and, as a rule, they do. I believe pitchers now train very hard to max velocity and this takes a huge toll on their arms, especially their elbows. Also, and this is not scientific, but pitchers, I believe used to throw much more frequently – the old Braves pitchers went out and tossed pretty much every day. I think this may helped avoid soft tissue and ligament injuries. 

      The good news is that shoulder injuries, which used to happen all the time and killed so many careers, seem to be way down with strict pitch counts. Now, the science and training needs to catch up so that elbow injuries can also be limited.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Two more things that contribute to the increase in TJ:

        1. (supposedly) sweepers. There have been a handful of experts who say the advent of the sweeper has put extra strain on the elbow due to the way it’s thrown.
        2. Also, more importantly, our diagnostic tools are just way better. It’s not so much that it’s happening more often, just that we now KNOW what’s wrong with the hurt pitchers. It’s no longer, “dead arm” or, “wear and tear.” It’s an injury with a known treatment.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Dan, I’m not so sure #2 really is a factor, especially in professional baseball (it very well may be among amateurs). TJ surgery is now 50 years old. For the last 30-35 years, at least, if a guy in professional ball blew out his elbow or had extreme pain in his elbow, he would have the TJ surgery. Substantially more players are having this problem.

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          1. It’s definitely a contributing factor. Most people think of TJ as a surgery for, as you put it, people who blow out their elbows. But there are varying degrees of tears, and until fairly recently it was basically impossible to detect some of them.

            And for what it’s worth, I’m relaying this information second-hand from sports medicine doctors. Our family business works with doctors fairly regularly and when my dad or I interact with the ones who work with athletes, baseball always comes up. So TJ is a topic I’ve had lengthy conversations about. It’s not gospel, but it’s also not just something that I thought of on my own.

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            1. What I could never understand……imaging can see when the UCL has fraying going on……why not do the PRP protocol right then and there. Like preventive maintenance things. The PRP workd for Nola and Tanaka. Virtually every pitcher who has pitched since they were young teenagers all the way into their 20s probably has some fraying going on with their UCL.

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      2. Catch. Those are really good points. I mentioned to Romus a couple kids like 15 had TJ surgery in the last couple years here. I was at a workout center a few weeks ago and the only thing the owner who I have known for years talked about was how hard kids were throwing. No mention of how the kids hitting.

        On a personal note. Back long ago when I pitched the coach handed you the ball and for the most part there was no pitch count. It was your game. American Legion games were 9 innings so lots of pitches could be thrown. The same was true with the MLB guys as well. Think of all the complete games guys threw. My deal was I just pitched too much and probably too frequently until I messed up the rotator cuff. I was 18 and thought it would get better. Never did. But surgery really was not much of an option for success in the early 70s.

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        1. Sorry to hear about that, Don. The rotator cuff is the ultimate kiss of death. When I hear a guy has significant shoulder issues and particularly rotator cuff, honestly, he’s almost as good as done, unless he learns a trick pitch. Jonathan Pettibone was a nice prospect. Had shoulder problems. Disappeared into thin area. So many guys like that.

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          2. Catch. Long time ago. We were in state American Legion tourney. Felt like someone shoved a knife in my shoulder. Every time I have used my shoulder in that motion last 50 years pain still there. I accidently did something here at home few weeks ago. At South Alabama we practiced or played some kind of a game almost daily other than Sunday. If I could have figured out some way to only play games and not have to make all those throws in practice maybe might have made it. LOL As Iverson said back in the day “Practice”. Did learn to pitch fastpitch softball and pitched 20 years or so. Total different motion. 

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    2. Just wondering if this is the year of injuries for Philadelphia sports, Eagles lost almost there whole secondary to injuries, Sixers lost Melton, Embid, Maxey for a while, Harris has missed games with injuries, and Covington almost whole yr, Phillies i hope arent next,

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        1. Romus will try, I was wondering i dont know anyone with millions like Ohtani , Only you have big money, that i know, I would think, if your butler or maid, was stealing from you, You would know, Is that true, or do big money people, not watch like us poor people,?

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          1. Rocco……..how is your Nihongo language course study……..can you say……you aah bigge man……you no makee bets anymore!

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  20. Read today that ZIPS projects Suarez’s ERA over 4.00. That is nuts, a huge, to me at least, undervaluation. With him finally having a normal spring, with great results then, and wanting to get paid, I would be shocked if his ERA Isn’t a half point lower.

