Phillies lineup is deep.

[northeastphillyguy]

I feel confident about the upcoming season. We are strong in every position with the exception of 3rd base.
I have a feeling that Franco may step it up a little due to the pressure of losing his starter status.
Franco has a way of hitting bombs and driving in runs and it is possible he can still help in a limited role.
Pitching is still a question, but Vinnie is starting to come around and that can be a good sign. Looking
forward to watching the new and improved PHILLIES!

 

[jvett77]

So, you see Kingery at third on opening day with JP at short and Cesar at 2nd. With 6 homers but .200 avg., it still would seem odd with Franco on the bench. He will need a good start. At least ther're some good choices here.

 

[northeastphillyguy]

So, you see Kingery at third on opening day with JP at short and Cesar at 2nd. With 6 homers but .200 avg., it still would seem odd with Franco on the bench. He will need a good start. At least ther're some good choices here.

Kingery should be a starter. He has power, speed, and is solid in the field. Franco will be on a short leash.
Kingery can play multiple positions, so that falls in Francos favor. But Franco can only play 3rd.so he becomes
the bird on the wire.

 

[Cedrique]

I feel confident about the upcoming season. We are strong in every position with the exception of 3rd base.
I have a feeling that Franco may step it up a little due to the pressure of losing his starter status.
Franco has a way of hitting bombs and driving in runs and it is possible he can still help in a limited role.
Pitching is still a question, but Vinnie is starting to come around and that can be a good sign. Looking
forward to watching the new and improved PHILLIES!

Yeah, I agree this lineup is deeper than what we're used to seeing. They are young so still a lot of question marks but I like the versatility. I heard on some radio show that since Gabe Kapler was a 4th outfielder most of his career he is making a point of trying to manage the outfielders the way he would have wanted to be managed. But really the whole team has versatility and depth. If they have a couple injuries they have enough guys to shift around and still have solid players everywhere, instead of having to plug in Wilson Valdez or someone like that.


No offense to Wilson, I loved that time he played like 5 positions, including pitcher.

 

[Dusty]

Should be an improved team. I’m looking forward to seeing much better things from them this year. And next year they hopefully will make the playoffs. Asking too much? Attendance should improve also with the new acquisitions.

 

[Retroram52]

I agree with the prevailing sentiment with the above posts but I am going to stay reserved until what is on paper translates to the W-L columns. All too often, the recent Phillies have promised but simply have not delivered. We shall see...

 

[jvett77]

I agree with the prevailing sentiment with the above posts but I am going to stay reserved until what is on paper translates to the W-L columns. All too often, the recent Phillies have promised but simply have not delivered. We shall see...

Can't blame you for that. The Phillies are in the bottom three in ST offensive categories this spring keeping company with Atlanta and Washington mostly. Their 38 homers ranks them in the middle of the pack though, where the range is 21 to 56. That is a good sign. Thankful caveat: It's only ST.

MLB NL Spring Training Team Stats - Team Batting Baseball - MSN Sports

 

[Cedrique]

Can't blame you for that. The Phillies are in the bottom three in ST offensive categories this spring keeping company with Atlanta and Washington mostly. Their 38 homers ranks them in the middle of the pack though, where the range is 21 to 56. That is a good sign. Thankful caveat: It's only ST.

MLB NL Spring Training Team Stats - Team Batting Baseball - MSN Sports

yep, it looks like the Padres are the team to beat this year

 

[Taddy Mason]

So, you see Kingery at third on opening day with JP at short and Cesar at 2nd. With 6 homers but .200 avg., it still would seem odd with Franco on the bench. He will need a good start. At least ther're some good choices here.

based on past performance against Teheran I can see them go with Kingery to start 2B opening day. Don't know how Gabe plans on shuffling guys throughout the season.

 

[jvett77]

yep, it looks like the Padres are the team to beat this year

Ahh, they're just on something for the spring.

 

[northeastphillyguy]

The Phillies were 2nd in pitching this spring. Also they gave up the fewest walks. Although the hitting could have been better, the team batting average rose over 20 points in the final two weeks. I believe they will score enough runs during the season. This is a team that will surprise in the standings and compete for a playoff spot. IMO.

 

[Guy Incognito]

The Phillies were 2nd in pitching this spring. Also they gave up the fewest walks. Although the hitting could have been better, the team batting average rose over 20 points in the final two weeks. I believe they will score enough runs during the season. This is a team that will surprise in the standings and compete for a playoff spot. IMO.

I think that there's a lot of "ifs" that have to go the Phillies' way to make them a playoff contender. I think they're still a year away from a real push. Still, they should be somewhere north of .500 for a change.