Rise and Phight: 1/31/2023

With all of the roster spots more or less taken, the team really doesn’t have much left to do as the calendar changes tomorrow. It’s really a remarkable thing considering the recent past of the team.

How many spring trainings have we had to endure where we all had to muster the strength, nay, interest, to think about who the fifth starter would be, who would be manning the left field portion of the outfield, who would be the final piece on the bench. It wasn’t long ago that we were all digging through recent history of Cedric Hunter and trying to convince ourselves that, yeah, maybe Pete MacKanin has uncovered a hidden gem here.

Instead, we’re all left hoping that no injuries befall the lineup, that every pitcher’s velocity band is sufficiently narrowed to the upper extreme of their ability. It makes for a much less stressful part of watching spring training games.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• How does the balanced schedule affect how the Phillies will be doing in 2023?

MLB news:

• Seems that Zack Greinke is coming back to Kansas City on a one-year deal. Good. The sport is better with Greinke in it.
• The Athletic’s Keith Law has put out his top 100 prospect list and it’s likely to be the lowest you’ll see several of these names.
• Comerica Park, home to the Detroit Tigers, is changing its stripes, bringing in the fences a bit. How will that affect play?