Earlier Spring Training Debuts Than Usual for Phillies' Big Bats

The Phillies brought seven position players who could make the team out of camp to their first spring training game Saturday in Dunedin against the Blue Jays: Adolis Garcia, Justin Crawford, Otto Kemp, Edmundo Sosa, Bryan De La Cruz, Dylan Moore and Rafael Marchan.

They tend to roll out the regulars in waves over the first week of spring training games, and Sunday's lineup for their home spring opener at BayCare Ballpark is much more representative of what we'll see a month from now.

1. Trea Turner, SS
2. Kyle Schwarber, DH (L)
3. Bryce Harper, 1B (L)
4. Alec Bohm, 3B
5. Brandon Marsh, LF (L)
6. J.T. Realmuto, C
7. Bryson Stott, 2B (L)
8. Bryan De La Cruz, RF
9. Johan Rojas, CF

First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. on NBC Sports Philadelphia.

The Phillies will start right-hander Trevor Richards in what is expected to be a bullpen game. You could see as many as nine different arms. You won't see Zach McCambley, Max Lazar, Seth Johnson or Nolan Hoffman, four relievers vying for Opening Day roster spots who pitched an inning apiece Saturday.

Earlier looks

February 22 is actually the earliest that Turner, Harper and Schwarber have appeared in a spring training game in their careers. It's not all that surprising that they were in Sunday's lineup because the Phillies' games Monday and Tuesday are nearly four hours away against the Nationals in West Palm Beach and the Marlins in Jupiter. Most vets ain't making that trip. Typically, the first long bus ride of camp comes at least a week or two in.

Harper and Schwarber, along with reliever Brad Keller, are three of about a dozen Phillies who will leave camp for the World Baseball Classic in the opening days of March, so they could get a few more reps than usual during this first full week of Grapefruit League play, which includes home games for the Phillies on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday followed by another quick trip to Dunedin on Saturday.

Lineup thoughts

More than half of the lineup above could look the same on Opening Day. Turner, Schwarber, Harper, Bohm and Marsh are the expected 1-through-5 against right-handed pitching, and the Phillies are projected to open the season facing two tough Rangers righties in a row in Jacob deGrom and Nate Eovaldi.

When the games actually count, the 6-7-8-9 could be Garcia, Stott, Realmuto and Crawford. Manager Rob Thomson likes to alternate lefties and righties in the batting order as much as possible.

Sunday's lineup, at least for an inning or two, will face Pirates right-hander Braxton Ashcraft, who is coming off of a promising rookie season with a 2.71 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 69⅔ innings.

The only player from Saturday's lineup who is also starting Sunday is De La Cruz in right field. He's battling with Rojas and utilityman Dylan Moore for the final spot on the Phillies' bench, with all three bringing different strengths and weaknesses to the table. De La Cruz, the Dominican Winter League MVP a few months ago, went 1-for-3 on Saturday with two strikeouts, one of which ended in a failed Automated Ball-Strike challenge by him on a pitch that just nipped the outside corner.