Phillies' Opening Day roster picture becoming clearer

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Phillies have their Opening Day roster.

The club announced Sunday that they traded outfielder Jake Cave to Colorado for cash considerations, optioned INF/OF Kody Clemens to Triple-A and reassigned right-handers Andrew Bellatti and José Ruiz to Minor League camp. It put outfielders Johan Rojas and Cristian Pache and right-handers Connor Brogdon, Luis Ortiz, Yunior Marte and Spencer Turnbull on the 26-man roster, barring any last-minute additions.

Rojas will be the Phillies’ Opening Day center fielder on Thursday against the Braves (3 p.m. ET, live on MLB.TV). Pache, who is out of options, could start occasionally in left field against tough left-handed pitchers. He also provides insurance if Rojas struggles offensively and needs to be optioned to Triple-A.

“He’s improving,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said about Rojas. “For me, as long as he doesn’t get buried, we’re a better team with him on the club. We are. Just because of the defense.”

The Phillies began Spring Training last month with very few roster battles. Rojas came to camp planning to seize the everyday job in center, but after struggling mightily in the 2023 postseason, the Phillies said he wasn’t a lock.

But the Phils wanted Rojas to be the guy, so they told him to relax and focus only on his adjustments and approach at the plate, not his on-field results. Rojas is batting .170 with a .464 OPS this spring. He has four hits in his last 18 at-bats (.222) with a walk and two strikeouts. The Phillies have said repeatedly they have seen consistent improvements since the beginning of camp.

“If he has the type of game he has today, where he doesn’t get a hit, and he sees 18-20 pitches in that nine-spot, and he gets a walk, and gets on base, then all hell breaks loose,” Thomson said after the Phils’ 2-0 win over Toronto. “He’s an exciting player. He makes people nervous when he’s out there on the bases. Any way he can get on base is great. And if he can chew up pitches, he’s really good in that nine spot.”

The Phillies will have only one left-handed bat on the four-man bench in catcher Garrett Stubbs (Edmundo Sosa, Whit Merrifield and Pache are the other three). The front office could acquire another lefty hitter before Opening Day as other teams finalize their rosters, but if they don’t, the Phillies believe they can manage without one.

Thomson said the Phillies could use Brandon Marsh, if he doesn’t start, or Merrifield, who has relatively similar career splits against right-handers (.734 OPS) as left-handers (.793 OPS), to pinch-hit.

“I’m comfortable -- I’m more than comfortable -- with Merrifield,” Thomson said.

Turnbull will open the season in the rotation with right-hander Taijuan Walker opening on the 15-day injured list because of an impingement in his right shoulder. Turnbull will pitch the Phillies’ sixth game of the regular season on April 3 against Cincinnati. Brogdon, Ortiz and Marte will be in the bullpen with right-hander Orion Kerkering also opening the season on the IL.

Walker was scratched from Monday’s Grapefruit League finale because of an issue that popped up Saturday when playing catch. Walker said he felt no pain in his shoulder, but something didn’t feel right. His velocity has been down throughout the spring, although he missed time earlier in camp because of a personal issue and a knee issue.

Walker said he received no injection to alleviate the inflammation in his shoulder and could play catch as early as Wednesday.

“I’m a competitor,” Walker said. “I want to be out there every fifth day, whether I feel 100 percent or 80 percent. I want to be out there. A lot of times last year I wasn't at 100 percent. That was a grind. It was a struggle to pitch like that. So this year, I want to be able to pitch at my best more times than not. If I have to take a little time in the beginning, then I have to do that.”

Walker said he isn’t sure how much time he might miss. He missed a little more than two weeks with a similar issue in 2022, though he was more built up then.

The IL stints for Walker and Kerkering will begin on Monday, meaning both would be eligible to be activated as early as April 9. Kerkering is expected to be ready by then.

Ortiz and Marte both had good springs; Brogdon had inconsistent results, but is out of options, so if he hadn’t made the team he would have been designated for assignment.

“He’s a guy that on was a playoff team two years ago,” Thomson said. “Pitched in a World Series and pitched great. We’re hoping to get that guy back again.”