* The Phillies lost to the blue Jays yesterday afternoon in Clearwater. No big deal since it is still spring training baseball. More concerning is the way the club is playing. Poor fundamentals, bad baserunning mistakes, pitchers not covering first base when they should. Less than two weeks to iron-out the miscues, especially the mental mistakes.
* Pitcher Jared Eichoff is out 6-8 weeks with a lat strain. The Phillies love Eichoff but I can't understand why. He is injury-prone and inconsistent. He still hasn't fulfilled his potential. He will be a loss in the rotation. After Arrieta and Nola, looks like Velasquez and Pivetta fill-out the rotation. Efflin looks to have the inside track on the fifth start's spot.
* I'll have my baseball preview and Phillies forecast soon before baseball season starts. Here are three things I hope happens sometime during the upcoming season:
- Scott Kingery takes over second base. for now, Cesar Hernandez will hold down second base, which gives the Phillies an out to send Kingery down to Lehigh Valley for at least several weeks because of service-time reasons. Kingery is leading the team in hitting coming out of camp and looks like a perennial All-Star. Will he be a fixture at second base or a super-utility guy or anchor another position?
- Roman Quinn makes the team. We know he can play center field, and has played left and right. The Phils have been playing him at shortstop this spring, and he has done a decent job there. Quinn should be on the team somewhere. he brings speed and energy. Even if it's pinch-running to steal a base late in a ballgame, Quinn deserves a shot as an extra player. If he somehow wrestles away a starting position he would be a n ideal lead-off hitter along with Kingery.
- Vince Velasquez becomes the everyday closer. This won't happen right away, especially since Eichoff went down. The organization loves his potential as a starter. but Valasquez has shown wildness, high pitch counts and the inability to go beyond five innings at a time. He falls in love with his 95-plus fastball, so why not let him air it out daily in the bullpen and put Hector Neris back to his former role as 8th inning set-up guy.
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* The Eagles cut ties with defensive end Vinny Curry yesterday, as expected. Curry had a nice season last year but became expandable when Michael Bennett signed with the Birds. Plus the team saves $5 million on the salary cap.
* Thank you to running back LaGarrett Blount for his hard-working season. He signed with the Lions yesterday for one-year and $ 4 million. Blount played hard and was a good guy near the goal-line and was a tough, bruising runner, picking up short-yardage first downs.
Blount kept his mouth shut when he didn't get the ball in the Kansas City game, and again when the birds brought in jay Ajayi midway during the season.
Tight end Brent Celek is visiting Detroit as well.
* Out of all the free agent losses, I'll miss Trey Burton the most. I can see GM Howie Rossman getting another RB to take Blount's place. He will find a burner wide receiver, either in the draft or through free agency ( Jeremy Maclin?). But other than Zach Ertz and Billy Brown, there are no other tight ends on the roster. Tight end could be in play with their first round selection at No. 32.
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Villanova's road to the Final Four and another NCAA championship got a little easier last night when Virginia was upset, becoming the first no.1 seed to lose to a No. 16 team. The Wildcats face Alabama today at noon.
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