Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Howard primed for one more season
The manager was given a platform to agree that Ryan Howard at least deserved that consideration, even if only under the franchise-legend clause of the baseball code. But, no.
PHILADELPHIA>> The Phillies’ clubhouse was overcrowded Friday, with players everywhere, two to a locker stall in most corners, few instantly recognizable.
Many were prospects, in town for a Saturday showcase. Others were dressing for an exhibition game against the Baltimore Orioles. But so many of them, too, were new to Citizens Bank Park, Matt Klentak having cleansed so much of the roster of a 99loss team, particularly the pitching staff.
Ryan Howard was there too, dressing in his locker, alone.
He was not new to the place.
“It’s cool,” he said, looking around at where Chase Utley used to sit, or where Jimmy Rollins used to up the volume on the sound system, or where the champagne used to drip from smiling faces. “You see new energy and a different kind of life. There are some guys here who have been able to get some experienced and are kind of on the doorstep.
“It’s a cool thing to see,” he added. “Because I remember when I was in their place.”
He’s 36 with a reconditioned Achilles and a rebuilt knee, and Monday in Cincinnati he will begin his 13th major-league season. Almost surely, it will be his last. That’s how swiftly the time has passed. That’s the reality, with the Phillies able to buy him out for $10 million after this season and a manager unwilling to grant him the everyday first-base job. He did lead the Phillies in home runs with 23 last season, and in RBIs with 77, but the Phillies could have lost 99 times without that. He also struck out 138 times in 129 games and fell behind Darin Ruf on the depth chart.
“Opening day against a right-hander, he’s going to play first base,” Pete Mackanin said, repeating an offseason theme. “Against the lefty, the next day, Ruf is going to play. I’m going to start with a platoon and then we’ll go from there.”
Mackanin was given a chance to consider the possibility that Howard, who claims he is healthy, could yet drive in 100-plus runs, as he did every season from 2006 through 2011. The manager was given a platform to agree that Howard at least deserved that consideration, even if only under the franchise-legend clause of the baseball code. But, no. Mackanin is committed to Ruf against left-handers, has been since last season and will not budge.
“I feel Ruf deserves a chance with the spring that he had and what he did last year against lefties,” the manager said. “He deserves an opportunity to get playing time also. But at this point, it’s like I told these guys, if you want to play, you’ve got to play good. You’ve got to play better. That’s the way I am going to start off.”
Howard will earn $25 million this season, so the Phillies owe themselves a look for their cash, even if Howard brought a .213 spring training average to work Friday. But they are not likely to look long.
“I feel good,” Howard said. “I feel strong. Now it’s just a season, right around the corner. I am not trying to surprise anybody. I am just going to try to go out there and try to live up to my own expectations, not live up to anybody else’s expectations. If people are surprised, they are surprised. That’s not my goal. My goal is to go out there and do what I believe I can do and have a good season.”
He will have a chance, starting Monday. But that crowd in the clubhouse Friday was a reflection of what is coming, not a reminder of what has passed.
“It definitely goes quick,” Howard said. “You definitely have to enjoy it. You can turn back around and remember when you were in these guys’ shoes and in their position. So you want to just try to enjoy it as much as possible and just try to take it in as much as you can.”
With that, he adjusted his cap and turned toward the clubhouse door, to take batting practice with so many new teammates. He would enjoy it for as long as he could.
To contact Jack McCaffery, email him at jmccaffery@21stcenturymedia.com; follow him on Twitter @JackMcCaffery