Phillies outscore Pirates 1-0 in second half of spring ballgame

Your Fightin’ Phils battled the Pittsburgh Pirates in Grapefruit League action on Monday. Nick Castellanos hit an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth inning, leading the Phillies to a triumphant victory in the second half of the matchup in Clearwater.

Unfortunately, the Pirates outscored the Phillies 11-1 before the Castellanos RBI. Pittsburgh won by a final score of 11-2.

Here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly from the game:

The Good

– J.T. Realmuto went two for three with a pair of singles.

– Catcher Aramis Garcia continued a torrid spring, with a double and a walk in his two plate appearances. Garcia is slashing .440/.517/.760 (1.277 OPS) for the Phillies in 29 PAs.

– Jake Cave smacked a fourth-inning double and is hitting .346 in 26 spring ABs.

– Jose Alvarado, Paxton Thompson, Luis F. Ortiz, and Yunior Marte held the Pirates scoreless over the final four innings of the contest.

– Cristian Pache made this nice catch in center field. Were it not for Johan Rojas’ generational defensive talent, Phillies fans would likely be clamoring for Pache’s glove in center field.

The Bad

– Despite nine Phillies hits and three Pirates errors, the Phils scored just two runs in the game.

– Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz went 3/4 with two home runs. He’s slashing .355/.444/.1.032 this spring with seven (!) home runs in 36 plate appearances. Four of Cruz’s seven home runs were served up by Phillies pitching.

– The Phillies’ position player regulars continue to put up lackluster spring numbers: Kyle Schwarber went 0/3 and is hitting .121 with a .368 OPS; Trea Turner went 0/2 and is hitting .257 with a .668 OPS; Nick Castellanos went 1/3 and is hitting .185 with a .592 OPS; Bryson Stott went 1/3 and is hitting .231 with a .641 OPS; Edmundo Sosa went 1/3 and is hitting .176 with a .537 OPS.

Sample sizes are still fairly small… but as spring training enters its final week, not that small.

– Bryce Harper did not play. He’s suffering from back stiffness. Rob Thomson says he’s not concerned about Harper’s health. But as Jayson Stark notes, it’s a situation worth monitoring.

The Ugly

– Starting Phillies pitcher Tyler Phillips’ line: 2.2 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.

Bold prediction: Tyler Phillips is not going to start the season in the Phillies rotation.

Up Next

The Phillies will play the Tigers in Lakeland, FL on Tuesday. 6:05 p.m. start.