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.

Howard And Rupp And Franco… Oh My!

GAME RECAP: Phillies Outlast Giants 5-4

The Giants' midsummer nightmare continued Wednesday night as Maikel Franco's bases-loaded fielder's choice off Jake Peavy snapped a 12th-inning deadlock and gave the Philadelphia Phillies a 5-4 victory. The National League West-leading Giants fell to 4-13 since the All-Star break, the worst record in the Majors during that span. "It's hard to believe," Giants right-hander Johnny Cueto said of the team's skid. "We're a good team. All we can do is keep grinding and putting our best stuff out there every time." Cueto appeared to be in control as he blanked the Phillies on three hits through six innings. He ultimately finished with 10 strikeouts and just one walk. Though Cueto began to falter in the seventh inning, when he surrendered back-to-back homers to Ryan Howard and Cameron Rupp, he seemed more unhappy about Franco's two-out, two-run single that forged a 4-4 tie in the eighth. "Both [Madison] Bumgarner and Cueto are two of the best pitchers in the league, so you have to go out there and not think too much," said Franco, who has five hits in the first two games of the series. "We've had good success with those guys and I feel pretty good about it." The Giants jumped ahead, 4-0, as Posey accounted for every San Francisco run. He smacked a two-run single in the first inning before doubling home a run and scoring in the third.

PHILS PHACTS: 

• The Phillies recalled right-hander Phil Klein from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Wednesday because they placed right-hander Aaron Nola on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right elbow. Klein allowed eight hits, four runs and one walk and struck out three in five innings, but he kept the Phillies close enough for a comeback. The Phillies optioned Klein back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley following the game. "Got the first guy on a lot of the innings," Klein said. "It's hard to work out of those a lot of the time. Just tried my best to at least get through five and keep 'em in the game the best I could." 
• It took awhile, but Franco's game-winning drive up the middle in the 12th was the first walk-off of his career. Franco is 5-for-10 with one home run and seven RBIs in the first two games of this three-game series against the Giants. "I got my RBI, we win the ballgame, that's what this game is all about," Franco said.
• "I definitely have to buy Maikel some dinner or something." -- Phillies right fielder Aaron Altherr, who cost Franco a hit in the 12th when he didn't touch second base. The walk-off was originally ruled a fielder's choice, then changed to a hit, before it was ultimately determined to be a fielder's choice.
• The Giants questioned a fourth-inning umpiring decision in which Angel Pagan was called out at first base. Had Pagan been ruled safe, the Giants would have had another run. But a replay review determined the call on the field stands and Pagan was retired for the inning's final out.
• San Francisco received a break -- and an out -- on a crew chief review of Altherr's infield single in the eighth inning. Upon further examination, Altherr was declared out, and the call on the field was overturned.
• The Phillies challenged Hunter Pence's slide into second base in the 11th inning, which broke up a potential double play. After a short review, the call on the field was confirmed. Pence's slide was legal.
• Another crew chief review in the 11th inning overturned a ruling that held thatFreddy Galvis was safe at first base. The out on Galvis resulted in an inning-ending double play for the Giants.

NEXT GAME:

Right-hander Velasquez pitches in the 1:05 p.m. ET series finale Wednesday against the Giants. The Phillies and Rangers discussed a potential trade for Velasquez before Monday's non-waiver Trade Deadline, but the deal never got close.

PHILS PHACTS:

Celebrating Too Early – Maikel Franco hit a baseball into right-center field in the 12th inning to beat the Giants on Wednesday night at Citizens Bank Park. He touched first base and sprinted straight into the outfield to avoid a crush of teammates and celebrate the 5-4 victory. "I get excited," Franco said following the walk-off win. He had reason to be excited. The Phillies have won the first two games of a three-game series against the Giants, scoring eight runs in five innings against Madison Bumgarner on Tuesday and four runs in 7 2/3 innings against Johnny Cueto on Wednesday. In four starts against the Phillies this season, Cueto and Bumgarner have a 6.12 ERA. They have a 2.10 ERA against everybody else. "Next time we're going to have to put a limit on how far [Franco] can run," said Tommy Joseph, who scored the winning run from third base. "That was absurd." Phillies right fielder Aaron Altherr got caught up in the moment, too. He was on first base when Franco hit the first pitch from Jake Peavy into the outfield. He knew Joseph had scored the game-winning run so he stopped running and never touched second. He joined the celebration with his teammates instead. But he soon noticed Giants right fielder Hunter Pence retrieve the baseball in the outfield and hurriedly throw to second where Giants catcher Buster Posey stepped on the bag. Second-base umpire Dale Scott signaled an out. "I was like, what's going on here?" Altherr said. "Then when I saw him throw to second I was like, 'Oh, crap.'" The official scorer initially ruled Franco's hit a fielder's choice because Altherr stopped running, taking away Franco's first official walk-off hit. "I definitely have to buy Maikel some dinner or something," Altherr said. Franco said he couldn't have cared less. "Not at all," he said with a big smile. "Not at all. It's more important that we won the ballgame. I got my RBI, we won the ballgame, that's what this game is all about." Franco was later awarded the walk-off hit, albeit briefly. The official scorer reversed his initial stance upon discovering Rule 5.08 (b), which states that the game is finished once the winning run scores and the batter reaches first base safely. In short, it didn't matter that Altherr never touched second. But on Thursday, the ruling changed for a third time. MLB officially ruled the play a fielder's choice, again taking away the hit. Franco will have to wait for his first career walk-off hit after all. The rally started when Joseph got hit by a pitch to start the inning. Phillies reliever Luis Garcia then dropped a perfect sacrifice bunt in the front of the mound. Garcia joined the team this week after the Phillies designated Andrew Bailey for assignment Tuesday. Garcia had not held a bat since Spring Training. "I start Monday," Garcia said about giving the Phillies' pitchers bunting lessons. Cesar Hernandez walked to put runners on first and second with one out when Altherr reached on an error by third baseman Eduardo Nunez to load the bases. Franco ended the game on the next pitch.

