Optimistic Phillies open season against the Braves
As season opens, McCutchen and Phillies optimistic they can avoid hazards of tough NL East
Before the Phillies’ first 2021 game, Joe Girardi made his first bullpen call.
Hector Neris, the manager revealed Wednesday, had recaptured his long-time role as the closer after a crowded spring training race.
In his seven seasons with the Phillies, Neris has finished 168 games, saving 72. He was 2-2 in the abbreviated 2020 season with five saves and a 4.57 ERA.
With the Phillies having missed a playoff spot last year largely because of their 44 percent save percentage, the bullpen was made over by new baseball operations president Dave Dombrowski. Yet even with newcomers with Jose Alvarado, Archie Bradley, Brandon Kintzler and Sam Coonrod, among others, projecting fresh stability in Clearwater, Girardi elected to keep his trust in Neris.
“I will close with Hector,” he said. “I will kind of use Bradley and Alvarado as set-up guy. And when you look at (Connor) Brogdon, Kintzler and Coonrod, we can use those guys at any time if one guy isn’t available.”
Neris, 32, had a 63 percent save success rate last season, and has a career 422-119 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
“I like the way all three of them threw the ball,” Girardi said. “If you look at Archie, he is kind of a guy you can ask to give you multiple innings, in a sense, more than three outs on occasion because he is willing to pitch at any time. Alvarado is that lefty that I can deploy against lefties, wherever they are in the lineup.
“Hector has closed. And he has closed here. And for the most part, I thought last year, after a slow start, he threw the ball pretty well. And I liked the way he threw the ball this spring.”
Girardi was pleased with the development of Neris’ slider in spring training.
“I think he will definitely use it,” he said. “I think it will make a big difference because it just gives him another weapon. Any time that you are a two-pitch pitcher, your pitches have to be really, really elite. Hector has an elite split and the ability to pitch up. But they have a 50-50 chance of guessing right. So now, this changes their chances.”
Even with the breakdown of the 2020 bullpen, Girardi did not find it necessary to redefine Neris’ longtime role in the spirit of a fresh start.
“I didn’t,” he said. “I wanted to look at the makeup of our bullpen and put it all together. Hector has been a successful closer. I know Alvarado can close. Kintzler has been a successful closer. I know they can all do it. But again, I just decided to go with Hector. He’s done it. He’s done it in this town. And I like the way he is throwing the baseball.”
• • •
The Phillies formalized their Opening Day roster Wednesday, providing few surprises.
Girardi will carry 13 pitchers, six infielders, five outfielders and two catchers.
The right-handed pitchers will be Neris, Kintzler, Alvarado, Bradley, Coonrod, Brogdon, Chase Anderson, Zach Eflin, David Hale, Aaron Nola, Vince Velasquez and Zack Wheeler. Alvarado and Matt Moore will be the left-handers.
Alec Bohm, Didi Gregorius, Rhys Hoskins, Brad Miller, Jean Segura and Ronald Torreyes will be available in the infield. The outfielders will be Bryce Harper, Adam Haseley, Matt Joyce, Andrew McCutchen and Roman Quinn.
J.T. Realmuto and Andrew Knapp are the catchers.
• • •
In the 3:05 opener Thursday, the Atlanta Braves will start lefthander Max Fried (7-0, 2.25 ERA in 2020). While Girardi did not commit to a starting centerfielder Wednesday, that likely means the switch-hitting Quinn will start over the left-handed-swinging Haseley.
The Phillies will start Nola, who was 5-5 with a 3.28 ERA last season.