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    1. Agree completely – I wouldn’t be surprised at all if, by the end of the year, we are talking about Wheeler, Nola and Suarez almost interchangeably. I think he has the ability to be that good and, at times, he certainly has been that good. If he stays healthy he could even be in the Cy Young conversation if all goes well. I think he could end up having an ERA in the low 3 or even high 2s – he has the ability to be that good.

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      1. …….and wonder when the Phillies will talk contract extension with Ranger and buy out his last two years of arbitration!  He ain’t getting any younger…turns 29 this August.

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        1. I love Ranger. That kid has ice water in his veins. His stuff doesn’t wow anybody but he’s in that crafty lefty category. He just gets it done.

          And one of the best fielding pitchers in the league!

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        2. Right now, I would put extending Ranger ahead of any upcoming contract situation – it’s not even close.

          Ranger is the type of pitcher who should be still humming along when he is 34 or 35. I wouldn’t hesitate to give him 4 or 5 years. Sign him now, before he gets way too expensive.

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          1. Agree…..now is the time…..Braves waited too long for Fried, or just decided not to do it with him…..and I am sure he will walk like Freeman and Swanson did. And five years for Ranger would be a good length.

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            1. I would think a team like the Astros or Yankees would kill for a guy like Ranger. Solid all year and then takes it to another level in the postseason. He’s a guy you want on your team.

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            2. I see the Phillies released OFer from the Ven., Yhoswar Garcia….things really haven’t gone smoothly for Garcia. He wasn’t able to sign with the Phillies for $2.5 million until March of 2020 because of an age discrepancy, though he was thought to be one of the top prospects in the 2019-20 international market. He just seem to great glove, great speed and needed more punch at the plate. Hope they re-evaluate their stance on going after smallish OFers like that in the future. Seems it just not always work to their advantage.

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            3. He was the last of the skinny little outfield prospects that we signed. From the old administration. The new guys they are signing look like they can be major league players – they have significant physical projection.

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          2. It is difficult to overstate what a massive fail Yhoswar Garcia was from a scouting and financial commitment standpoint. They invested $2.5 million in a 5’9″, 150 pound (!!!!!!!!!) outfielder who never made it above low A ball. And he was just one in a long line of outfielders the team signed who had almost the same profile – skinny outfielders who you know, the moment you laid eyes on them, would have virtually no chance to become strong enough to become good major league hitters. Fortunately, it seems the team has learned its lessons and the new player selection and development group is looking for players who look more like Juan Soto than middle school 10k runners.

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    2. Analytics will never like a guy like Ranger. He doesn’t have a high K rate.

      That said, I noticed an interesting trend with Ranger. Here is his GB% and BABIP for the past 3 seasons:

      • 2021: 59.2% / .257
      • 2022: 55.4% / .293
      • 2023: 48.5% / .324

      And here is his percentage of pitches that were a sinker and his ERA:

      • 2021: 45.4% / 1.36
      • 2022: 40.1% / 3.65
      • 2023: 28.0% / 4.18

      For some reason, he got away from the sinker and they started putting more balls in the air and his ERA went up.

      In 2022 and a lot more in 2023 he increased his cutter. In 2023 he threw his cutter 12.9% of his pitches and that had the worst runs against among any of his pitches. Seems to me like poor coaching. Got away from his strength. He is a ground ball pitcher.

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  21. FYI. I see and article up on ESPN with their guys picks for the 24 seasons. Lots of good mention on the Phillies. Braves are division, league and WS pick by most, but Phillies get top wild card, 4 votes for NL Champ and 2 for WS champ. Mentioned that Phillies have better staff and bullpen. Plus, fact they know how to beat Braves in short series. Cy Young Strider got most but Wheeler 2nd with think 7 votes. Pretty good article.

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  22. An actually on topic post for me …

    Kerkering … the reason on the IL

    sore right elbow

    throws really fast

    throws a sweeper

    I’m a bit worried

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    1. To be fair – he apparently was very much stricken by the flu as well. He was down for close to 2-3 weeks with that. The injury may be a combination of lack of stamina and perhaps rushing things too quickly when he got over the flu.

