It is rainy and in the high 40s today in Clearwater, but we've got a little news for y'all.
Rich Dubee told us how the rotation will shape up the first week of action, which begins Wednesday with an exhibition against Florida State at Bright House Field. The Phillies open Grapefruit League play Thursday against the Yankees
Here it is:
- Wednesday vs. Florida State: J.A. Happ, Phillippe Aumont, Yohan Flande, Drew Naylor, Joe Savery, Jesus Sanchez and David Herndon.
- Thursday vs. Yankees: Roy Halladay, Kyle Kendrick, Jose Contreras, Andrew Carpenter and Sergio Escalona.
- Friday at Toronto in Dunedin: Cole Hamels, J.C. Ramirez, Ryan Vogelsong and Antonio Bastardo.
- Friday at Toronto in Dunedin (B GAME): Jamie Moyer, Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson and Scott Mathieson.
- Saturday at Pittsburgh in Bradenton: Joe Blanton, Danys Baez, Ehren Wasserman, Mike Zagurski, Bill White and B.J. Rosenberg.
- Sunday vs. Tampa Bay: Happ, Aumont, Naylor, Sanchez, Herndon, Flande and Savery.
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The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly: Philadelphia Phillies" is available online, and at most Delaware Valley bookstores NOW!
Lazy Sunday
Roy Halladay, who has hit .079 (3-for-38) with two runs and one RBI in his career, participates in sliding drills this morning at the Carpenter Complex.
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J.C. Romero and Brad Lidge both threw off the mound this morning. Both said it went well. Both said being ready by Opening Day remains their goal, although they also said they will be careful. Lidge is further along than Romero, so it stands to reason that Lidge has a better chance of being ready. But it's still very early, and it sounds like neither will push it. Makes sense.
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I just finished an interview with The 700 Level, which was fun. They also gave my book a nice review, which was great. What? You haven't picked up a copy yet? (In my best Judge Smails voice) Well ... we're waiting. MLB.com's Yankees beat writer Bryan Hoch passed along these quotes from Chan Ho Park. Park signed a one-year, $1.2 million contract with the Yankees, which includes a potential $300,000 in bonuses. He actually had the opportunity to take a one-year, $3 million contract with the Phillies, but the Phillies thought they had reached a stalemate with Park and moved onto Danys Baez and Jose Contreras instead. Park said it was "too late" to accept the Phillies' offer. I think by the time he realized he couldn't do better than the Phillies' offer the Phillies already had signed Baez and Contreras and the Phillies no longer were interested. "Philadelphia was the number one choice, and I had a tough time to leave there," Park said. "I'm mostly sad to leave Philadelphia, the teammates and fans were unbelievable. I had fun last year, good memories. That makes me sad. But this is the future and a good team and another chance." * I just finished an interview with The 700 Level, which was fun. They also gave my book a nice review, which was great. What? You haven't picked up a copy yet? (In my best Judge Smails voice) Well ... we're waiting. * There is no avoiding the fact the Phillies' farm system has taken a hit in the past 19 months. Take a look at the talent they've traded to land Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee and Joe Blanton: Domonic Brown (15th) and Phillippe Aumont (93rd) are the only Phillies' prospects in BA's Top 100. But in talking with Baseball America editor John Manuel, the Phillies' farm system is not barren. It's just that most of its talent is in the lower levels, which means they are unlikely to help in the short term. Baseball America, which named the Phillies its organization of the year in 2009, said the club had the fifth-best Minor League talent in baseball before they traded Drabek, Taylor and d'Arnaud in December for Halladay. The Phils could rank anywhere from 15th to 22nd when its rankings are updated in March. "After the Halladay trade, there just isn't much left at the upper levels," Manuel said. "They've traded just about everybody who had accomplished anything at the Double-A level. But they still have a ton of young upside guys." I asked Amaro, if the Phillies have a need midseason do they have the inventory to land somebody like Halladay, Lee or Blanton? "It becomes a little bit more difficult to continue to pull from your Minor Leagues," Amaro said. "You keep doing that, and you kind of defeat the purpose of what we're trying to do, which is try to extend our ability to contend for more years than just 2010, 2011 and 2012. We want to extend it beyond that. But time and circumstance will dictate what we want to do and what we'll be able to do. We have some depth in certain areas. We have less depth in others, just like every other organization. But we've moved a lot of talent from our system and you want to try to preserve the talent as much as you can." Read the rest of the story here. * The 700 Level not only gave my book a good review, they're also offering a free copy to commenters on my post. Check it out! * The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly: Philadelphia Phillies" is available online, and at most Delaware Valley bookstores NOW! You might recall last spring when Ryan Howard dented the drywall in the Bright House Field pressbox when he ripped a foul ball through an open window. You also might recall how he signed his handywork with the letters "W.O.B." He later told me it meant, "Watch Out, Bro," which became a t-shirt. Well, you also might like to know the signature has been framed in the pressbox. * Shane Victorino did not participate in outfield drills today because of shoulder soreness. He might not play tomorrow night against Florida State. Charlie Manuel said he should be OK. * Howard and Jared Fogle from Subway will be working out together tomorrow at Bright House Field. "I don't know Jared," Manuel said. "He can't hit." * The 700 Level