Call to the pen
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Phillies: Those illusory last four seats on the bench

By Rick Soisson

The second move was replacing the skipper with Girardi and his staff because superstar Harper didn't lead the Phillies to the promised land. Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images.
The second move was replacing the skipper with Girardi and his staff because superstar Harper didn't lead the Phillies to the promised land. Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images. /
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A general view of Citizens Bank Park during a Philadephia Phillies game (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
A general view of Citizens Bank Park during a Philadephia Phillies game (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) /

The Philadelphia Phillies have tough roster decisions in the near future.

In all the excitement of MLB’s Opening Weekend, a matter largely ignored is that Squad Cutdown Day is now less than two weeks away. At the end of the first full week in August, teams will have to jettison two players. And SCD will then be followed by SCD 2.0 in the third full week of next month, eliminating two more occupied lockers. This applies to all teams, including the Philadelphia Phillies, who surprised some observers with their final roster decisions late July 23.

The real Phillies roster, then, will be established in the near neighborhood of Aug. 21. Their fans can only hope there are only four players who have had to move into the Not MiLB Camp or quarantine by that point.

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So, as the season moved through the first weekend of competition, how many of their fans could have named the surprise players with Phillies roster spots for The Season of Cardboard Cutouts?

The least likely players who made the team out of summer camp are Deolis Guerra, Trevor Kelley, Reggie McClain, Ramon Rosso, Phil Gosselin, and Kyle Garlick – four pitchers (one without any MLB experience) and two position-player reserves (an infielder and an outfielder).

Kelley and McClain each have part of a year’s experience with Boston and Seattle, respectively. Guerra has experience in four years among three teams, and Rosso came into this season ready to make his big-league debut.

Gosselin is an experienced and seasoned utility player who might have seemed likely to make the team in any other year, but this year the Phillies invited about 400 experienced MLB players to camp, hands full of them on minor league contracts and as non-roster invitees, so no one knew who might be a front runner. Garlick is a young power-hitter who effectively replaced Nick Williams on the Opening Day roster.

Assuming no injuries or infections in the first two weeks of play, these six players are probably the best candidates to depart by Aug. 21.

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