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      1. He threw yesterday vs the Jays minor leaguers….97/98…less than 10 pitches but got thru the one inning. I assume he should be ready to go once he gets off the IL in the second week of April.

        Liked by 1 person

      1. I found the answer with ChatGPT:

        The 1973 Oakland Athletics had three former MVP winners on their roster: Reggie Jackson (1973), Vida Blue (1971), and Joe Rudi (1972).

        I still take Betts, Ohtani and Freeman over those three.

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          2. Lazzeri was a Hall of Famer but not an MVP. Ruth and Gehrig are all time greats. So that is probably the closest. That said, pitchers were not as advanced in 1927 as they are now. Didn’t throw as hard. But that is a really close comp.

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            3. Rocco. That Reds team was really good. I had just started teaching and only Phillies fan around building.

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      2. I mean, it’s not quite what you’re looking for, but ironically the recent Angels teams…

        2 winners in the height of their primes in Trout in Ohtani, 1 winner past his prime in Pujols, and then a smattering of contenders/could-have/should-have winners in their prime in Justin Upton, Anthony Rendon, and Andrelton Simmons (plus some guys like Fletcher who looked like they were on an MVP trajectory earlier on).

        I’m not betting against the Dodgers, but definitely gotta let them play the games. Especially since, as incredible as their lineup is, their pitching staff is a huge question mark.

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        1. I said in their prime. Besides Ohtani, none of those were in their prime. Trout is but can’t stay healthy.

          Betts and Freeman are far better than anyone on that Angels team.

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          1. You’re moving goal posts. Also, Upton, Simmons, and Rendon were all in their late 20s or early 30s. Which is absolutely their prime.

            If you’re arguing that they weren’t because their performance wasn’t the highest of their careers, then you can’t use that qualifier for the Dodgers, either. We don’t know how their MVP caliber players will perform this year or if they’ll be healthy. All we can compare is the players each team had to start the year.

            And the 2018 Angels (for example) had:

            1. the best player in baseball (who just had his first significant injury and played in “only” 114 games, so you can’t even argue that he was injury prone at this point)
            2. a 28 year old Simmons coming off a nearly 8 WAR year who was basically guaranteed to put up at least 4 WAR on defense and was looking solid on offense as well.
            3. a 30 year old Upton coming off a ~6 WAR season and who had never posted a sub-par offensive campaign
            4. a wunderkind from Japan known as Shoehei Ohtani

            As I said, I’m not betting against the Dodgers. But star power isn’t a guarantee for anything. They’re already hitting some rocky roads with their pitching, Lux’s yips, and Ohtani’s off field drama.

            As an aside, it feels disingenuous to limit it only to players who won MVPs since we all know there are plenty of examples of the winners not being the best player that year. Instead, it should be a comparison of the tier of players.

            The Dodgers’ top 3 match up favorably with some of the best of all time. But I’m not sure their depth and pitching will be able to keep up well enough to see them win much more than 100 games.

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          2. That Reds team actually had 4 MVPs, who won a total of 6 MVP awards: Foster, Rose, Morgan, Bench.

            They won the NL MVP award in 1970 (Bench), 1972 (Bench), 1973 (Rose), 1975 (Morgan), 1976 (Morgan), 1977 (Foster) — so 6 MVP awards in the first 8 years of the decade! The Big Red Machine indeed.

            Liked by 1 person

  25. Do you think one of those MVPs may be ready to leave Angels for Phillies. Seeing Angels are off to a roaring start today trailing 11-3 going to the 9th. I am only kidding but Trout may be part of many long days.

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  26. Skeet, yes, Paula Y Wolf was an infrequent commenter here. She was a Lancaster native and was a 1986 graduate of Franklin & Marshall College. She worked for LNP/LancasterOnline (formerly Lancaster Newspapers) from 1989-2020 as a general assignment reporter and sportswriter. She penned a regular sports column, Wheelchair Quarterback, for the Sunday News for many years which was written from the perspective of a fan. Paula was confined to a wheelchair from the age of 17 due to rheumatoid arthritis. She passed on March 12, 2024.

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          1. Guys. Same here. Hinkie has been asked about several times now. Last post I could find was one on Yamamoto in January. We both had the Phillies making the WC with the same record last season. I am very concerned.