is giving away a copy of my book. Check it out. * Jared Fogle and Ryan Howard are ... power walking today at Bright House Field? Howard must be working on the "Mmmmmmmm ... Hall of Fame." (Thanks to @ChikPhilA for reminding me of that commercial.) * Got the Phillies' lineup for tonight's exhibition against Florida State: J.A. Happ is on the mound. Following him is Phillippe Aumont, Yohan Flande, Drew Naylor, Joe Savery, Jesus Sanchez and David Herndon. * The Bill James Gold Mine 2010 says the Phillies rank 12th in the Majors in young talent. "The Phillies are above the midpoint in young pitching, with Hamels, Happ and Madson, near the midpoint in the other two areas, young position players and prospects," James said. "The top five: Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley and J.A. Happ. (Howard and Utley are not really "young" players, but players of that quality retain value for a long time, and thus remain counted among the young stars.)" * The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly: Philadelphia Phillies" is available online, and at most Delaware Valley bookstores NOW! Phillippe Aumont looked like a guy with a lot on his mind tonight at Bright House Field. He allowed two hits, five runs, three walks, one home run and one wild pitch in just 2/3 inning in an exhibition game over Florida State at Bright House Field. Aumont acknowledged afterward that he was trying hard to make a good first impression with the organization that thought enough of him that they requested him from Seattle in the Cliff Lee trade. "It's the first one," Aumont said. "I can't do worse than that, so we're just going to have to build on that, make a joke out of it and move on. Obviously it didn't turn out how people wanted, fans, me and everybody else." The Phillies are making Aumont a starter this season, and after spending last season in the Mariners organization as a reliever he is working on pitching out of the windup again. He said he is still trying to get comfortable with that. "I went out there with a bunch of new guys behind me," he said. "You want to get that first impression out there. And you have that small pressure that's behind you that you got traded for Cliff Lee. You want to do good. You don't want to disappoint, especially the fans. Fans are a big part in this. If I look at me right now, this is over. But I want to do good, just give the fans some support." * The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly: Philadelphia Phillies" is available online, and at most Delaware Valley bookstores NOW! It's true. Manuel says it every year, but every year Rollins and Utley are the lineup almost every day. (The numbers show Utley definitely could use more breaks throughout the season.) The topic has been broached a few times this spring because Manuel said Juan Castro's arrival allows Manuel to rest Rollins and Utley more often. Manuel said Castro can play both shortstop and second base. He can run the bases. He is not a great hitter, but he can handle the bat. "He's not going to do anything great (with the bat), but he'll do everything pretty good," Manuel said. OK, but will Manuel really follow through this season and rest his regulars more? "I think how we're playing can dictate that," Manuel said. "When we got up in the race we couldn't extend the lead. We couldn't put people away. If you have extended the lead a bit we could have started playing people more and we can give them a chance. "I get two things. Most of the time people are talking, and I'm talking about people that are ahead of me. They say, 'You have to play this guy more. You've got to give this guy some rest for October, blah, blah, blah.' Then you look up and the same guy will tell you, 'We've got to win today.' What are you trying to tell me? All right?" Updated: Forgot to mention that Manuel does not expect to play Placido Polanco at second base unless something drastic happens (i.e. Utley suffers a long term injury). Otherwise, expect Castro to be giving Utley his days off. * Thanks to FOX 29's "Good Day Philadelphia" for giving my book a mention this morning! * Roy Halladay makes his (spring training) debut this afternoon for the Phillies. * The Answer Man interviews Jayson Werth. A must read. * Roy Halladay looked like Roy Halladay in today's 3-2 victory over the Yankees at Bright House Field. He threw 24 pitches, 21 for strikes. He allowed no hits, no walks and no runs and struck out three in two innings. He looked good. Here is what Yankees ace CC Sabathia had to say about it: "I think it will be a pretty easy transition for him," Sabathia said. "He'll like facing the 7-8-9 guys in the National League. The type of pitcher he is, I expect him to go out and be even better than he was with the Blue Jays." But are the Phillies better with Halladay instead of Cliff Lee? "It's kind of a wash, I feel like," he said. "If they would have kept the two of them, they're definitely the team to beat. If Cliff was over here, he'd say the same thing. They're still a good team and the team to beat in the National League. I don't think they've really lost anything." * It's the first spring without Harry Kalas. ... Kyle Kendrick and Placido Polanco make their Grapefruit League debuts. ... SI.com ranked baseball's GMs. * Sergio Escalona blew a 1-0 run lead in the ninth, allowing four hits and two runs to hand the Yankees a 2-1 lead. But Brian Bocock singled and pinch-runner Quintin Berry scored on Paul Hoover's double in the botto of the ninth to tie the game. Hoover advanced to third on the throw home. Pinch-runner Dewayne Wise scored the winning run when Wilson Valdez singled off Yankees pitcher Wilkins Arias. * Jamie Moyer allowed three hits and struck out three in three scoreless innings this morning in a "B" game against the Blue Jays at Bright House Field. Moyer is competing with Kyle Kendrick for the fifth spot in the rotation. Here is some of what he said: Question: Did you ever think you'd be as far along as you are now? Q: Are health questions as this point