Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
An armful of new players, hungry holdovers aim to make fans believe
Joe Girardi’s second season in a Phillies uniform is Bryce Harper’s third, Rhys Hoskins’ fourth and Aaron Nola’s seventh.
By far the elder, Girardi nonetheless was less familiar with the Philadelphia baseball rendition of September Mourn as were the other three.
The deconstructed Phillies were always out of it early through the mid-late 20-teens under Ryne Sandberg and Pete Mackanin. But in Gabe Kapler’s two seasons in the manager’s chair, they showed improvement to the point of threatening to qualify for the playoffs.
At least they did until the late summer.
Put it together and voila, the Phillies hadn’t made the playoffs in eight years when Girardi took over for what would become a virus-ravaged and shortened 2020 season.
Still, the Phillies were on track for the postseason ... until they again stumbled badly down the stretch, eliminated from playoff contention on the last day of the regular season.
So what, this year’s going to be different?
“The feeling I get from this team is, it’s time,” Girardi said recently. “It’s time to get back into the playoffs, and to win. As far as hearing players talk about being snubbed, I have not heard that. But the talk that I hear is, it’s time.”
While some Phillies may feel they’re getting cold shoulders from those who feel the need to predict playoff teams in March, most are content to simply expect that indeed, it’s time for the likes of $330 million man Harper to do a little carrying of the team on his back.
And time for Hoskins to stop the long stretches of offensive unproductivity that have hounded him the past couple of years.
And time for Nola to be the consistent team ace who can go deeper into games than six innings and not allow one bad inning get out of his control.
Of course, that’s essentially a descriptive term for the Phillies’ pitching staffs of the recent past in general. And it is on the mound that this club thinks things really can change this year.
“It’s definitely brought the best out of everyone,” reliever
JoJo Romero said of the team’s blooming pitching confidence. “We’ve brought in some great arms and it’s shown throughout spring training. Everyone we’ve sent out there has done their job and done it well. Everyone’s improving on a day to day basis. It’s been a fun camp.”
Unfortunately for Romero, it was a fun camp until he was sent to the minor league side on Sunday. Those newcomer arms include all-new relievers Jose Alvarado, Archie Bradley and Sam Coonrod, three reasons Romero would be left without a big-league chair at the end of spring training.
And for a starting rotation anchored by Nola and 2020 Mets transfer Zach Wheeler, along with holdover Zach Eflin, promising reclamation projects Matt Moore and Chase Anderson join the fray as the fourth and fifth starters, respectively.
That shoved the always interesting Vince Velasquez back to the bullpen, where he’ll again go long relief with the knowledge that he could be called upon for a spot start at any time.
But it’s that rebuilt bullpen that is expected to make a difference, and no wonder: The Phillies of 2020 had the worst bullpen in the major leagues, to the tune of a collective 7.06 ERA. It was also the secondworst bullpen ERA in major league history, second only to the 1930 Phillies (8.01).
To rebuild the ‘pen, the Phillies started at the top, demoting general manager Matt Klentak while shelving seemingly disinterested team president Andy MacPhail. New team president Dave Dombrowski started to pull some triggers, soon joined by new general manager Sam Fuld.
The moves gave reassurance to free agent catcher J.T. Realmuto, who finally decided to resign with the team.
“From what I’ve seen so far, it looks great out there,” Realmuto said of the Phillies’ rebuilt bullpen, which also includes a fourth newbie, Brandon Kintzler.
“Not only are guys throwing the ball well, you can just see the stuff we’re bringing out of there,” Realmuto added. “There’s a lot of plus-plus stuff. A lot of guys that aren’t that comfortable to catch, and that’s a really good thing. You know if they’re uncomfortable to catch, they’re way more uncomfortable to hit against.”
Realmuto is especially sold on Alvarado, who arrived from Tampa Bay featuring velocity that can approach triple digits but with a control quotient equally as wild. At the start of camp, it was an Alvarado pitch
that left Realmuto with a fractured thumb from which he’s since recovered.
“Yeah, he’s so good I can’t catch him,” Realmuto joked about Alvarado. “No, he’s good, he’s awesome. He’s one of those guys that I said it’s not a comfortable at-bat, at all. He can do anything; righty, lefty, everything’s coming in 95 to 100. He’s throwing a 95 mph slider. That’s not fun for anybody.”
In addition to Velasquez, other holdovers for the bullpen include young Connor Brogdon and former (and future?) closer Hector Neris. As of Sunday Girardi hadn’t addressed the question of a closer as yet.
As for the way the Phillies shape up at the playing positions...
INFIELD
Rhys Hoskins returns from surgery on his broken hand fit and on time, but didn’t exactly light it up in Grapefruit League play at the plate, hitting just one homer in 16 practice games. Nevertheless he’ll man first base again, with veterans Jean Segura and Didi Gregorius – who like Realmuto was a surprise re-signing late in the offseason – take second base and shortstop again, respectively.
With the exception of Realmuto’s return, and the way he’s responded quickly off the thumb injury, the most excitement in the infield has been the anticipation over Alec Bohm, who starts what should be his first full season with the Phillies at third base. In his 44 games with the big club in 2020 he hit .338 with four homers and 23 RBIs.
OUTFIELD
From his expressions of confidence - and relief after Dombrowski was hired — Harper will again man right field while being more of the man leading the team. He was very public in talking about the spiritual boost Dombrowski’s hiring gave him, and says the personnel decisions that followed reaffirmed that feeling.
“I am very fortunate to play for an organization that is ready to go and ready to win,” Harper said. “They made the significant moves that we needed to make in this offseason.”
That said, Harper seems to know the Phillies have their work cut out for them.
