2023 Phillies Regular Season Discussion

[andyb]

Cron is the one guy on that list that might cost next to nothing because of his salary and he would be like plugging something close to Rhys back in there.

[bkox]

I haven't seen the play where Hall injured his thumb. I understand it was sliding into second base? Did he go headfirst?

No.. was a weird slide to the side of the base and he reached his hand out

[BostonRoss]

At this point, I want Sosa to get more playing time than Clemens, Cave, Harrison, and Pache. And maybe Castellanos.

[zambonir]

Just no. We should not be trading from a shallow, weak farm for stopgap guys who are inferior players. That's the loser's way.

Inferior to whom? All those guys might be better hitters and better 1B than anyone the Phillies have, including Bohm and Hall (and definitely Cave or Clemens or Guthrie or Kingery). And four of the five are righties the Phillies could still pair with Hall (while otherwise keeping Bohm from having to move around which a lot of people didn't want).

I'm all for letting Castellanos or Schwarber play 1B but so long as Jake Cave doesn't look any better than Christian Pache in games that count (and for a lot longer than this season) that's not a plan either.

[andyb]

Just because he fields better and hits better than any of the alternatives?

I actually wonder if he is an 800 OPS hitter in the making who just had an off year in the first half of 2022. He really looks like he could hit 20 HRs if he played every day.

[allentown]

When Harper returns, Schwarber or Castellanos will have to play 1B.

[zambonir]

They've shown no real indication of doing that. Castellanos has worked out there a bit but said it would only happen in an emergency. Is Hall getting hurt an emergency? Maybe. Is Harper even going to return to the OF this year? Also maybe (but I think doubtful, not to mention he might not be good defensively given the rust and age, when he was already declining).

With or without Harper they are team that's light on offense. If Schwarber or Castellanos plays first somebody still has to DH or play an OF spot. Bohm at 1B and then living with Sosa at 3B (with the possibility of him having great upside) still seems like the play. If it's not, getting a RH 1B bat to pair with Hall is, and why wait? Putting Schwarber or Castellanos at 1B just means you have an even worse 1B situation than you did with Hoskins. And right now just putting them at DH means playing Jake Cave every day, who's nothing special defensively and has a career. 297 OBP (which is still better than Hall's a realize, but much larger sample).

Certainly they could afford to let things play out with the internal options and mix-and-matching, but that was before both Hoskins and Hall got hurt. And unless they are already conceding the division - which may be fair enough! - a month of not doing anything about it when there are also pitching issues may prove costly.

[zambonir]

Gelb says that Clemens is for all intents and purposes the strong side of the 1B platoon, with Bohm against lefties. He does mention there's some concern about doing that to Bohm, but also that Bohm could just as easily be the 1B full-time next year.

And, a minor reality-check from him - none of the guys in that Philly Voice article are likely available right now. I certainly agree you don't overpay for any of them to make them available.

The Phillies will look for external upgrades, but it’s April and teams do not trade from their big-league rosters in April. Maybe the Phillies find a better platoon fit on someone’s Triple-A roster and they make a deal. Dombrowski had his scouts and analysts scour through rosters when Hoskins went down, and there was no immediate fit that made sense.

This roster has to stay afloat for a few months. By then, Harper and Hall should become options again. Suárez could return later this month or in May. The Phillies believe Andrew Painter will pitch for them this summer.

Phillies raise the 2022 pennant, and the grind that awaits in 2023 is...

[BostonRoss]

I said a week ago that Bohm doesn't have the bat for 1B, but he's better than Clemens, Cave, or Harrison, and probably better defensively there, too. He's the best option now since they have another third baseman who also is a better hitter than the other 1B candidates. If a good hitting outfielder materialized (and it doesn't seem like that's Cave, and certainly not Pache), I would still consider Castellanos at 1B. He was an infielder once--a bad defensive third baseman, but that's what Bohm is, too.

[LoneStarPhan]

I agree the best option for now would be Bohm at first and Sosa at third. However, I expect we see Clemens getting plenty of starts against righthanded pitchers.

[zambonir]

It's always good to be a LHB

[xogfog]

When Harper comes back, Shwarber goes back to left Castellanos will stay in right, Bohm will play 1st and Sosa 3B until Hall gets back.

[bkox]

OF Jhailyn Ortiz cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Lehigh Valley (AAA) per the Phillies.

— The Good Phight ( @TheGoodPhight ) April 8, 2023

[LoneStarPhan]

Glad Ortiz stays in the organization.

[bkeich]

I wonder if we won't see Ortiz wearing a 1B glove soon.

[zambonir]

I don't think we'll ever see him play for the Philadelphia Phillies. Heck, now that he's not on the 40, when does he reach free agency?

[LoneStarPhan]

If not on the 40 man roster, I am pretty sure he would be a minor league free agent after this season.

I agree, it is a real long shot to play for the Phillies, but we will see.

[zambonir]

I'm sure julio or Matt can tell us. On paper he has the years but they might not all count.

[andyb]

Pretty sure it has to do with that reserve list (which was just shortened from 7 years to 6 years if they sign at 19 or older). This is 8 years for Ortiz so if he is not on the 40-man roster he would be eligible for minor league free agency when his contract is up (presumably the one for this season).

[zambonir]

Yeah he will now have 7 full seasons of playing baseball in the US (plus the 8th in 2020) but I wasn't sure if the complex league counted (or if you had to play a certain # of games).

He was probably not going to make it through the season - and certainly not the off-season - on the 40 in any case. Hard to even imagine what he would have to do this year to get back on it permanently (I mean it's not hard to imagine what that is, just hard to imagine him doing it).