Philadelphia Phillies

After four consecutive seasons with 89 or more losses, the rebuilding Phillies began 2017 with a fairly modest goal. Manager

Pete Mackanin says they’d like to win at least as many games as they lose.

“I feel confident about .500,” Mackanin said. “I didn’t want to come out with some lofty goals, but there was kind of a tag at the end of that, being if we can start strong and start believing in ourselves like we did last year, hopefully this year we can continue that, something really good might happen.”

The Phillies had a 24-17 record through 41 games in 2016. But they went 47-74 the rest of the way and didn’t have another winning month.

Real improvement might have to wait, but the Phillies hope it won’t be long. Five of the team’s top nine prospects, as ranked by MLB.com, will begin the season at Class AAA Lehigh Valley (Allentown, Pa.). While the Phillies’ top prospects didn’t begin the season in the major leagues, 27-year-old utility man Brock Stassi did. “A dream come true,” Stassi said, reflecting on a career that includes 580 minor league games.

“I welcome differences of opinion, because it’s hard sometimes for me to even agree with myself. I welcome other people’s opinions, especially if I value their opinion, and (then) make the decision from there.” Nationals manager Dusty Baker, on internal discussions about choosing a closer