5 key Phillies storylines to follow as season gets underway

The Phillies need to be cautious with J.T. Realmuto early on.

Another injury storyline will be J.T. Realmuto. The biggest fear is how the star catcher, who missed most of spring training due to a fractured thumb, starts off the season.

Realmuto shined through his first two Grapefruit League games, slugging three hits, a double, home run, and RBI, but went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Friday evening’s road matchup opposite the Toronto Blue Jays.

While it’s not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things, whether Realmuto is fully healed and ready to go for a 162-game season will be a storyline to watch in the first few weeks of the regular season.

Matt Moore and Chase Anderson at the back end of the rotation

After looking solid in his first few starts, Matt Moore faced the Yankees and their stacked lineup on Thursday night. It was rough for Moore, as Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres hit absolute tanks off the left-hander.

The biggest question Moore has to answer is if he is still the same pitcher that got him out of the majors and to Japan, or if Moore is a different pitcher who got to learn in Japan. It is tough to tell with spring training, but in his first real test against a great lineup, things did not go well.

Chase Anderson has put together a solid spring training as well with a 3.07 ERA in 14 2/3 innings, which is not bad at all. The No. 5 starter Anderson has less potential than Moore, but has had a much better Major league career so far.

Moore and Anderson will be important to the Phillies rotation. If one of them can be a solid pitcher, the Phillies are in great shape.