Rookie Roughed Up In Phillies Loss

GAME RECAP: Padres Beat Phillies 9-7

The Padres didn't give Phillies starter Jake Thompson much of a warm welcome in his Major League debut. San Diego's first three batters reached safely to start the game, and four batters later Christian Bethancourt broke open the scoring with a bases-clearing double, with the Padres going on to win, 9-7. The Padres totaled 14 hits, with leadoff hitter Travis Jankowski continuing to serve as the team's spark plug, with three hits and a career-high four runs. "He's been outstanding," said Padres manager Andy Green. "Loving what he's doing, loving the quality at-bats, loving him shooting balls to left field. The walk in the last at-bat [in the eighth inning] when he recovered from being down, I think 1-2 in the count, to come back, walk, steal a base and then have enough feel on the [Yangervis] Solarte play to come flying across the plate to score. We needed that run." Thompson, the No. 69 prospect in baseball according to MLBPipeline.com, allowed four runs in the first inning and two more in the fifth, when Jankowski and Wil Myers led off with back-to-back doubles. He was taken out after 4 1/3 innings and struck out one batter while walking two and hitting one. "He's 22 years old," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "You can't judge him on this outing." San Diego starter Paul Clemens also threw 4 1/3 innings despite allowing just two earned runs. Green pulled Clemens after he got his first out in the fifth inning, just a half-inning after Clemens grounded into an inning-ending double play on a failed bunt attempt.

PHILS PHACTS: 

• The best thing that can be said about Thompson's debut is that he will get plenty of opportunities to prove himself the rest of the season. He appeared to rush himself in the first inning as the Padres took a 4-0 lead. He settled down after that, retiring nine of 11 batters at one point. But there is no question he has room to improve after allowing six runs in just 4 1/3 innings. "I wasn't nervous," Thompson said. "I was kind of amped up, instead of being nervous. Especially in that first inning, I just wasn't able to spin the ball for strikes or be able to get fastballs down in the zone."
• Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard has been relegated to bench duty since Tommy Joseph's emergence this season. But Howard quietly has been putting up some pretty solid numbers. He homered in the second and doubled in the fourth and is hitting .310 (18-for-58) with four doubles, six home runs, 10 RBIs and a .690 slugging percentage in 22 games since June 23.
• "He's making too many mental mistakes. We've got to keep working with him and talking to him about it. He's got so much talent. We have to corral it and figure out a way to get him on track. That's the one thing he's missing right now. He needs to be a little smarter on the bases, and all around baseball. He could be a helluva player." -- Mackanin, on Cesar Hernandez getting caught stealing third in the seventh inning. Hernandez has made 13 outs on the bases this season.

NEXT GAME:

Phillies right-hander Jerad Eickhoff (6-12, 3.68 ERA) pitches the series finale against the Padres on Sunday at 4:40 p.m. ET at Petco Park. This is the second time Eickhoff will face the Padres. He threw seven scoreless innings against them in April at Citizens Bank Park.

PHILS PHACTS:

Looking Forward To Second Start – Jake Thompson expected better than this. But if there is any good news following his big league debut Saturday night in a 9-7 loss to the Padres at Petco Park it is that he will get more opportunities to prove why the Phillies coveted him last summer in the Cole Hamels trade and why MLBPipeline considers him the No. 69 prospect in baseball. He allowed seven hits, six runs, two walks and struck out one in just 4 1/3 innings. He became one of six Phillies pitchers since 1913 to allow six or more earned runs in fewer than five innings in his big league debut, according to Baseball Reference. Turk Farrell (1956), Rafael Quirico (1996), Ethan Martin (2013), Severino Gonzalez (2015) and Zach Eflin (2016) are the others. "I wasn't nervous," Thompson said. "I was kind of amped up, instead of being nervous. Especially in that first inning, I just wasn't able to spin the ball for strikes or be able to get fastballs down in the zone." Thompson allowed four runs in the first to hand the Padres a 4-0 lead. "He was overthrowing obviously," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He was pumped up. He's got good stuff. He just lacked command, the ball was up in the zone. Kind of typical for a guy making his debut." "I'm sure he had some nerves, a lot of adrenaline," Phillies catcher Cameron Rupp said. "It makes it a little bit tougher to get the ball down, I think. You're probably feeling really fresh. It happens." Thompson settled down a bit after the first, retiring nine of 11 at one point, before he found himself in trouble again in the fifth. Thompson's debut garnered a little more interest than normal because he took a somewhat unusual route to the big leagues. The Tigers selected him in the second round of the 2012 Draft before trading him to Texas in July 2014 in the Joakim Soria trade. The Rangers then traded him to Philadelphia in July 2015 in the Hamels deal. Thompson also had been pitching incredibly well in Triple-A Lehigh Valley before his promotion. He went 11-5 with a 2.50 ERA in 21 starts, including an 8-0 record with a 1.21 ERA in his last 11 starts. "For me, I need to get back into the bullpen and work on spinning the ball," Thompson said. "I wasn't able to spin the ball very well tonight, curveball or slider. Just make sure I can spin those down in the zone consistently." He gets his next opportunity Friday night against the Rockies at Citizens Bank Park. "He's 22 years old," Mackanin said. "You can't judge him on this outing."

Making Cuts – The Phillies decided Saturday that they needed to see Luis Garcia, Michael Mariot and other relief pitchers in the final two months of the 2016 season more than they needed to see Brett Oberholtzer. The Phils designated Oberholtzer for assignment to make room for right-hander Jake Thompson on the 25-man roster. "He's pitched pretty well lately," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said about Oberholtzer, "but overall, there's other people that need to be seen, given opportunities to make decisions on them. I think there are other people that are more important for us to see to make a determination about whether they fit. And that's what this year is about." Oberholtzer can be traded, claimed off irrevocable outright waivers, assigned to the Minor Leagues or released within the next 10 days. He first must clear waivers to be sent to the Minor Leagues or released. Oberholtzer posted a 2.88 ERA over 25 innings in 13 appearances since June 8 after he posted a 6.75 ERA in 25 1/3 innings in his first 13 appearances. But the Phillies look at Oberholtzer as a long man, while they think other relievers in the system can potentially play more critical roles in the future. The Phillies acquired Oberholtzer in December as part of the Ken Giles trade. He went 11-20 with a 3.94 ERA in 45 appearances (42 starts) with the Astros from 2013-15. Interestingly, Oberholtzer's departure leaves the Phillies without a left-hander on the entire pitching staff. It is unclear if that has ever happened before in franchise history, but it shouldn't hurt the Phillies too much -- Oberholtzer was not particularly effective against lefties. Right-handers have a .747 OPS against him in his career, while lefties have a .776 OPS. "There's not a lot of guys you can really count on," Mackanin said about the organization's left-handed relievers. The Phillies also asked for unconditional release waivers for right-hander Andrew Bailey.

Today In Phils History – In the last at bat of his career in 1893, Frank O’Connor hit a homerun off of Blatimore’s Bill Hawke. In 1942, the Phillies signed free agent Chuck Klein who would wind down his career over the next 3 seasons of his career. The following season, Utility man Glen Stewart hit the only 2 homeruns of his career (742 at bats) against the Giants. Frank Thomas joined the Phillies via trade on this day in 1964. Bob Skinner resigned as manager on this day in 1969 citing a lack of support from the front office regarding discipline of Dick Allen (George Myatt finished the season with his second stint as interim manager). Following a single by Greg Luzinski in the top of the 9^th against the Cardinals manager Danny Ozark replaced the slugger with Jim Kaat to pinch run who was later replaced after a double by Jay Johnstone with pinch runner Johnny Oates who scored the winning run. 10 years later, Juan Samuel scored on a 4 base error against the Cardinals but it wasn’t enough as Todd Worrell broke the NL Rookie record with his 23^rd save of the season. A decade later, Todd Ziele tied a MLB record by committing 4 errors in a single game while playing 1B against the Braves. 5 years later, Bobby Abreu connects in the 5^th inning against San Diego for the 10,000^th homerun in franchise history. In 2009, Harry Kalas was posthumously inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 51-61 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. All time, the Phillies are 52-51-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record.