irrelevant, or are you on a normal track for spring training? The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His Phillies book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly" is available online, and at Delaware Valley bookstores! He allowed two hits, one run, one walk and one home run and struck out two in two innings against the Blue Jays. He got a couple outs with the cutter, which seems encouraging. It's also encouraging that Hamels' fastball regularly hit 89 mph. He barely touched 87 mph in his regular-season debut last season. A stronger arm will allow Hamels to work on his secondary pitches this spring, which in theory means they should be more effective once the season starts. We'll see. "I threw it a lot more than I anticipated," Hamels said of the cutter. "I probably could have thrown my changeup in any of those situations, but I'm trying to stray from it and throw the curveball and throw the cutter. That's what I was able to do. There were a couple counts when I would have gone straight to the changeup, but to add the curveball and cutter it makes it a little bit harder for the hitters." There has been talk this spring that Hamels would work primarily on the curveball, but Hamels sees the possibility that his cutter could become his third-best pitch with the curveball his fourth. "I've watched guys like Andy Pettitte, Cliff Lee, (Jon) Lester have so much success with that pitch that I think it's something if I'm able to add that in with the type of changeup that I have it can only make me that much better." * The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His Phillies book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly" is available online, and at Delaware Valley bookstores! The Blue Jays spanked the Phillies today at Dunedin Stadium, 14-9, but a few Phillies prospects made their mark: - Domonic Brown, the organization's top prospect, went 2 for 4 with one double and two RBIs. He also threw out a runner at the plate in the sixth inning. Brown tried to stretch his double into a triple in the seventh, but was thrown out after a head first slide. "I made a couple adjustments early on after my first couple at-bats," Brown said. "I was trying to do too much. Just settled down after the second at-bat, got some pitches to hit and luckily drove a couple. I feel pretty good. ... It's great for me. If I can hit here (against big league pitching) I should be able to hit anywhere. It's great competition. It's hard work, man. I'm tired." Brown said he would not have tried to stretch his double into a triple during the regular season, but he thought he would be aggressive. "I was trying to test it out," he said. - Tyson Gillies hit a solo homer to right field in the sixth inning. He literally sprinted around the bases. "Oh, man," Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. "Wow. He was in the B game today (at Bright House Field). Throwing, he can throw, too. He's got a good arm. A good looking player. A very good looking player. I like him a lot. ... He's got a lean, too. That means he can really get around those bases. He's leaning the right way. Inside lean. That'll get you around there quick." Gillies is becoming known in camp for his high motor. He's always running somewhere, which is why Manuel memorably said that Gillies "takes shagging to another level." Does Gillies do anything slow? "That's a question that everybody asks me," Gillies said. "I try. Honestly, I try to slow things down. The last few days of hitting that was something that was really getting me down, being too quick. Wanting everything now and being impatient. Trying to slow things down and knowing when I should use my speed." So home trots are a time to use his speed? "Oh, yeah," he said. "I'm not going to hit a lot of home runs, so I'm not going to do the whole slow pace around them. Quickly score the run and move forward." - J.C. Ramirez, who joined Gillies and Phillippe Aumont in the Cliff Lee trade, allowed four hits, five runs (four earned runs) and three walks in just 1 1/3 innings. "His command was off," Charlie Manuel said. "He was a little wild. He'll get more work. We'll see." - Antonio Bastardo struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. "Bastardo pitched a good clean inning," Manuel said. "He threw some good pitches. He threw a good fastball and threw a couple good breaking balls. He had a good inning." * He still has some soreness in his right shoulder. "He's all right," Manuel said this morning. "I didn't even ask him today. He's going to be well when we put him back out there. He's coming along good. ... He's got soreness. He developed that this winter. He might have slept on his shoulder all winter. He might have stretched it or pulled it or sprained it or whatever, messing with the cat or the dog or something. I don't know." But we will see him at some point? "Somewhere along the line you will see him, dude," Manuel said. * The Zo Zone is on Facebook and Twitter. His Phillies book "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly" is available online, and at Delaware Valley bookstores!
Answer: Yeah, I actually did. I really felt like I could get back with hard work. Without any setbacks -- based on what the doctors were saying and as far as the rehab and everything like that -- I felt like this was very possible ... I felt like I was pretty diligent in listening to Dr. (Michael) Ciccotti and to (head athletic trainer Scott Sheridan). And just stay persistent with it and try to listen to my body, and not do too much on the days when I felt well, and on the days when I didn't feel as well, tried to listen to that as well. Just continued to try and move forward. Knowing that spring training is six to seven weeks long, I felt like I would have plenty of time when I got here to determine where I was and how I was feeling.
A: For me, it has been that since I walked in the door. For you guys, I don't think it's been that way. But for right now, I feel pretty good.
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