2020 Phillies Spring Training News, Notes & Discussion

[LoneStarPhan]

Quinn stayed in until the usual spring training change out of 8 of the starting 9 for the last few innings. He had a sac fly RBI in the second.

I was surprised to see Liriano cut. I wonder if not being on the 40 man roster and likely to cost more in salary if on the team were factors in this decision.

Looking like the bench will be five players in a 16 pitcher/14 position player opening 30.

[zambonir]

We are fairly deep in lefthanded relief pitching (Irvin, Suarez, Alvarez, Morgan) with both the kids positioned to do long/middle. I also think the signing of Tommy Hunter took away one of the minor league FA spots (and he accepted less money in exchange for the guaranteed spot, so yeah, for sure, money was an issue too). So does Howard, in a normal season it was going to be a couple of months before he bumped someone to the bullpen, not a couple of weeks.

Swarzak's deal was also re-worked before "Summer Camp," I don't know if that means he has an improved chance of making the initial roster or it just ensured he wouldn't leave if he didn't.

In a normal season they were still only going to be able to take one position player and one reliever making 1,000,000+ anyway so it makes sense they need players 27-30 to be major league minimum guys.

[LoneStarPhan]

Irvin had a 1-2-3 seventh inning in DC and Morgan has looked good in camp as well. I agree that they have several other LH relievers that they are high on, so that probably was the final factor in parting ways with Liriano. He is likely to catch on with another club, if not to start the season, then soon after.

I really have not gone through the list of pitchers to try to predict the 11 who will be in the bullpen to start the season. Nola, Arrieta, Wheeler, Eflin, and Velasquez seem set as the starters.

For the five bench players, I predict Knapp, Walker, Haseley (when Quinn starts), Harrison and Garlick. Phil Gosselin has been impressive (5 hits the other night in scrimmage and a double in Washington in his only AB) and could be a valuable bench player, so he could take one of the slots. I included Walker in my five because I read today that he has been told that he has a 30 man opening roster spot. Otherwise, I would have added Gosselin.

[zambonir]

I think Gosselin and Williams both have a chance. Harrison may be too expensive now that Walker is a lock. Either way the fifth spot (you are counting Bruce as a starter obviously) ultimately goes to Bohm.

Can't entirely rule out Torreyes, even though the Phillies have plenty of shortstops. Managers love having those defense-first guys and he's got the history with Girardi. Roster status may count more than the merit for these first two weeks, which is to say, Gosselin will get his chance. He's unlikely to opt-out, don't know if the same is true of Harrison.

[zambonir]

Looks like tonight's game is available on MLB.TV but it's not listed as one of the six free games (which are all intrasquad).

[julio]

Looks like tonight's game is available on MLB.TV but it's not listed as one of the six free games (which are all intrasquad).

Guess we'll have to wait and see whether the link works, closer to game time.

My first reaction, being in Bucks County, was, "I wonder if they've suspended the blackout rules, since attendance is not permitted. Nah, probably not - it's mlb.tv, and that would... well, that would require too much actual inclination to serve the customers." And yes, I allowed my subscription to renew.

FOLLOWUP: As of 5:30, my mlb.tv link to the NBCSP video feed is functional. The video hasn't begun, but the link is live.

[zambonir]

Oh, I just assumed all blackout rules would be in effect. But perhaps not for the exhibition games. Will be interesting to find out when the season starts (for me it would be the Mariners).

[julio]

Oh, I just assumed all blackout rules would be in effect. But perhaps not for the exhibition games. Will be interesting to find out when the season starts (for me it would be the Mariners).

Yeah. FWIW, in past years, the pre-season games have not been blacked out...but of course, they were in Florida.

Traditionally, they black out all regular-season Phils games in the local market. I have to assume that what they really want to protect are cable subscriptions, as opposed to ticket sales - else there's no reason to black out a Phils-Dodgers game from Chavez Ravine, eh?

Regardless, it will be a cold day on the far bank of the River Styx when I pay Comcast, or Verizon, for cable service.

[zambonir]

For sure. Those rules are negotiated into the TV contracts. And in the Phillies' case they also own part of the network that they want you to subscribe to/watch. Or they want you to subscribe to the local streaming package, if or when one is available.