Offense Disappears As Cardinals Blank Phillies

GAME RECAP: Cardinals Shutout Phillies 4-0

After a string of three subpar starts, Jaime Garcia looked in ideal form on Thursday as he pitched the Cardinals to a 4-0 victory and series win over the Phillies at Busch Stadium. Garcia may well have gone the distance had the Cardinals not opted to replace him with a seventh-inning pinch-hitter in an effort to run up their one-run lead. The move worked, too, as a two-out, two-run single by Stephen Piscotty capped a three-run inning. "We need offense," Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said of pulling Garcia when he did. "We have an opportunity to get more runs on the board. He got us through seven, and he did a great job of doing that." It was support Garcia didn't look like he'd even need while limiting the Phillies to two singles over seven innings. He threw 61 of his 82 pitches for strikes. "He had both sides of the plate, very good command on both sides of the plate," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "He did everything you ask a pitcher to do. Throw strikes with all your pitches, change speeds, work fast. He basically had us eating out of his hand." Supported by Brandon Moss' first-inning homer of Jerad Eickhoff, Garcia retired 11 straight before allowing his first hit. Thursday's performance marked the fifth time in Garcia's career that he has held an opponent to no runs on two or fewer hits in a start of at least seven innings. Two of those outings have come this year. "I think it felt similar to what I've been doing," Garcia said. "Just today, I was able to get good plays made behind me, and I was able to get calls and make pitches when I needed to make pitches. I just have to continue to build on that."

PHILS PHACTS:

• The Phillies mustered one serious scoring opportunity against Garcia, and he snuffed it out with a double play that was started and finished by Moss. Taking over at first base after Matt Adams exited with an injury, Moss snared a line drive by Bourjos and then beat Tyler Goeddel back to the base to strand a runner at third. It was the only at-bat of the day the Phillies took against Garcia with a runner in scoring position. 
• The Phillies' bullpen struggled to pitch Eickhoff out of a jam in the seventh, allowing three runs to score. Elvis Araujo walked two and allowed a run in two-thirds of an inning, and Colton Murray allowed a two-run double to Piscotty. Two of the runs were charged to Eickhoff and the other to Araujo. "I personally see it as, I need to pitch better," Eickhoff said. "There were three runs there, and all the runs there, the home run was missed location, the walk to [Yadier] Molina -- I've got to be a little more aggressive and not get behind to that guy -- and then the balk putting him in scoring position, so I've got to be stronger personally."

NEXT GAME:

Vince Velasquez (4-1, 1.44 ERA) will open a three-game series at Miami on Friday at 7:10 p.m. ET. Velasquez has won his past two decisions, including throwing six scorelss innings of two-hit baseball against Cleveland in his last start, and he will be making his first career start against the Marlins.

PHILS PHACTS:

Offense Is MIA – The Phillies' offense suffered a double whammy on Thursday: It had few chances and did nothing with them. Philly went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position, continuing an early-season trend in a 4-0 loss to the Cardinals. The Phillies are now hitting just .219 with runners in scoring position. "You look at the batting averages, and they're not the greatest," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "I think these guys, they don't look like they're settled in. I'd like them to be after a month, but they're just not hitting the way they're capable of hitting." The lineup had several noticeable changes. Ryan Howard, who has scorched Cardinals pitching in his career, sat against the lefty Jaime Garcia, as did the slumping Maikel Franco. The pitcher moved back from the eight to the nine-hole. Mackanin was tempted to play Howard after he hit two home runs in the past two games, but he is a career .167 hitter against Garcia. " ... I didn't see the point of that," Mackanin said. Peter Bourjos had the best chance to dent the scoreboard with runners at first and third and just one out in the fifth. He hit a line shot, but it went right to first baseman Brandon Moss, who caught it and tagged out Tyler Goeddel to complete the unassisted double play. "Coulda, shoulda, woulda," Mackanin said. "That ball's over his head or left or right of him, and we get something going." The Phillies have tallied 90 runs scored this season, and they have scored two runs or fewer in 12 of their first 29 games. Freddy Galvis reached base twice, on a hit and an error. He raised his average to .229, still more than 30 points lower than what he hit last season. Although he, Franco and several other Phillies have gotten off to slow starts, Galvis said there is no frustration. "That's baseball right there," Galvis said. "Sometimes you're going to make some hits the whole trip. Sometimes you are going to score. Sometimes you aren't going to score runs. We have to keep working hard." Garcia was dominant through seven innings, giving up just two hits and striking out five. The Phillies are now hitting .156 (28-for-179) against left-handed starters this season. Philadelphia will face two more lefties -- Wei-Yin Chen and Justin Nicolino -- this weekend in Miami. "It's concerning, but I think one of the reasons why is we haven't seen enough lefties," Mackanin said. "I think we've seen six starting left-handers in 29 games. That's the reason a lot of lefties are effective, because they're not seen as much as righties."