            On a lighter note. CBS has article up on winners/losers from Opening Day. Number 1 loser was Mike Trout. Even with all of his greatness they said more likely many more days to come like yesterday. I had made a funny post here yesterday when I saw their score if Mike was ready to come home to Philly.

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        2. As I was watching Glasnow mow down the Cards LU I thought about Hinkie and how he really wanted us to get him.

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        3. I am an avid reader of this site, but have only posted a couple of times. I had communicated with Hinkie on his X site a few times and on March 6th, I DM’ed him, asked if he was ok and told him people at Phuture Phillies were concerned about him. I have not heard back.

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          1. Bill. Thanks for posting. I think of Hinkie all the time. He was always upbeat. The fact you have heard nothing is not good. I save any reply that I get and the last one from him was in January during the Yamamoto interest. Hope for the best.

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  28. Finally its here 🙂 and I’m heading down tomorrow for that game. I expect Nola to pitch a gem and we win.

    I expect Wheeler to pitch well today but Strider just gives this LU fits so we’ll need to get to their BP. 50/50 we win today.

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  29. Crazy Phillies fans are here at 8 AM. Parking there cars in my neighborhood.to avoid paying for parking. Walking 7 blocks to game.

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    1. Rocco. That is so funny. Years ago, my wife and I got a concession unit in Amarillo, Texas. It so worked out that we went to pick it up when the Cowboys were playing the Lions in the playoffs. Tickets were like $350 but we were on Row 13 in one of the corners. Game was one of few wins in the last 30 years. I digress. From Amarillo to ATT is like 350 miles or so. Someone told us instead of paying like $100 or more to park near stadium there was kind of a little strip mall and a food place in there would let you park there for free if you got food there. So, we got some food, and they gave us a coupon to put in the vehicle window and then we just walked straight down the street a few blocks. Weather was really nice even in January. So, all went well. Think it was 2015. 

      That is really neat you are that close to the stadium. My wife’s parents lived like 3 or 4 miles from Angels Stadium when he was there for ARCO. When he was in Philly they lived in Collegeville. I do not remember how far that was from the Vet. I got to go a couple times in the early 70s. My MLB parks are Shea, The Vet, Riverfront, and Wrigley.

      I am so ready for Opening Day.

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      1. Spent a lot of time going to Shea as a kid. We used to park about a 5 minute walk away under some highway bridges and, as I recall, it was free on-street parking and made it easy to get out of the games.

        Shea itself, was dump (although no better or worse than most of the stadiums at that time), except the field portion was beautiful – very green, pristine grass. So I have a lot of fond memories of the ballpark and watching some great pitching there. I saw Darryl Strawberry’s MLB debut and, while he didn’t really do anything, it was a great game (Dave Kingman hit a homer, and George Foster hit a walk-off in the 13th inning – Mario Soto pitched for the Reds and Tom Seaver pitched for the Mets – one hell of a regular season game!) but he hit one of the longest foul home runs I have ever seen, providing some notice of what was to come.

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        1. Catch. Very cool. I went in the Spring of 1971. My high school had a senior trip where we went to DC and New York. I forget who played. It was a day game and we sat right behind home plate maybe 20 rows or so up. It was on Spring Break so kind of a cool afternoon. I forget who I even went with. Best guess it was my girlfriend who is my wife of 50 years now. Maybe some of the guys.

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        2. Speaking of cool games, when I was at the very end of my Mets fandom, and just a few years into living in Philly, I saw David Cone strike out 19 Phillies. And it was weird – nobody at the game even seemed to notice (yes, I know they were Phillies’ fans, but still). Next year the Mets made what I thought at the time was a horrible trade, after letting guys like Strawberry go. They traded my then favorite player, David Cone, to the Blue Jays for Jeff Kent (who I thought was stiff – shows how much I know, although he was never great on the Mets). At that moment, I became a Phillies fan and never looked back.

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        3. Another great memory was going to opening day in 1975, I believe. We were the first fans in the stadium and were in the outfield and Gene Clines was warming up in the outfield and I screamed “hi, Mr. Clines” (not Gene, I said Mr. Clines) – he turned around and waved. You always remember those great moments you had as a kid.

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        4. It was cool that I went to college in NYC and grad school in Philly and so was always able to take a subway to games when I wanted. 

