May 7, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first base Bryce Harper (3) and short stop Kody Clemens (2) shake hands after a victory against the Toronto Blue Jays at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports Bill Streicher
The Phillies will open the 2025 season at 4:05 against the Washington Nationals on March 27. Here's the first projection of what the 26-man roster will look like on Opening Day.
Starting DH (1): Kyle Schwarber
If the Phillies are in a pinch, Schwarber can play left field. But he posted a career-high 3.4 WAR last season. It's not a coincidence that happened in a year where he only played 41 innings defensively. And at 32, making sure his bat stays in the lineup is the most important thing.
Starting Catcher (1): J.T. Realmuto
Realmuto is entering the final year of his contract. The Phillies have talked about wanting to lessen the workload on him, although manager Rob Thomson admitted the three-time All-Star would need some convincing in that matter. But as he prepares for his age-34 season, the days of Realmuto catching 1,100 innings a season are probably over.
Starting Infielders (4): Bryce Harper, Bryson Stott, Trea Turner, Alec Bohm
The Phillies have two excellent fielders in Stott and Harper. For all the issues that Bohm had defensively early in his career, he actually posted career-best marks in terms of defensive runs saved (zero) and outs above average (four) last season. The biggest question defensively in the infield is Turner, who has -26 defensive runs saved, -8 outs above average and 40 errors at shortstop in two seasons with the Phillies.
Starting Outfielders (3): Max Kepler, Brandon Marsh, Nick Castellanos
Kepler will shift to left field to accommodate Castellanos, and Marsh will shift back to center field to accommodate Kepler. Marsh was a Gold Glove finalist a year ago in left field. He has the athleticism to play a proficient center field, but sometimes struggles to take command of the outfield the way you want at that position.
Bench (4): Rafael Marchán, Edmundo Sosa, Weston Wilson, Kody Clemens
Sosa is obviously a lock. Marchán feels like a lock if he's healthy since he's out of options. Clemens is also out of options, and while the Phillies could trade him given how lefty-heavy their lineup is, he's been really good in short spurts the last couple seasons.
Clemens was part of a media availability at Citizens Bank Park Tuesday, and was asked about his mindset heading into Spring Training.
"Yeah, I mean I feel like I've spent good quality time with this team over the past two seasons, and have come up big in certain spots," Clemens said. "I mean, I think I'm seasoned with the Phillies, and I'm sure that they know that as well."
Every hit from Weston Wilson's cycle 😤 pic.twitter.com/jLsVY8eetq
Wilson consistently made hard contact a year ago, and while he does have one minor-league option left, he feels necessary on the bench considering he's a right-handed hitter with some pop.
He can play all over the diamond defensively, but for the purposes of making the Opening Day roster, being able to be the backup center fielder might be crucial for Wilson if Clemens is also on the team. He played an inning there last year, but is confident he could do it more consistently if he needed to.
"Yeah, I mean [outfield coach] Paco [Figueroa] does a really good job with us with our outfield work and everything," Wilson said. "Obviously, I haven't played much of it, but I do think that's a position that if they need to put me in there, I can play.
"I feel that way about any position on the field, really. So, I'm not gonna say that's my No. 1 position or anything, but yeah, if I need to play center field, I can play it."
Starting Rotation (5): Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez, Jesús Luzardo
This is chalk. The biggest question is order. Will Wheeler make his second straight Opening Day start? Will Sánchez leapfrog Suárez in the order to start the season? However those questions shake out, with the addition of Luzardo — and Andrew Painter looming — the Phillies are in the running with the Seattle Mariners and Los Angeles Dodgers for the best starting rotation in baseball.
Cristopher Sánchez on the Phillies' starting rotation: "Yeah, just being honest, this is one of the best rotations, if not the best. As long as we all stay healthy, we'll be one of the best." @OnPattison
Bullpen (8): Jordan Romano, Matt Strahm, José Alvarado, Orion Kerkering, Tanner Banks, Joe Ross, José Ruiz, Koyo Aoyagi
This group subtracted Jeff Hoffman, and there's not currently any indication they will bring Carlos Estévez back. They are banking on bounce-back seasons from Romano and Alvarado, along with a big step forward from Kerkering. Max Lazar could get the final spot in the bullpen, but he has three remaining minor-league options left. So for now, we've plugged in the non-roster invitee in Aoyagi, who would be the first Japanese-born player to begin his MLB career with the Phillies. Nabil Crismatt — who has bounced around the last two years but had a 2.94 ERA in 50 games for the San Diego Padres in 2022 — is another interesting NRI.
Orion Kerkering met with the media today. He said that Jeff Hoffman told him that he was still going to check up with him and make sure he was listening to Matt Strahm. 😂 @OnPattison
1. Johan Rojas: He hit .295 in 30 Dominican Winter League games this season. If that carries over to Spring Training, he'll be on the Opening Day roster. If not, though, it makes more sense for him to get consistent at-bat at Triple-A. That allows you to keep Clemens and Wilson both on the MLB roster, and potentially give Marsh some extended run to see if he can perform against left-handed pitchers.
2. Garrett Stubbs: Would it be a little awkward to send Stubbs to Lehigh Valley considering he's been on the MLB roster for three straight seasons? Yes. But Marchán is out of options, and offers the possibility for an upgrade behind Realmuto. Stubbs has one minor-league option left that the Phillies could use here and keep him at Triple-A as insurance. According to Ronald Blum of The Associated Press, Stubbs signed a deal that will only pay him $450,000 if he's at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. It will pay him $925,000 if he's in the majors.
3. Taijuan Walker: He's going to come to Spring Training after a full offseason of a weighted ball program looking to show he's still got something. Even if Walker looks rejuvenated, it's hard to find a fit for him on this roster. Whether it's a trade or outright release, the Phillies are probably going to wind up eating a large chunk of the $36 million that he's owed over the next two seasons.
4. Buddy Kennedy: The Millville native was a great story in the 21 at-bats he got a year ago with the Phillies. He's out of minor-league options, though, and probably needs a lot to break in his favor to remain with the organization behind Spring Training.
5. Cal Stevenson: Unlike Kennedy, Stevenson has one remaining minor-league option, which means he's overwhelmingly likely to open the season at Triple-A. With that said, the 28-year-old had six hits and six RBIs in in 24 at-bats last year, so he could very well make an impact for the Phillies when an injury occurs.
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