An Impressive Beginning – It took a bit, but the real Andrew Bailey finally showed up for the Phillies. "His velocity has increased enough to what I expected, and his command, especially the command of his curveball," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said of the right-handed reliever. "I didn't see that in Spring Training." Bailey has appeared in four games since returning from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on April 20. He hasn't given up a run in six innings, has surrendered just two hits and has struck out six. In Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the Cardinals, Bailey pitched around a two-out single to hold what was then a 4-3 Phillies lead. "I've played at this level before," Bailey said. "Coming into this spring, a healthy Spring Training, I had to put up some good outings, and they felt like I needed to start down in Triple-A. For whatever it is, we're here playing good baseball now. That's behind us, and we just keep moving forward." On April 30, Bailey earned his first win since June 18, 2013, pitching a scoreless seventh in a 4-3 win over Cleveland. "It's definitely nice to come in and, as a bullpen, do it together," Bailey said. "I was just the lucky one who got the 'W.' For me, it was a long time coming, but nothing comes easy. Hopefully, I stay healthy the rest of the season." Bailey's fastball has dipped a couple of miles per hour since his days with Oakland, when he hit 94 mph on the radar gun. But it is still in the low 90s. "His fastball has got a natural cut action to it, which is a pretty sharp cut action, which is really effective," Mackanin said. Just as important, Bailey provides veteran leadership to a young group. "For us, it's about handing the ball off to the next guy, and there's no egos down there," Bailey said. "It's easy to pitch when the group is like that."

Herrera Stays Hot – Odubel Herrera has found a home away from home at Busch Stadium. After Thursday's 4-0 loss to the Cardinals, the 24-year-old center fielder has hit safely in all eight career games at Busch Stadium, hitting .406 (13-for-32), with a homer and 6 RBIs. In the Phillies' 5-4 loss Wednesday, Herrera notched a pair of hits, including a home run that was scorched into the right-field bullpen. "I guess I hit well in this park, but I don't really know what it is," Herrera said through an interpreter. St. Louis hasn't been Herrera's only victim. He reached base safely in a career-best 21 games, stretching from April 8 to April 30. Herrera became the first Phillie since 1900 to score four runs, hit a homer and get at least two stolen bases in one game, against Milwaukee on April 23. "I'm really doing the same thing that I do every day," Herrera said. "I'm focusing on really swinging the bat well, and it's really working out for me."

Today In Phils History – Good relief pitching is hard to find and unfortunately Turk Farrell was the only man who could fill that void in 1958 when he faced 36 batters in relief and ended up losing the game in the 14^th. Roger Craig fared better in 1966 when he gave up 4 runs in the 11^th inning only to have his team score 5 in the bottom half of the inning to win the game setting a NL record for runs scored in an extra inning since 1900. Of course, some relievers are just odd like Larry Anderson who turns 63 today. This is also the day when the smallest crowd in Veterans Stadium history, 4,149, witnessed the lackluster Phillies lose to the Padres after a brief rain delay. Off the field, today marks 25 years since the infamous accident that cost Darren Daulton and Lenny Dykstra part of the season when Dykstra drove his car into a tree after John Kruk's bachelor party. Speaking of franchise catchers, I can’t believe it has already been a decade since Carlos Ruiz made his major league debut.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 16-13 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. The Phillies finished the spring exceeding most expectations compiling a record of 15-11-3 (18-11-3 if you include the exhibition games against Reading and the University of Tampa). All time, the Phillies are 39-47-0 on this day. I expect the Phillies to finish in the bottom half of the division but not last in the NL East by finishing the season with a 77-85 record. Let the rebuild begin!