Just Filling In – It may feel as though Phil Klein spent less time on the Phillies roster than he did on the mound in Wednesday's 5-4 walk-off win over the Giants. It took the slow-paced Klein more than an hour and a half of game time to finish an unremarkable five innings on 90 pitches, eight of which the Giants connected with for hits. Of course, the game progressed for another seven innings for a season-long 12-inning, four-hour affair. Klein also walked one and allowed four to come around to score. "He did OK," manager Pete Mackanin said. "He showed some good breaking stuff. He didn't have great command, but he held them down and battled his way through it." The Phillies optioned Klein back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley following his start, almost certainly clearing way for the organization's top pitching prospect, Jake Thompson, to make his Major League debut in Los Angeles. Mackanin was noncommital, but he didn't shy away from hinting that Thompson's time was sooner rather than later. "I think that might be a good solid guess," Mackanin said before the game. "That's probably a probability." Klein received the call to start after Tuesday's IronPigs game. Mackanin didn't say to Klein if it would be strictly a spot start, but he didn't indicate it would be anything more pregame. He referenced Wei-Yin Chen's eight-inning shutout of the Phillies last season, after which he was optioned. "They just said, 'Hey, here's the ball, here's the mound. Go for it,'" Klein said. Klein was making his third career big league start. His second stint in a Major League rotation eerily mirrors his first. The Rangers, from whom the Phillies claimed Klein off waivers in June, called upon Klein to fill in for the injured Ross Detwiler in May of last year. After a promising starting debut, holding the Red Sox to one run in 5 1/3 innings, Klein imploded in his second start. The Indians scored seven runs (six earned) in two innings off him, and Klein was promptly removed from the rotation. Although Klein's third career start Wednesday was neither as good as his first nor as bad as his second, it's unlikely he'll get a fourth -- barring an unforeseen injury. After his ugly outing against Cleveland, the Rangers replaced him with a promising pitching prospect. Chi Chi Gonzalez not only took Klein's spot starts, he stole Detwiler's rotation spot, not allowing a run for his first 14 2/3 innings. Klein made three more bullpen appearances for the Rangers in 2015. Thompson has given up more than one run just once in his last seven starts at Triple-A.

Let The Call Ups Begin – Aaron Nola's season might be finished. The Phillies announced Wednesday that Nola has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right elbow. Nola received a MRI exam in the morning, but Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said the injury is not serious. "I was kind of relieved," Nola said. "After hearing that, I do not need anything big time done to it or anything like that. I can just go forward, let it heal and do the rehab I need to do." The Phillies recalled Triple-A right-hander Phil Klein to pitch in Nola's place Wednesday night against the Giants at Citizens Bank Park, but Triple-A right-hander Jake Thompson is a very smart bet to join the rotation and make his Major League debut next week. Thompson is the organization's top pitching prospect and the No. 71 prospect in baseball, according to MLBPipeline.com. Nola's injury at least offers a potential explanation for his recent struggles. He posted a 2.65 ERA with a 0.99 WHIP and 5.67 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 12 starts through June 5. He ranked 18th, eighth and fourth among 90 pitchers with 60 or more innings pitched in those categories in that stretch, respectively. He seemed like a legitimate candidate to make the National League All-Star team. But Nola has a 9.82 ERA, 2.06 WHIP and 2.57 strikeout-to-walk ratio in eight starts since. "[Pitching coach Bob] McClure's been saying that for a while, he said there's something there," Mackanin said. "You don't know if it's mechanical or what, but with the fact that he wasn't complaining about his arm, never even brought it up, never even asked for treatment, you've got to figure nothing is wrong with his arm." Nola said throughout his struggles he felt healthy. He said he first felt soreness in his elbow Thursday in his start against the Braves at Turner Field. The soreness remained through a bullpen session Sunday in Atlanta. He told the team about his elbow concerns on the bus on the way to the airport Sunday. "I hope this isn't the end," Nola said about his season. "I'm going to try everything I can to be back by the end of the year." But the Phillies will have to gauge the risk and reward of Nola pitching again this season. Generally, the rule of thumb for injured pitchers is they need the same amount of time to recover from the time they missed. So if Nola rests three weeks, he will need three weeks to get ready to pitch again. If that is the case, he would not be ready to pitch again until mid-September. "He might be shut down for the season," Mackanin said. "That will be determined after these next two weeks." Mackanin said he does not believe the Phillies did not trade right-hander Jeremy Hellickson before Monday's non-waiver Trade Deadline because of concerns about Nola's elbow. "I don't think they put a stop on anything," Mackanin said about the Phillies' front office. "That's the thing, if they had a real good deal for Hellickson, I'm sure they would have made it. We didn't want to lose him. But if you have the deal you can't say no to, then they would've done it. We've got pitchers we would've used." Thompson will be used next week. He certainly has earned a promotion. He is 8-0 with a 1.21 ERA in 11 starts since early June. "That's probably a probability," Mackanin said about Thompson's chances of making his big league debut next week. "Can I say that? A good, solid guess."

