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Philadelphia Phillies: Projecting the Opening Day 26 man roster

By George Stockburger

Odubel Herrera Philadelphia Phillies (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)
Odubel Herrera Philadelphia Phillies (Photo by Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images) /
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CLEARWATER, FLORIDA – MARCH 04: Matt Moore #31 of the Philadelphia Phillies delivers a pitch in the first inning against the New York Yankees in a spring training game at BayCare Ballpark on March 04, 2021 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA – MARCH 04: Matt Moore #31 of the Philadelphia Phillies delivers a pitch in the first inning against the New York Yankees in a spring training game at BayCare Ballpark on March 04, 2021 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /

Who will win the Phillies starting rotation battle?

After years of searching for answers in their starting rotation, the Phillies finally appear to have five legitimate starting pitchers who can get them through a 162 game season.

Starting rotation: Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, Zach Eflin, Matt Moore, Chase Anderson

The Phillies top three starters were set coming into camp with Aaron Nola returning as the ace, Zack Wheeler in his second year as a solid number two, and Zach Eflin expected to emerge as an above-average major league starter.

The top-two in Nola and Wheeler is an exciting duo who give the Phillies a chance at winning critical three-game inter-division series. In a division with Juan Soto, Freddie Freeman, Francisco Lindor, and others, having those two dominant righties healthy for an entire season is key to the Phillies success.

Eflin had one of the best seasons of his career in 2020 with a 3.97 ERA and a career-high 10.7 K/9. He’s throwing more breaking balls and has returned to being the down in the zone pitcher where he’s always succeeded.

The final two spots in the rotation were up for grabs, but Matt Moore and Chase Anderson entered camp as the favorites with both experience and guaranteed contracts. So far both have impressed with Moore holding a 2.25 ERA in four starts and Anderson striking out 13 in four games.

Left on the outside looking into the rotation are Vince Velasquez and Spencer Howard. Both suffered injuries in camp, but both were long-shots to make the rotation on Opening Day.

Howard is likely to return to Triple-A as the team monitors his workload and hopes to reset what was an unimpressive start to his major league career. The organization’s top pitching prospect had a 5.92 ERA last season and later admitted to having a bad shoulder.

Velasquez certainly hasn’t pitched poorly this spring with a 2.45 ERA in his two starts, but an oblique injury this spring and lack of consistency throughout his career potentially costs him a spot in the organization long-term.

The Phillies will have an even greater decision to make with Velasquez that is made even more difficult with the oblique injury. With a lack of starting pitching depth, keeping Velasquez in the bullpen might be the Phillies best move. They might even start him on the injured list to see how the rotation and bullpen play out over the first couple weeks of the season.

Velasquez could be a valuable trade commodity if he’s healthy, but for now, he’s one of the team’s biggest question marks going into 2021.

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