Phils Fall To Rays As Roles Solidify

EXHIBITION GAME RECAP: Rays Route Phillies 6-1

Rays second baseman Logan Forsythe continues to hit the baseball well this spring. Forsythe hit a leadoff home run in the first inning off Phillies right-hander Vince Velasquez in the Rays' 6-1 win over the Phillies at Bright House Field on Thursday. He entered the game hitting .500 (10-for-20) with five doubles, one RBI and six runs scored in eight games. It was the only run allowed in five innings by Velasquez, who is competing to be the Phillies' No. 5 starter. He pitched himself out of trouble in the fifth, when he allowed a single to Brandon Guyer and a ground-rule double to Nick Franklin, putting runners on second and third. Velasquez then struck out Luke Maile and Forsythe on fastballs to end the inning. "You know he has the good stuff," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said about Velasquez. "It all boils down to his pitchability. He certainly looked good when he got into trouble. That was key." Rays left-hander Matt Moore allowed one run in 4 2/3 innings, striking out eight in his third spring start. Ryan Howard doubled off him in the second before he hit a solo home run to right field in the fourth to tie the game. Howard is 3-for-6 with two doubles, one home run and two RBIs against left-handers this spring. "I feel like we're in a good place [at this point of the spring], like we've been able to get some conditioning in," Moore said. "Out there at the end of my outing, at the fourth and fifth innings, feeling like we're getting to the end of the pitch count, I'm just happy with the way we were able to get a good mix going." Moore said he wasn't really surprised by the strikeouts. "Just throwing the same pitches I normally throw," Moore said. "Sometimes they hit them sometimes they don't. ... My changeup and curveball, whenever I could get them below in the zone were pretty effective, I was doing a pretty good job of getting ahead in the count." Steve Pearce hit his first long ball in the sixth, and Richie Shaffer and Mikie Mahtook added home runs in the eighth inning for the Rays, both off Phillies left-hander Elvis Araujo.

PHILS PHACTS:

• Outfield prospect Cornelius Randolph, who the Phillies selected in the first round of the 2015 Draft, has had his right wrist immobilized recently after sliding awkwardly into a base. The Phillies said Randolph is OK. He is scheduled to begin hitting again Friday. Randolph is the No. 84 prospect in baseball, according to MLBPipeline.com.
• Right-hander Yoervis Medina felt a pop in his right elbow Tuesday, forcing him to leave that game against the Rays in Port Charlotte, Fla. Medina said through a translator he has elbow inflammation and will miss the next two weeks.
• Right-hander Frank Herrmann has not pitched this spring. He had a MRI on Tuesday, which revealed a right flexor strain.
• Right-hander Michael Mariot remains sidelined after rolling his right ankle earlier this spring.

NEXT GAME:

Phillies right-hander Charlie Morton faces his former team on Friday afternoon in a Grapefruit League game against the Pirates at Bright House Field at 1:05 p.m. The Phillies acquired Morton in an offseason trade, and he is a lock to make the rotation. The game can be seen on MLB.TV. Left-handers Adam Morgan and Brett Oberholtzer will pitch in a Minor League game at Carpenter Complex. Morgan and Oberholtzer are competing for the No. 5 job in the rotation.

