Major Additions: Michael Saunders, Howie Kendrick, Clay Buchholz, Pat Neshek, Joaquin Benoit, Chris Coghlan
Major Losses: Ryan Howard, Cody Asche, David Hernandez
Strengths: Pitching Depth
Weaknesses: Offensive Core, Top of Rotation
Potential Breakout Stars: Roman Quinn, J.P. Crawford, Jake Thompson, Zach Eflin
The Phillies are a very similar team to the Braves in that they're not contenders, but they've stockpiled a large quantity of young talent. As of now, there's no one central bat, but Maikel Franco will do his best to become that. He took a step back in his first full season in 2016, though he still blasted 25 home runs and struck out at a fairly low 16.8% rate, and he's still just 24 years old. Odubel Herrera has quietly been one of the better outfielders in baseball as a do-it-all player, as he slashed .291/.353/.419 (111 wRC+) with 41 stolen bases and 16 defensive runs saved over his two seasons in the majors, accumulating a total of 7.8 fWAR. That's puts him right up there with star outfielders George Springer (8.6 fWAR), Christian Yelich (6.8), Andrew McCutchen (6.5), Charlie Blackmon (6.0), and Jose Bautista (5.8) over that span. (This gives me another excuse to talk about how great Mike Trout is; he clocks in at 18.4 fWAR over that same span). Herrera and Franco will look to be a dynamic duo in that lineup. There are also three raw power bats in this lineup: the veteran Michael Saunders and younger players Tommy Joseph and catcher Cameron Rupp. Saunders is as inconsistent as they come, but he did set a career high with 24 home runs last season. Joseph came up as a rookie last year and slashed .257/.308/.505 with 21 home runs (113 wRC+) in 108 games, and Rupp broke out with a .252/.303/.447 line with 16 home runs (99 wRC+) which, for a catcher, isn't half bad. Second baseman Cesar Hernandez was also a quiet producer, slashing .294/.371/.393 with 17 stolen bases (108 wRC+), and his 4.4 fWAR in 2016 was actually higher than that of Nelson Cruz (4.2), Buster Posey (4.0), Edwin Encarnacion (3.9), and teammate Odubel Herrera (3.8). Currently in AAA is 22 year old top prospect J.P. Crawford, who has steadily performed at all levels but did not have an easy go at it in his first taste of AAA in 2016, slashing .244/.328/.318 (90 wRC+) over 87 games. Still, he was just 21, and his low strikeout rate (13.5%) and high walk rate (10.9%) show that he could be ready for the majors very soon. If he takes the step forward in 2017 that he is capable of, Crawford could be a steady producer in the Phillies' lineup from day one. On the mound, there is no ace, rather a slew of pitchers who might be good. There are veterans (Jeremy Hellickson, Clay Buchholz), young guys (Aaron Nola, Jerad Eickhoff, Vince Velasquez), and prospects/unproven guys (Jake Thompson, Alec Asher, Zach Eflin, Mark Appel, Ben Lively, Nick Pivetta). Not one of those guys can guarantee you a full season with an ERA under 4.00, but of the eleven names I mentioned, at least five should be able to provide quality innings on a regular basis. The bullpen is filled with guys you haven't heard of, aside from Joaquin Benoit. The thing with this bullpen though, is even though you haven't heard of them, it's not a half bad group. Jeanmar Gomez (4.85 ERA, 1.46 WHIP) wasn't as bad as his numbers might say, as his ERA was actually 2.52 as late as August 13th and 3.29 as late as September 12th. Hector Neris (2.58 ERA, 1.11 WHIP), Pat Neshek (3.06 ERA, 0.94 WHIP), Edubray Ramos (3.83 ERA, 1.18 WHIP), and Joely Rodriguez (2.79 ERA, 1.24 WHIP in small sample) may not jump off the page at you, but they won't be a liability. Overall, like the Braves, this is a team that won't be contending, but is certainly worth watching as they're young guys try to find their footing. Keep an eye on Crawford and outfielder Roman Quinn.
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