Phillies news and rumors 3/8: Garrett Stubbs to face off with brother C.J. in Spring Training

Will Garrett (above) and C.J. Stubbs face off head-to-head on Friday? (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire)

Move over, Nick vs. Phil Maton.

The Phillies and Astros will provide a new brother vs. brother matchup on Friday. Phillies catcher Garrett Stubbs will square off against his brother, Astros catcher C.J. Stubbs — and as MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reported, the family will be on hand to take it in.

C.J., who came out of the University of Southern California in 2019, four years after Garrett did, spent all but one game in the 2023 season at Double-A Corpus Christi. C.J. struggled offensively in the minor league season but compiled an .823 OPS the year before, almost evenly split between High-A and Double-A. He’s a non-roster invitee to Astros Spring Training this year, as he was last year.

C.J. has seen limited action this spring, with six at bats to date. But the Phillies and Astros coordinated a Maton vs. Maton at bat in Game 162 a couple years ago (with Nick’s single prompting a locker punch that sidelined Phil for the entire postseason). Current Astros manager Joe Espada was Houston’s bench coach at the time.

Now in Spring Training — with the stakes even lower than they were in Game 162, both teams having already clinched a playoff spot and their playoff seeds set in stone — it seems awfully reasonable for Rob Thomson and Espada to arrange another sibling matchup. The obvious candidate to pitch would be Garrett, who’s a lock for the Phillies’ backup catcher job already and even has 3 2/3 innings of MLB pitching experience under his belt.

C.J. and Garrett are both listed as reserves for their respective teams and could get in the game once the starters leave.

Head-to-head matchup or not, though, it’ll be a cool moment for older and younger brother alike.

“I’ve been looking forward to it,” C.J. said, per McTaggart, “since the Spring Training schedule came out.”

Must-read Phillies content

MORE FROM PHILLIES NATION

  1. Phillies 2024 Opening Day Roster Projection 1.0
  2. With Contract Extension, Zack Wheeler Has Chance To Go Down As All-Time Great Phillies Pitcher
  3. Aaron Nola Shares High Praise For Zack Wheeler
  4. Merrill Kelly Lauds Playoff Environment At CBP: ‘That Place Is Different, Man’
  5. Phillies Are Getting Rid Of Dollar Dog Night
  6. Why The Phillies Should Pursue Jordan Montgomery On A Short-Term Deal
  7. Bryce Harper Still Wants An Extension. Whether He Gets One Remains To Be Seen.
  8. Phillies Top 15 Prospect: Spring 2024
  9. Bryce Harper On Move To First Base: ‘I Have A Chance To Be Really Great Over There’
  10. Phillies 2024 Giveaway Schedule
https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/1765304652
Share
Nathan Ackerman

Nathan is a writer and podcaster for Phillies Nation. He's a graduate from the University of Southern California and is based in Los Angeles.

Get throwback Phillies styles from Shibe Vintage Sports in Center City Philly