A Necessary Absence – The Phillies are without their closer for Wednesday's game against the Giants, but manager Pete Mackanin doesn't believe Jeanmar Gomez will miss any more than a day on the paternity list. Gomez's wife, Luisa, was set to have labor induced at 6:30 p.m. ET, about half an hour prior to Wednesday's first pitch. "I think he's naming it Pete," Mackanin joked. To take Gomez's place in the bullpen, Michael Mariot was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Should a save situation arise, Hector Neris would fill in for the ninth inning. Neris has been the Phillies' eighth-inning option and the choice to fill in when Gomez hasn't been available. Neris has pitched the ninth four times this season, recording one save and posting a 2.25 ERA. Players can take up to three days on the paternity list, but Gomez indicated to Mackanin that he would only take one, to see the birth of his first child -- a boy, Mackanin said. Gomez is expected back in the bullpen for Thursday's series finale against the Giants before the Phillies hit the road again to Los Angeles and San Diego. Mackanin reaffirmed his commitment to the 28-year-old Gomez in the closer's role in the final two months of the season, despite Gomez set to hit free agency at the end of next season. While the organization sees Edubray Ramos as a potential high-leverage reliever, they aren't ready to throw him into the fire yet, even if just to get a look at how he handles the ninth.

Today In Phils History – On this day in 1930 the Phillies had 2 players batting over .400 for the season following Lefty O’Doul’s performance at the plate (he joined Chuck Klein) which as the 1^st time since 1918 that a team had 2 players batting over .400 for the season (they both finished the season hitting in the .380’s). On the day that Dallas Green was born in 1934, Reggie Grabowski set a NL record by allowing 11 hits in an inning (the 9^th) which allowed the Giants to set a MLB record by scoring 11 runs in the 9^th inning (Mel Ott scored 6 runs in the game). 40 years later, Willie Montanez extended his hitting streak to 24 games in the 1^st game of a double header against the Cardinals only to see it come to an end during the nightcap. With a hit off of Steve Carlton at the Vet in 1982, Joel Youngblood of the Expos became the 1^st player to record a hit for 2 different teams in 2 different cities on the same day (he got a hit earlier in the day with the Mets before he was traded. In 1996, Senator Jim Bunning was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame. 10 years later, Chase Utley’s hitting streak came to an end at 35 games (the 11^th longest in MLB history).  

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies are currently 50-59 this season putting them on pace to beat most preseason predictions. All time, the Phillies are 50-61-0 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.

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!

Phillies Can’t Afford The Second ‘R’ Or ‘T’

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Another Roster Spot Filled – The Phillies on Monday added another pitcher who could compete for a spot in their bullpen during Spring Training, claiming right-hander Michael Mariot off outright waivers from the Royals. Mariot, 27, was selected by the Royals in the eighth round of the 2010 Draft. He posted a 6.11 ERA in 19 games during the past two seasons in Kansas City -- logging just three innings in the Majors in 2015. Mariot, who was designated for assignment by the Royals on Nov. 20, spent most of last season at Triple-A Omaha, where in 42 relief appearances he went 4-2 with a 2.32 ERA and 72 strikeouts while averaging 10.45 strikeouts per nine innings. After adding Mariot, the Phillies still have two spots open on their 40-man roster, which will allow them to add a player in next week's Rule 5 Draft. They own the top pick.

THE BEGINNING:

The Phillies finally put an end to the season finishing in last place in the NL East with a record of 63-99. Given the departures, aging stars, injuries, and bipolar performances, this has ended up being one of the worst seasons in franchise history! However, at least Ryan Madson got another ring this year.