Which Phillies will come out on top in this year’s spring training battles?
After spending close to a half a billion dollars last offseason, the Phillies management has seemingly undertaken a different approach to free agency this go around. Quantity over quality.
The Phillies have gone and added a plethora of low-risk type players, mainly on minor league deals with invites to Spring Training.
With so many new faces being added to the clubhouse, it’s only natural for the general competition down in Clearwater, Florida to be a little higher than usual.
There are a whole lot of guys fighting for potential major league jobs right now, and we’re breaking down which guys are on the roster bubble.
Deivy Grullon, Catcher
Only in Philadelphia could the backup catcher position cause so much unrest throughout the fanbase. Current backup Andrew Knapp has long been on the receiving end of Phillies fans’ criticism, and rightfully so. His average has sat right around .200 the last two seasons and he’s massively struggled driving runs in (just 36 career RBIs).
While the Phillies are currently employing the “best catcher in baseball” in JT Realmuto, the need for a solid backup catcher has long been important in baseball. With Knapp struggling horrifically the last two years, the chance for a guy like Deivy Grullon to come in and steal his spot is high.
Grullon has spent the last seven seasons in the minors, which may scream that his window is closed. However, he has in fact taken large strides over his last two years. He hit .273 in AA during the 2018 season and .283 in AAA during the 2019 season. If he can bring that bat with him to Spring Training and show he’s made some progress on his defense, it’s a very real possibility he could earn that backup catcher position.