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    2. rocco…LOL…reminds me when I was a kid and went to Franklin Field with my uncle and his pals to watch the Eagles…we parked on Christian St on the other side of the Surekill River…..young neighborhood kids chraged us to watch our cars from any damages that may occur……of course if we did not pay…..tires could be flat when we got back after the game.

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  30. Bye y’all – heading off to the opener – a friend in a suite had some free tix and a parking pass – there was no way I could say “no”.

    Strider is a beast, but they get to him sometimes.

    Looking forward to Wheeler working his magic. I don’t think I can ever recall a pitcher who has evolved so much in his 30s – salute to him and the excellent pitching coach on developing his now extensive and devastating repertoire.

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  31. Long time reader, very, very infrequent poster. Love opening day baseball. My father took me to my first game, April 6, 1974. Seaver and Carlton were opening day starters. A second-year Mike Schmidt hit a walk-off home run to win it. I apparently met Yogi Berra, briefly. I remember none of those things. I do remember being disappointed that Kiteman wasn’t going to attempt a third try to injure himself, but was thrilled when the “Human Cannonball” Hugo Zucchini got launched from a cannon his family had built onto a net covering most of the infield and handing a Phillies catcher the ball. And I also remember that is the day my dad discovered I needed glasses when a very large man wearing brown boots and nothing else ran onto the field (right before Schmidt jacked the homer I don’t remember) and was tackled by Philly’s finest. When my 9-year old self asked my dad why the man with the brown boots was wearing “black tape” near his thighs, my dad laughed hysterically before telling me that we were going to need to get my eyes checked. And I’ve worn glasses ever since.

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  32. hey guys, this is great stuff. We could do it all day. My two favorite opening day memories either 1971, 1972 Schmitty‘s first game at the vet against the mutts. I think it was 11 or 12 years old, we snuck in the park around nine in the morning got to see all batting practice and must’ve gotten 20 balls hit in the seats while watching BP. Schmidt hits it two run homer I believe off of tug McGraw on the ninth Phillies win 5-4. Other great memory course was Bryce’s first game as a Philly against the Braves; running out to right field and bowing down before the crowd and then hits homer I think his first time up people just went nuts! Go, Phils! ⚾️

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  33. Pops, too funny. The 5-4 game against the Mets you refer to was my first game ever. Wish I remembered that Schmidt homer, I’ve since read that he launched it.

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  35. Oh my gosh. I got home and Marsh homers. Wheeler looked great. Then it looked like Phillies relievers skipped Spring Training. What a downer. The crowd was electric when it was 2-0. This looked like the Phillies of a few years ago. Only good thing for me is it 70 here today. Philly looks like here the first 3 days this week.

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    1. This is what drives me crazy about the modern game. The starting pitcher — your ace, no less — coasting along and you take him out because it’s all about pitch count. Then the well-rested bullpen blows the game. But at least the pitch count is kept down.

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  36. Too much swing & miss on this team, 15 K’s, absolutely 5 innings that nothing good can happen in. So, spring training is …..an indicator of what you got! We’ll see, here we go!

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  37. i turn games off when I see our bullpen..They just don’t pitch clean innings. Did it last yr. Will do it this year. Brogdon should be in lhv.

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  38. I saw NC bat once. Looked like those last two Zona games. I was and still concerned regarding BP. Just too many balls out of the zone. If you walk everyone someone on a good team is going to hurt, you. Braves will do that. What a disappointment for what looked like a great crowd. It is only one game, but this could have been a statement game to the Braves. Oh well one of the great things about baseball is you play again tomorrow. Hope for better.

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  39. LHV wins their opener 7-4 with a 7 run bottom of the 9th, Castro with the walk off slam. Phillips pitched well with 6 innings, 1 run. Bullpen gave up 3 runs in 3 innings, at least not 9 runs in 2 innings.
    Brogdon will be gone when Kerkering comes back in a week or two.

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  40. Adding my opening day memory. My only opening day. It was the day that Vet Stadium opened. After Connie Mack, we thought it was a palace, though the sight lines and distances from the playing field were awful.

    Roger Freed was the much ballyhooed newcomer and, like most of that era, proved more promise than producer, though I think he might have hit a home run that day to give us reasons for optimism. Hard to believe that just a few years later the Phillies would have their first long-term winner with Schmidty, Carlton, the Bull and others.

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  41. Worth mentioning. Three Phillies drew walks in the opener – Harper, Realmuto, and ,,, Rojas. Every Phillies’ batter struck out at least once except … Rojas.

