By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Philadelphia Phillies manager Pete Mackanin suggested early in Spring Training that Jeremy Hellickson is likely to start on Opening Day for the second consecutive year. Hellickson is excited about the four starters who are likely to be slotted below him.
In an interview with MLB.com's Todd Zolecki, Hellickson touted the team's rotation depth and suggested that he's excited to pitch in rotation where Aaron Nola could be the team's fifth starter:
"I've been reading some stuff, obviously, saying [Aaron Nola] is a No. 5 guy," Hellickson said. "If Nola's your No. 5 guy, you have a pretty good rotation."
Hellickson appears to have read my piece last week, that suggested that Vince Velasquez is likely to pitch the team's home opener, which would mean that Nola would be the team's No. 5 starter. That would mean that the rotation would like go as follows: Hellickson, Jerad Eickhoff, Clay Buchholz, Velasquez and Nola. That's a potentially exciting rotation.
Of course, injuries happen. Buchholz and Velasquez both have extensive injury histories and Nola is coming off of an injury-riddled season himself. But if the team makes it to the regular season with that starting five, it's easy to see why Hellickson would be excited.
Even beyond those five, General manager Matt Klentak, thanks largely to his predecessor Ruben Amaro Jr., has a bevy of rotation depth at the upper levels of the organization. Zach Eflin and Jake Thompson both are coming back from injuries, but both will likely be in the big league rotation at some point this year. Ben Lively was impressive in his first Spring Training appearance after a strong 2016. Former No. 1 pick Mark Appel is facing a make-or-break season at Triple-A. And Adam Morgan and Alec Ascher may be converted to relievers, but both are capable of making spot starts for the Phillies.
The Phillies will likely need all that depth in 2017. Nola will likely face an innings limit, and Velasquez suggested earlier this spring that his innings may be 'monitored.' Hellickson and Buchholz could be traded before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. And you have to assume at least one starter will struggle with injuries and/or underperform.
Still, Hellickson is right to be excited about the starting rotation depth that the team has. The Phillies might not have an ace, but they have five competent starts and numerous fairly highly rated prospects at the Triple-A level. It's been some time since that's been the case.
