Phillies: Five 2021 Opening Day roster takeaways

The Phillies are just hours away from Opening Day against the Atlanta Braves, kicking off the first of what is hope to be a full, 162-game season.

During the final days of spring training, a lot of our previous 26-man roster predictions were shattered with some of the final moves made. Here are five takeaways to consider as the season gets underway.

1. Phillies may regret having only one left-hander in the bullpen

One of the most confusing things about the roster is the Phillies choosing to go with David Hale over JoJo Romero. Romero was the most underrated pitcher in the bullpen last season, showing promise with a 3.66 FIP and a 3.53 xFIP.

Since Tony Watson opted out of his contract, we all thought this would make Romero a lock, but righty Hale will get a shot instead. Jose Alvarado will be the only lefty Phillies reliever to begin the 2021 season. There will be a good chance they regret this decision.

2. Ronald Torreyes making Phillies roster is a confusing move

One of the more confusing moves was the decision to add Ronald Torreyes to the roster over C.J. Chatham or Nick Maton. There is a slight argument for Torreyes instead of Chatham, but the argument goes away when the latter was already on the 40-man roster.

With Nick Maton, the decision becomes baffling when comparing the numbers. Torreyes didn’t hit well, slashing .250/.313/.295 for a .608 OPS. Maton, meanwhile, was much better — with a .286/.355/.536 slash line for a .891 OPS. Maton was 100 percent the better player.

Is Torreyes, 28, having previously not been on the 40-man roster, worth adding? To me, the answer is “no,” but to the decision-makers in Dave Dombrowski and Joe Girardi, the answer was “yes.”

To make the Torreyes move work, the Phillies released Chatham. While Dombrowski may ultimately sign him back, there is always the chance that doesn’t happen. Was releasing a prospect — who you traded a player to be named later for in the offseason — worth it?