PHILS PHACTS:

Is The Rotation Complete? – Vince Velasquez showed Thursday why he might be the favorite to be the Phillies' No. 5 starter. The right-hander allowed three hits, one run, one walk and struck out seven in five innings in a 6-1 loss to the Rays in a Grapefruit League game at Bright House Field. Velasquez allowed a leadoff home run to Logan Forsythe in the first inning before retiring 13 of the next 14 batters he faced. He had runners on second and third with one out in the fifth, but struck out Luke Maile on a 95 mph fastball and Forsythe on a 93 mph fastball to end the inning. "You can't go wrong with putting up zeroes," Velasquez said of the competition to be the No. 5. "It's a good battle so far. They're putting up zeroes. This is the time -- it's really a grind right now. It's coming down to the wire." Velasquez's performances against Maile and Forsythe in the fifth impressed Phillies manager Pete Mackanin, who said the final decision on the fifth starter will be made late in camp. "The thing I liked about him the most was when he got into trouble with a couple guys on base, he softened up," Mackanin said. "He changed speeds. We talked about that early in the spring when I said he had to show a little finesse. He sure showed that today." "The changeup was money," Velasquez said. But it is Velasquez's power arm that made him the key piece in the Ken Giles trade in December. And it is that power arm that had Maile and Forsythe swinging and missing in a critical situation. "Later on in the season I may have a situation where I'm at 89-90 pitches, and I need to get out of it this inning," Velasquez said. "It's something where you have to bear down. You've got to win that battle." Velasquez has a 3.21 ERA (five earned runs in 14 innings) in three Grapefruit League starts. He has walked four and struck out 16. His competition is left-handers Adam Morgan and Brett Oberholtzer. Morgan has allowed two runs in nine innings this spring. Oberholtzer has pitched eight scoreless innings, but the Phillies like his versatility and might start him in the bullpen. Both are scheduled to pitch in a Minor League game Friday at Carpenter Complex. "It's probably going to be our toughest decision, really," Phillies pitching coach Bob McClure said. The winner is expected to join Jeremy Hellickson, Aaron Nola, Charlie Morton and Jerad Eickhoff in the rotation. Eickhoff allowed three hits, one run, two walks and struck out four in four innings in an instrasquad game at Carpenter Complex. He is scheduled to make his first Grapefruit League start Tuesday against the Twins in Clearwater. He had been sidelined earlier this spring because of a fractured right thumb and slowed lately because of a blister on his foot. "Felt good," Eickhoff said. "I'm just happy to be walking over here in one piece this time." Eickhoff believes he still has time to be ready to join the rotation come Opening Day. "Every time I'm on the mound I feel better each time and I think that's key, just make steps in the right direction," he said. "That's all I can ask for."

Frontrunner For Closer – The Phillies still need a closer, but they could be closer to finding one. The club has 13 Grapefruit League games remaining following Thursday's 6-1 loss to the Rays at Bright House Field. Plenty of things can happen in that time, but some candidates have emerged from the pack. Right-hander Andrew Bailey could be the frontrunner. He has allowed one hit and struck out five in four scoreless innings. He struck out the side Tuesday against the Rays in Port Charlotte, Fla. "Bailey has done it before, so just talking about it, I would lean more towards looking at him as the guy, only because he's done it before and had success," pitching coach Bob McClure said. "But it could change. It could change. I'm kind of up in the air on it a little bit." McClure coached Bailey in Boston in 2012, but the righty had shoulder issues then. "He's much improved since then," McClure said. "I might have to pitch him in a Minor League game. He's been so efficient." McClure also mentioned another interesting candidate: right-hander Dalier Hinojosa. He has thrown the ball very well in camp, allowing two hits, one walk and striking out seven in five scoreless innings. He went 2-0 with a 0.78 ERA in 18 appearances last season after the Phillies claimed him off waivers from Boston in July. "Hinojosa has showed me that he might be able to do it," McClure said. "He has an out pitch. He gets righties and lefties, so he'd definitely be somebody I'd look at in that role, too." David Hernandez entered camp the favorite because the Phillies signed him to a $3.9 million contract in December, making him the only free agent they signed to a Major League contract. But Hernandez has been slowed because of right triceps tendinitis. He could pitch in his first Grapefruit League since March 1 on Saturday against the Blue Jays in Dunedin. Hernandez still has time to get ready for the season, but he might not have long enough to earn the closer's job. The Phillies figure to carry seven pitchers in the bullpen. Bailey, Hinojosa, Hernandez, Edward Mujica, Brett Oberholtzer and Jeanmar Gomez are strong choices for the first six spots. Rule 5 Draft pick Daniel Stumpf could have the edge for the final spot. Because Stumpf is a Rule 5 pick, the Phillies have plenty of incentive to keep him on the roster and give him additional evaluation during the season. The other left-handers in camp can open the season in the Minor Leagues without risk of being lost. Bobby LaFromboise has pitched well. He is out of options, but because he signed a Minor League contract he can open the season in Triple-A. Left-hander James Russell also is on a Minor League contract. He has a June 1 out clause, which again gives the Phillies further time to evaluate him. Elvis Araujo and Mario Hollands, who is behind schedule following Tommy John surgery last year, both have options remaining. "We've got plenty of time to see more of them," McClure said of his bullpen candidates.

