Zack Wheeler says it’s a ‘big honor’ to be named the Phillies Opening Day starter, while Rob Thomson and Aaron Nola express their appreciation for the Phillies’ ace.
With just seven days of spring training games to go, the Phillies have nearly reached the end of their stay this year in Clearwater, which means one more week of crossing fingers for manager Rob Thomson.
On Sunday in Sarasota, starting outfielders Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh left early for precautionary reasons. Kepler collided with the wall in left field on a catch, though it didn't look violent. Marsh exited with a bruised left knee. Both downplayed the injuries to reporters after the game and were back in the lineup Tuesday in Bradenton against the Pirates.
Offensively, the Phillies had one of MLB's weakest outfields last season. They added to it by signing Kepler to a one-year, $10 million contract to play left field. The thought going into spring training was that Kepler would play left, Nick Castellanos would play right and Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas would platoon in center field. Weston Wilson was in the mix as well in left and potentially center against some left-handers.
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Wilson suffered a Grade 2 strain of his oblique, a six-week injury, just before Grapefruit League play began, altering the Phillies' bench battle and increasing the importance of Edmundo Sosa's acclimation to the outfield. Sosa has played five innings in center field and 21 in left this spring.
Rojas also has not played the field once this spring because of a shoulder injury suffered on a headfirst slide into second base in winter ball. The Phillies hope he can ramp up his throwing this week.
If Rojas' injury lingers, Oscar Mercado could become a bigger part of the conversation. Mercado is a veteran, right-handed-hitting center fielder with nearly 1,000 big-league plate appearances, mostly with Cleveland. He played one game with the Phillies late in 2022, spent time in the organizations of the Padres, Dodgers, Cardinals and Tigers over the next two years and then was invited to spring training by the Phils in mid-February.
Neither of the Phillies' next two center fielders after Marsh and Rojas have hit much this spring. Mercado is 4-for-25 and Cal Stevenson is 4-for-31. Stevenson has a minor-league option remaining and hits from the left side, making him a longer shot to make the Opening Day roster even if Rojas isn't ready to play the field. Right-handed bats on the bench make more sense for the Phillies than lefties because they wouldn't realistically pinch-hit for Trea Turner, J.T. Realmuto or Nick Castellanos, and if/when they pinch-hit for Rojas, Marsh would be available.
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This is also why Sosa's ability to play a passable center field could be valuable if the Phillies can get him enough reps to feel comfortable. It might allow them to carry a better hitter on their bench. If Sosa can play center, for example, maybe they can open the season carrying right-handed Christian Arroyo, who's hit .355 this spring with two homers and has had a few solid offensive seasons as a reserve with Boston. Arroyo is a corner infielder but the Phillies have also gotten him 11 innings in left field this month.
This all could be relevant as soon as Opening Day with the Phillies facing Nationals lefty Mackenzie Gore, though Gore has reverse platoon splits. Lefties have hit .297 off him the last two seasons with an OPS in the mid-.800s. The Phillies are starting Zack Wheeler in the opener for the second straight year, not much of a surprise given he's become their unquestioned ace and currently trails only Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani in per-year salary.