I can remember when the blackout was done by credit card billing address rather than IP, though that was a very long time ago at this point. You could borrow a friend or family member's info. Conversely, I assume you can still use VPN's or IP spoofers now, though that can often be unreliable (or requires more knowledge than I have).

[BostonRoss]

I will Pennsylvania for a week soon. If my hotel doesn’t have the games in whatever cable or streaming service, I won’t have the option of ordering Comcast. Do you think MLB will give me a rebate for the week?

[zambonir]

I have been on road trips to see the Phillies in places like LA or Chicago where I couldn't watch the game I wasn't attending in person. But I do think it's increasingly rare for hotels to not have the local RSN (as well as FS1). Then again, if your Philly hotel uses a satellite provider, no NBCSN. We still have the same issue in Portland and they never even had the PRISM loophole.

And I know it was a rhetorical question, but do you have the Phillies-only package? Otherwise MLB's position would be that you could still watch any out-of-market game you want, as you promised.

[el-pietro]

VPNs definitely work but they do keep an eye on it. I had my account randomly suspended in the middle of last season because they thought I was using a VPN, I was not, I do not need to as no games are ever blacked out for me.

In the end all I think that might have happened is I watched part of a game at work and then on my phone on the way home and that would potentially mean my IP address was in Dublin for the beginning and Cork for the rest.

So if you do use a VPN try and be consistent about the location to stop them catching you.

[zambonir]

Not an issue for me with MLB (certainly not this season!). I sometimes do it for the NFL when the Eagles aren't the over-the-air game in my region (they stream for free but you can only get the one that's on TV). Using a non-US VPN sometimes does the trick and sometimes not.

[julio]

And I know it was a rhetorical question, but do you have the Phillies-only package?

Yes, Phillies-only. I don't have the time or inclination to sit and watch the Red Sox. I don't see "baseball, any baseball" as a high-priority option for entertainment. (Or football, or basketball, etc.)

[zambonir]

That was actually addressed to Ross. Of course even when it is one team package you're only promised out-of-market and non-national games. I have no problem with blackouts in general, it's more how randomly and incompetently they are applied, especially in those tweener/multi-team regions.

[julio]

That was actually addressed to Ross. Of course even when it is one team package you're only promised out-of-market and non-national games. I have no problem with blackouts in general, it's more how randomly and incompetently they are applied, especially in those tweener/multi-team regions.

Yeah, I can only grumble about being blacked out in Bucks County. When we're at our summer place in Sullivan County, though... Comcast in the area carries the Pirates, not the Phillies, and FIOS doesn't exist there, so even if I paid for cable - nada. But it's in the blackout area - most of PA is in the blackout area, but for large parts of the state, there's no Philly sports channel even available. I'd pay for a Phils-only streaming bundle without blackout (e.g., pay more), but it's not an option. They're just walking away from that part of the market.

[phillychuck]

They should really waive the blackout rules this season. It's not like people would stay home rather than going to the ballpark. MLB is, by far, the most inanely incompetent sports league with regard to promoting their sport....

[zambonir]

Well, as julio noted, it has nothing to do with selling tickets. It is NBCSN's contractual right to have the exclusive broadcast in the region (along with the national networks). They pay handsomely for it, and the Phillies are a part-owner on top of that. If anything the networks and advertisers want that audience more than ever. Local TV ratings for a Phillies game are rarely more than 100,000 people so if 30,000 people are now home instead of at the ballpark, that is a significant potential ratings jump. And the Phillies probably make more from their share of NBCSN than they do from their 1/30 of MLB's remaining share of MLB.TV, now that the money from the sale is gone.

What remains dumb are some of the blackout regional definitions. And that you can't just buy a stream directly from Comcast if you are in the defined region but don't subscribe to a TV provider (be it old fashioned cable or cord-cutter).

[BostonRoss]

I don't have the Phillies-only package. I like to watch other games from time to time. But I would like to have a complete choice of which game to watch, even when I'm not at home (where I can't get the Red Sox).

[zambonir]

Walker's major league salary is $2 million. He also needs just 6 games to get his 10-year pension, so should he lose his job later, that would cushion the blow.

Neil Walker, Phillies’ new insurance man, set to reach milestone

I know there are other ways to save money later but I definitely think the tax played a role in cutting Liriano and Forsysthe. Especially if retention bonuses count as payroll. (Do they?)