“I think this is the best division in baseball; I don’t think that’s even a question,” he said. “We have five teams ... that are really good. I think this is going to be a juggernaut of a division.”
If Hoskins can return to the
type of run-producing gappower hitter he used to be and if Bohm becomes as good as he advertised during the partial 2020 season, having Harper and a healthy Andrew McCutchen in left field more often than not would present a Phillies batting order packed with power.
The hole in the outfield, then, would be in center ... which became the biggest guessing game of the spring.
Fresh off derailing his career with a domestic assault case, Odubel Herrera showed up at Clearwater and somewhat surprisingly stuck to the end, only to see him pink-slipped to the minor league auxiliary camp on Monday. There, he will join Girardi’s preferred center fielder, Scott Kingery, who again given the task of playing outside of his second-base comfort spot defensively lost his offensive stroke in the process.
This spring training was worse than ever for the inconsistent one-time uber-prospect, hitting .159 in Grapefruit League play when he was finally moved to a minor league stall.
The center field holdovers then are youthful Adam Haseley and Roman Quinn, both of whom had health setbacks during the spring. Haseley would return from a groin pain and wind up hitting well over the final week of spring training. Quinn was trying to suck it up after being felled by suspected food poisoning, which didn’t help him in his forever mission of trying to put the ball in play to utilize his elite speed ... rather than always trying to hit the cover off the darn thing.
“He’s working hard to make some swing adjustments,” Girardi said. “He’s played strictly center field while he was here. He’s made some progress, but we think there’s more progress to be made.
“We really have a lot of belief in Scott Kingery,” Girardi said, “we’re just trying to get him back to where he’s a line drive, doubles hitter that runs into some home runs and uses the whole field.”
What Haseley and Quinn should both remember, then, is that Kingery, and yes, even Herrera, are but a quick text away from returning.
For those two initally exiled outfielders, for all the new pitchers and for all the aging veterans hoping to put it all together over the long haul, the belief exists that successful baseball seasons require patience and consistency.
As they emerge from the darkness of a pandemic, the Phillies again get to test that theory.
AL EAST BALTIMORE ORIOLES 2020: Manager: Outlook:
25-35, fourth place. Brandon Hyde (third season). Although the Orioles appeared to make some progress last year following two straight 100loss seasons, GM Mike Elias remains focused on long-term stability in his effort to slash the payroll and rebuild the franchise with draft picks and prospects obtained via trades. Restive fan base will welcome Trey Mancini back, but he and Anthony Santander could be July trade chips. Chris Davis, entering sixth season of a $161million, sevenyear contract, will begin on injured list after playing just 16games and hitting only .115last season. Aside from John Means, a 2019All-Star, rotation is full of pitchers who have yet to establish themselves and veteran Matt Harvey, whose success came years ago.
BOSTON RED SOX 2020: Manager:
24-36, fifth place.
Alex Cora (third season, first of second stint with team). Outlook: After winning 2018World Series, team’s fourth championship in 15seasons, Red Sox fired Cora in the wake of the Houston sign-stealing scandal last offseason and traded 2018AL MVP Mookie Betts and pitcher David Price to Dodgers in a salary dump. Red Sox were also without Chris Sale, who missed 2020(Tommy John surgery) and Eduardo Rodríguez (heart inflammation caused by COVID-19). Team’s best hope of getting out of the cellar of stacked AL East is that Cora relights a spark in J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers, who both struggled during the pandemic-shortened season; Rodriguez returns strong and Sale is able to recover by midseason. Alex Verdugo, biggest acquisition in the Dodgers deal, is also a piece for the future.
NEW YORK YANKEES 2020:
33-27, second place, lost to Rays in Division Series. Manager: Aaron Boone (fourth season). Outlook: New-look rotation could include Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon, high-risk additions who due to injuries have combined for one inning since May 1, 2019, and Domingo Germán, who hasn’t pitched since September 2019(domestic violence suspension). Focus will be on catcher Gary Sánchez, who struggled for the third straight year, hit a careerworst .147and was benched in favor of Kyle Higashioka for four of five Division Series games. New York is seeking to be more consistent: pandemic-shortened season included a 16-6start followed by a 5-15slide, a 10-game winning streak and six losses in last eight games. Long-ball dependent offense scored 156 of 315 runs on homers.
TAMPA BAY RAYS 2020:
40-20, first place, AL champions, lost to Dodgers in World Series. Manager: Kevin Cash (seventh season). Outlook: Defending AL champs hope to build on last year’s World Series run. Expectations remain high despite having to replace top two starting pitchers. Rays are counting on Tyler Glasnow to step into a leading role, with offseason acquisitions Michael Wacha, Chris Archer and Rich Hill filling rotation openings. A versatile lineup will be largely the same, with rookie Randy Arozarena getting more playing time after a breakout postseason. Rays averaged 4.82runs per game during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, its best showing in 10years. Nevertheless, the Rays thrive on pitching and defense. A major league-high 12 pitchers earned saves last season, tying a big league record.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS 2020:
32-28, third place, wild card, lost to Rays in first round of playoffs. Manager: Charlie Montoyo (third season). Outlook: Jays beefed up a young, talented team by adding several playofftested veterans. George Springer signed a team-record $150 million, six-year deal, and Marcus Semien joined on an $18 million, one-year deal. Toronto also acquired starting rotation depth by getting Steven Matz in a trade with the Mets. By adding Springer and Semien to a promising group of youngsters including Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero and Cavan Biggio, Jays have built one of the AL’s most fearsome lineups. However, beyond staff ace Hyun Jin Ryu, the rotation is full of question marks. If hard-throwing Nate Pearson doesn’t develop, Toronto might need to make an in-season pitching addition.