Howard Working On Lefties – Ryan Howard flashed a smile Thursday afternoon at Bright House Field. He had doubled and homered earlier against Rays left-hander Matt Moore in a 6-1 loss. Howard is 3-for-6 with two doubles, one home run, two RBIs and one strikeout against lefties this spring. That is noteworthy because, well, Howard's ability to hit left-handers has been a bit of a topic lately. "I don't know what you're talking about," Howard said. "No clue." Of course, he is very aware of the talk and where he stands. Phillies manager Pete Mackanin has said Howard will have to hit lefties to earn playing time against them this season. At the moment Howard, who hit a 0-2 pitch for his homer in the fourth, and Darin Ruf could platoon at first base. "You've got to see them in order to be able to hit them and make adjustments against them," Howard said. "Spring Training is a great time to be able to do that and work on what you need to work on. It's tough, you may get 10 at-bats against lefties over the course of Spring Training. You try to take them as much as you can. You're going to see them during the season, coming out of the bullpen and sometimes as starters as well." Howard had a .418 OPS in 107 plate appearances against lefties last season. If he had enough plate appearances to qualify, his OPS against lefties would have been the lowest in baseball by 47 points. Conversely, Ruf's 1.107 OPS against lefties would have tied Nelson Cruz for the best mark in baseball, if he had enough plate appearances to qualify. "It's good to see," Mackanin said of Howard. "I think he's rising to the challenge. We'll continue to get a look at that for the rest of the spring." Howard, who is 5-for-25 overall this spring, is in good spirts compared to last season. He acknowledged as much. "This camp for me … I just came back trying to have fun," Howard said. "Smile again. Just putting in the work, trusting everything I was doing this offseason, just trying to relay it onto the field."

Opening Day In Question – It seems less and less likely Cody Asche will be ready to play by Opening Day. Asche remains sidelined with a strained right oblique, although he is progressing. He played four innings in left field during an intrasquad game on Thursday at Carpenter Complex. He had no balls hit his way and did not hit. "I'm about as anxious as anybody to return," Asche said. "It's been no fun. But at the same time you've got to realize -- take your time with it. Do it once and do right." Asche hopes to face live pitching in batting practice at some point over the next couple days. From there, he will need to hit on the field before he plays in a Grapefruit League game. The Phillies have 13 games remaining before they head to Philadelphia to play three exhibition games before Opening Day. Asche could start the season on the disabled list and get more plate appearances in Florida before he rejoins the team. "I'll let them decide if they deem me ready or not," Asche said. "I'm sure they'll act in the best interest of me. I've just got to trust them."

Today In Phils History - It was on this day that the Phillies promoted Ed Wade to the GM position... the rest, unfortunately, is history. It is also the birthday of Garvin Hamner who was born on this day in 1924. 

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies have begun the spring with an 11-5-2 record (12-5-2 if you include the exhibition game against the University of Tampa). With the Phillies having finished the 2015 season with a spectacularly awful record of 63-99 it will be interesting to see what kind of team new President Andy MacPhail and GM Matt Klentak put on the field. At the same time I am definitely looking forward to the games against Boston with former GM Ruben Amaro on the field. Given the departures, lingering contracts, a history of injuries, bipolar performances, and unproven talent, it should, at the very least, be an interesting season for the Phillies. Who knows, maybe they can avoid 100 losses... hopefully by more than one game!