By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
TAMPA, Fla. — The Philadelphia Phillies and RHP Alec Asher will kick off 2017 Grapefruit League action in opposition of RHP Bryan Mitchell and the New York Yankees Friday afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
The Phillies are coming off of a 6-0 victory Thursday afternoon over the NCAA Division II University of Tampa Spartans. Outfielder Dylan Cozens provided two-thirds of the offensive output with a two-hit, four-RBI performance, which included a two-run home run over the center field batter's eye. The other two runs came off the bats of center fielder Roman Quinn (solo home run) and non-roster invitee third baseman Hector Gomez (RBI single to left).
Gomez, Quinn and top prospect J.P. Crawford — who went 1-2 with a walk and run scored on Thursday — will make their second start of the spring against New York.
The Yankees' lineup will feature one of their three major acquisitions this past offseason, designated hitter Matt Holliday. The others, first baseman Chris Carter and LHP Aroldis Chapman, who signed to a reliever record contract at five-years and $86 million in December.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
| Philadelphia Phillies | New York Yankees | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RHP | Alec Asher | RHP | Bryan Mitchell | ||
| (2016: 2-1, 2.28 ERA) | (2016: 1-2, 3.24 ERA) | ||||
Starting Lineups:
| Philadelphia Phillies | New York Yankees | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Player | Bats | Position | Player | Bats | ||
| 1 | 2B | Cesar Hernandez | S | 1 | CF | Brett Gardner | L |
| 2 | CF | Roman Quinn | S | 2 | SS | Didi Gregorius | L |
| 3 | DH | