New Phillies faces
Befitting a league champion trying its hardest to take advantage of its two-time MVP on a long contract, Bryce Harper, the Phillies added significant pieces to their active roster. As most fans know, first and foremost among them is two-time All-Star Trea Turner, a career .302 hitter and still one of the fastest players in baseball.
What such a player brings to a team with a strong lineup should be obvious. (Hint: see the passage here about OBP.) Hey, maybe the Phillies can win the NL East now as well as the NL Championship.
Beyond Turner, the second highest profile addition to the team is surely Craig Kimbrel, the career relief pitcher who has booked 394 career saves with a success rate of 89.1 percent. Now 34, Kimbrel has been told, apparently, that he will be added to Thomson’s “musical chairs” approach to closing games, and apparently, this is all right with veteran closer.
Kimbrel’s ERA and WHIP figures the past two years have not been his best, but while his batting average against jumped from .150 in 2021 with both Chicago teams to .227 last summer with the Dodgers, his HR surrender rate dropped from 5.1 percent with the White Sox for half a campaign to 1.5 percent for the full season in L.A.
The Phillies have also added much-needed starter Taijuan Walker in the hope that he can maintain the solid numbers he put up with the Mets last year for the rest of his early 30s. He is signed for four years at a consistent $18 million a year.
Also considered an important addition, for the most part because he is left-handed, Gregory Soto will join Kimbrel in the bullpen. Soto will be a nice alternative to Jose Alvarado after two All-Star years in Detroit. The word of caution about Soto is that, as Alvarado once did, he walks a few too many hitters.
The Phillies have shown they can coach some players through that.
A perusal of Philadelphia’s active roster reveals a number of other new faces probably unknown to most fans. They are largely candidates for the ever-rebuilding bullpen, including Luis Ortiz, Erich Uelmen, Michael Plassmeyer, and Matt Strahm. And yes, there are even more.
Exceptions to the above statements are infielders/utilitymen Kody Clemens and the veteran Josh Harrison. Now a journeyman who will turn 36 in mid-season, Harrison will be interesting to watch. He has booked OBPs of .352, .341, and .317 since leaving Detroit in 2019 and can still play multiple positions in the field.