The Philadelphia Phillies got their Spring Training games started on Thursday,
as they faced Florida State. Unless another Buster Posey emerges from the
Florida State like he did last year to haunt the Phillies, there was very little
to take from the Phillies 8-0 win.
But the Phillies will get the chance to face their first major league team on
Saturday, when Cole Hamels takes the mound against the Yankees. From there, the
Phillies will play roughly 30 games until opening day.
While the record will not matter, lets take a look at what will and what we
should be looking for during Spring Training.
Right Field- Jayson Werth can wish all he wants that he was the GM of the
Phillies and he was still here with Cliff Lee, but the fact is, he is not- and
it has left a hole in left field for the Phillies. Jayson Werth will not only be
missed in the lineup, but he was also an excellent out fielder, committing only
10 errors in the last two seasons. The players that are competing to replace
Werth will be Dominc Brown and Ben Francisco.
The Phillies are hoping that Dominc Brown will have a strong spring and win the
starting job. Brown has been the one prospect the Phillies have refused to trade
in recent years as they cleaned out the farm system to win now. The Phillies are
one of the oldest teams in the Majors, and an injection of youth is something 
this team could benefit from. Brown batted .210 in 62 at bats last year, with 2
HR’s and 13 RBI’s last year in limited action (62 AB’s), and will most likely
platoon with Ben Francisco to start the season. But keep a close eye on Brown-
and his improved batting stance- as he plays for his job this spring.
Situational Hitting- As exciting it is to think about the four aces the
Phillies now have leading their rotation, the Phillies had the best rotation in
baseball last year to. This years rotation could lead them to 117 wins, but all
that will get them is home field advantage in the playoffs, which they also had
last season. The fact is, the Phillies lost to the Giants because of one thing-
the hitting. The Phillies batted only 8-41 with runners in scoring position,
including 2-11 in the game 6 loss. The Phillies have always been a home run
hitting team, and struggles to move batters unless it is while they are jogging
after a home run. This problem could become even greater if they are not able
to protect Ryan Howard, as he has been the one to knock in a lot of those runs
through homers. If the Phillies are having trouble moving batters during spring
training, it could be a sign of things to come when the games start to count.
The Bench- As stated earlier, the Phillies are one of the oldest teams in
baseball. While with that age comes experience, it also comes with a need to
rest more often, and usually comes with being more injury prone. This calls for
a strong bench, which the Phillies did not have last year. The Phillies bench
did not have good numbers when it came to pinch hitting, getting only 45 hits in
240 at bats. That’s good for a .188 batting percentage, which ranked them 24th
in the league. In comparison, the San Fransico Giant were ranked 3rd in pinch
hitting percentage. Things only got worse for the Phillies in the playoffs, as
their pinch hitters combined to go 0-8 with 1 walk. The Phillies are hoping
that Delwyn Young, who last year played with the Pittsburgh Pirates, could be
the answer. Young is a career .271 pinch hitter, which would help last years
crew. Other then Young, how John Mayberry Jr. plays this spring will also be
key.
First Base Coach- For years the Phillies have been one of the best stealing
teams in the league. It helps that they have the speed of players like Jimmy
Rolling and Shane Victorino, but much of that credit goes to Davey Lopes. Lopes
was the Phillies first base coach for the last 3 seasons, and is considered one
of the best in the business. After a somewhat ugly departure, the Phillies will
now count on Sam Perlozzo to send the runners at first. It will be interesting
to see when he decides to try to steal and how much power Charlie Manuel gives
him. These spring training games could give you a good idea of how new situation
at first will work out.
Health- At the end of the day, the most important thing for the Phillies is one
thing in spring training- and that is to remain healthy. Ruben Amaro Jr. is
always sure to mention one thing when talking about the Phillies recent success,
and that is health. The Phillies have been very lucky over the past 3 seasons,
as they have entered the playoffs with a healthy roster all 3 years. The
Phillies are talented enough to handle an injury for a small amount of time, but
as we all saw in St. Louis with Adam Wainwright, a season can turn with one
pitch in spring training.
It appears that both Rollins/Utley are not 100% healthy out of the gate as they were held out from yesterdays game vs the Yankees for “Soreness”..
Utley in fact may sit out a couple of days which is not a good sign..
The Phils Defense and especially in the OF is one of the weaker ones in the NL
(outside of Victorino). Ibanez,Francisco & Gload all have their limitations as far as speed, arm strength nd D Brown has a lot of footwork, judging balls of the bat and his throwing accuracy to improve on to get up to a big leauge level,besides his batting.. This tem will be in a lot of 3-2/4-3 type of games and need to sure up their Defense and Bench if they are to go on to the
World Series in 2011.
The Red,Giants & Padres play the “fundamentals” much better than the Phils
and will be there all season long..
Now it appears the Utley is injured a little worse than “Soreness” in his legs..
What would make him continue to have pain and soreness in his hips,ribs,knees and legs…His body is breaking down fast for it’s minor injuries to just about everywhere for him which is another sign when an Athlete stops taking. …
Not the kind of start the Phillies were looking for to Start SPring
#1) Injuries to Utley and Rollins who both were injured and missed many games last season.. Is it just bad luck or a trend that their bodies are beginning to break down
#2) RF D Brown is 0-5 with 4 Strikeouts at the plate… Not the good start he needs to gain some confidence and I still say he will end up in AAA for he needs a lot of work at the Plate and in the Field and simply is not ready.
#3) LF R Ibanez is also 0-5 in 2 games and looks like he’s lost a 1/2 second on his swing, He was consistently late on 90-91 MPH Fastballs from Yankee Minor Leaguers which does not bode well for him moving forward
#4) Both Rollins and Victorino were hitless in their 1st games
#5) R Howard booted a ball hit right him for a error that gave Yankees a big lead in the 6th.. He’s improved from a coupld of years ago but still makes too many errors in my book and that doesn’t even count the balls he simply doesn’t even get to
On the Bright Side
#1) Both SP Hamels & Blanton looksed pretty good in their first outings
#2) B Francisco, R Gloand and W Valdez all have multiple hits so far after 2 games..
#3) Relievers Worley,Romero and Madson threw scoreless innings where Lidge,De Fratus, and some of the youngsters were hit around
I am not Predicting about 90 Wins.. This Offense looks weak and the PHilile Defense is probably their worst as a team in years and will cost them some games with the less explosive offense they have