Philadelphia Phillies: Projecting the Opening Day 26 man roster
Who makes the Phillies bench and who gets cut?
Right now the Phillies have room for five men off their bench, which includes backup catcher Andrew Knapp.
Outfielders Matt Joyce and Roman Quinn are likely candidates to make the Opening Day roster, but Joyce will need to be added to the 40-man roster. The 36-year-old who has turned into a journeyman lately is hitting .444 this spring and will be a valuable left-handed bat off the bench.
Quinn brings his elite speed and if he can focus on hitting line drives he’s a late-inning threat who can be a defensive replacement for McCutchen.
The final two bench spots are dependent on the injured Brad Miller and the big question of Scott Kingery. Miller was a lock to make the bench before his oblique injury. If healthy, he’s on the team. If not, that opens the potential for someone like Ronald Torreyes to make the team.
Kingery might be the team’s biggest question with the final days of Spring Training counting down. He’s an extremely versatile player who could give Girardi tremendous lineup flexibility. However, he’s looked lost this spring and could benefit from extra at-bats in Triple-A. He’s likely lost the center field job and other than a couple starts a week around the diamond, his opportunities aren’t available at the moment.
Kingery could start in Lehigh Valley and be the first man up if there’s an injury or Odubel Herrera loses grip of the center field job. He’s also one of the few extra infielders on the 40-man roster and someone the team hopes will be a major contributor beyond 2021.
If Kingery doesn’t make the team, who do you possibly use off the bench? They don’t have another guy to bring along who is talented enough to push someone else off the 40-man roster.
Right now I see the bench looking like Joyce, Quinn, Miller, Kingery, and Knapp. It’s not great and might not even be an upgrade from last year when Jay Bruce, Neil Walker, and Phil Gosselin were here.
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How do the Phillies make the 40-man roster work?
By my projection, the Philadelphia Phillies will need to open four 40-man roster spots to add Kintzler, Watson, Herrera, and Joyce. Who gets designated for assignment to make room for them? If David Hale doesn’t beat out Coonrod or someone else, he might be the guy at 33-years-old and no long-term ties to the team. If Adam Haseley had stayed healthy, maybe Joyce or Quinn doesn’t make the team.
A trade of Quinn or Velasquez makes the roster maneuvering easier, but it costs them valuable depth for what could ultimately be lottery tickets deep in the minor league system, if that.
Pitching prospect Bailey Falter could be a roster casualty just based on the number of spots left. In 2019 Falter went 6-5 with a 3.84 ERA for Double-A Reading.
I don’t think the Philadelphia Phillies could stomach letting prospects Damon Jones or Mauricio Llovera go on the waiver wire. Adonis Medina, once thought to be a starting rotation candidate down the line, might be on the block.