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  42. Brogdon cannot come into a game with runners on base. Last season when he was demoted he was among the league leaders in inherited runners scored. Yesterday, he allowed 3 of 3 inherited runners to score.

    There is only one reason he is on the active roster, he is out of options. This drives me nuts that the Phillies will keep players on the active roster because they are out of options over players who have looked better in camp but have options. 

    Ability should trump flexibility.

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  43. Brogdon is done – no longer a major league pitcher. he can’t be effective throwing 92 or 93 MPH. He won’t be on the team in a week most likely.

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    1. Wheeler pitched a very effective game…he deserved a better fate. Just hope the BP arms come thru and able to hold down teams…cannot bear to see another BP like a few years back.

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  44. Rickardo Perez back n the Phillies minor league system. Had a hit yesterday in the minor league scrimmage. Would be nice if he can rejuvenate his career wth a ‘can-do-team- first’ dedication.

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  45. Everybody – this was just one game against one of the better hitting teams in baseball history (yup, it’s true – look at last year’s hitting stats for the Braves – they are insane). There are always hiccups, but this year’s bullpen is set up to very good. Guys will come and go as they always do and there will be ups and downs (as I said, I think Brogdon is seriously done – not his fault, but at 92-93 MPH, he just doesn’t throw hard enough for a modern MLB bullpen, even with a good change-up), but I expect this to be a top 5-10 BP in the MLB. Their only weakness at this moment is there is no closer. I don’t care what people say, but I’ve watched enough years of baseball to know that, having a guy to close out games is a real thing. But that doesn’t mean that one of the guys they have can’t develop into that pitcher. He’s an odd choice, but I think Hoffman is the most reliable of the bunch even though he’s a bit of journeyman. 

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    1. Our pitching imploded on Opening Day last year as well, and that ended up being a pretty decent year. So yeah, no need to panic. Changes will be coming, and guys will settle in.

      Although the team we lost to on Opening Day last year ended up winning the World Series, so hopefully that doesn’t repeat…

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    2. Catch. I like your thoughts. Baseball is unique in that as bad as you play one day you play again the next day. Just a quick recent example. My son took grandson to Reds vs Phillies on a Saturday last year. Reds win 13-0. Sunday Phillies won easily. Forget the score. Only thing I would disagree on with BP you have to throw strikes. Phillies yesterday were always behind in count. Either walk or had to groove pitch. Cannot do that all the time and have success. That is sometimes an issue with some of these guys. I wondered over the winter as no closer was signed if Hoffman might be the guy to replace Kimbrel. No matter what anyone says it is nice if you lead going to the 9th you have a guy who is most likely going to put the game in the Win column. Phillies to me simply have some wild card guys in that respect.

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    1. McNeal and Hoskins have bad blood from the past…remember the 30 second Hoskin HR trot 2/3 years ago….the mets dugout did not like that at all…..and then again Hoskin’s got McNeal’s Irish up…..he does have a short fuse.

      And yesterday they honored the late Bud Harrelson at Citi Field…the infamous fight between Harrelson and Rose at second base I am sure was relived.

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  47. Romus. You are like a history book. LOL

    I want to know if you and Rocco see a Phillies win today in your Chrystal Ball.

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  48. Romus. I enjoyed guys talking about their Opening Day games. Then I realized that I knew all the names they were talking about. What does that say about me. I had also forgot that the Rangers swept the Phillies to begin last season. Hope yesterday does not repeat history. Biggest difference I see between Braves and Phillies are the number of strikeouts. I know you know this or can find it in 2 seconds but seems to me Braves put many more balls in play than Phillies do.

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    1. Don….what I can tell you for 2023.

      Braves team slash .276/344/501…23%- K….10%-BB….OPS+ 124

      Phillies………………..256/327/438….27%-K……10%-BB….OPS+ 108

      The Braves were a better hitting team…which probably surprises no one.

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      1. Romus. Thanks. I really felt they would be even greater difference in the stats. Just watching on tv it seems the Braves routinely have better at bats than the Phillies hitters do. Some areas the difference is close and some significant. Good job historian. LOL

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  49. Cubs are calling up Ben Brown to take the injured Steele’s spot in the rotation. So he might make his debut sometime next week.

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