Coming off a loss in last year’s division series, the Phillies came into spring training this year with one goal on their mind: To start their journey to a World Series title. That journey starts with a trip to Clearwater, Florida, filled with plenty of new faces, old faces, good times, and, of course, baseball.
Invited to big league camp were several highly rated prospects> Right-handed pitcher Andrew Painter, shortstop Aiden Miller, outfielder Justin Crawford, and catcher Eduardo Tait are on the MLB top 100 list. Other notable newcomers include 8th and 10th-ranked Phillies prospects, respectively, right-handed pitcher Mick Abel and outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr.
Contrary to the other prospects, pitcher Mick Abel had a rocker time in the minors. In his last season, he pitched to a 6.46 ERA across 108.2 innings.
These rookies, along with many other Phillies’ big leaguers, have done great so far in spring training. Both Alec Bohm and Kody Clemmens have had a great spring training so far, with the former leading the Phillies in home runs (3) and the latter in hits (10).
Despite the great performances from all the players, none of them have fully made it through camp, except for Bohm and Clemmen. The last two cuts were Rincones and Abel. However, they could make a return in September call-ups.
Unlike the prospects, many other players are still competing for a spot on the big league team. In total, there are three position battles, one for the role of backup catcher between Garret Stubbs and Rafael Merchan. Another for the final remaining bench spot between Kody Clemens, Buddy Kennedy, Christian Arroyo, Oscar Mercado, and Cal Stevenson. The third and largest race is for the two remaining bullpen slots, with Taihun Walker mostly likely in for one, and a whopping 11-player race for the other.
The battle for the last bullpen slot consists of Nabil Crismatt, Jose Cuas, John McMillon, Nick Vespi, Koyo Aoyagi, Devin Sweet, Tyler Phillips, Kyle Tyler, Michael Mercado, Guillo Zuñiga, and Joel Kuhnel. So far, McMillon has had the best results, but it is unclear whether the Phillies will determine the winner based on stats, future outlook, or some combination of the both.
If Koyo Aoyagi gets the job, he will be only the third Japanese-born player to ever play for the Phillies, after Tadahito Iguchi (2007-08) and So Taguchi (2008). He, and his side-arm delivery, will also become the first Phillies player to come directly from Japan. Let’s hope his first time in the U.S. ends well!
In conclusion, the Phillies spring training has been exciting and promising for the players, coaches, and fans. Through the great performances, interesting opportunities, and new faces, this had been an exciting spring training for all. Most importantly, this is the start of a very good Phillies team’s journey, one with a great chance to make another deep postseason and finally win the world series.
