News: Hey, at least the Phillies are playing today!
PHILLIES LOSE: The Orioles beat the Phillies Monday, 6-4, in Sarasota. Jeremy Hellickson surrendered five runs in four innings, striking out six.
Meanwhile Nick Williams homered, part of a 1-for-2 day off the bench in which he also made a heck of a catch. And Brock Stassi continued to make his 25-man (and 40-man) roster case, homering for the fourth time this spring.
TODAY’S GAME: Stay focused on the Florida sunshine. The Phillies meet the Braves at 1:05 p.m. Jerad Eickhoff is on the hill.
ROSTER CUTS: The Phils made their first round of cuts Monday, with pitchers Drew Anderson, Elniery Garcia and Alberto Tirado heading out. None of the three were expected to last very long this spring – Anderson and Garcia will be heading to Reading, while Tirado will go to Clearwater.
JORGE, JORGE, JORGE: We shouldn’t forget this one. The Colombian team may not have made it to the next round of the World Baseball Classic, but Jorge Alfaro did what he could to keep them in the conversation. He slammed a clutch eighth-inning, game-tying home run Sunday against the Dominican Republic. Though the DR won the game, Alfaro made a tremendous impact.
