3) Phillies pitcher Andrew Bellatti proved his hot spring was a fluke
The Phillies saw their closer Craig Kimbrel have an awesome spring, and that's translated over to the regular season for the 2023 all-star. A reliever who also had an awesome spring but has failed to see it translate to the regular season is Andrew Bellatti.
Bellatti was a key piece of the Phillies bullpen last season, posting a 3.31 ERA in 59 appearances, and after a really good spring training, it felt like he'd be right in the thick of things again.
Bellatti threw 9.2 scoreless innings this spring with 12 strikeouts and only three hits allowed. Despite six walks, he was one of the more impressive arms the Phillies used in Spring Training.
The right-hander kept the momentum going into the regular season as in his first six appearances he did not allow a run and gave up just two hits with two walks and six strikeouts. He looked like he was going to be an effective middle reliever once again for the Phillies, but some struggles that followed his hot start ended that.
Bellatti allowed six runs in 3.1 innings across his next four appearances before landing on the IL with a right triceps injury. He came back in mid-May for five outings before being sent down to AAA.
Overall, a 5.68 ERA in 15 appearances isn't going to cut it. Bellatti is back now, but as a reliever with options, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him go back and forth between Philadelphia and Leigh High Valley for the rest of the year. After being a useful arm last season and a really good Spring Training, he hasn't been the same in 2023.