Philadelphia Phillies: Taking A Look At Who’s Hot And Who’s Cold So Far
By Joe Piazza
Who’s Cold?
For every Spring Training success story, there is always a flip side.
Offseason acquisition Howie Kendrick has had a very slow start to the Spring. In 26 at bats (the second most on the team), he’s batting just .192. He has no homers, no walks, and six strikeouts. If this is a sign of what is to come, the Phillies will have to hope that his veteran qualities can outweigh negative production on the field.
He’s much less experienced, but top prospect JP Crawford came into the Spring with high expectations. So far, he hasn’t been able to deliver. Crawford has just 3 hits in 20 at bats (.150 BA). He’s been projected to start the season in the minors anyways, but this has not been an impressive showing for the promising young shortstop. Additional position players to under perform thus far include Roman Quinn (.227 BA in 22 AB) and Dylan Cozens (.211 BA in 19 AB).
As far as pitchers go, Jerad Eickhoff is the guy I’ve got my eye on. His 7.88 ERA and 3 walks in just 8.0 IP worry me, but it’s only the spring. Plus, Eickhoff recorded an ERA of 8.00 last spring, and was one of the Phillies best starters all season. It also appears that Alec Asher is yet to get comfortable on a Major League mound. He leads the team in innings pitched with 10.0, but has already walked four batters. His ERA is an unimpressive 5.40, and batters have hit .333 off of him. Of all Phillies pitchers this spring, Asher is the one most obviously in need of more time in the minors.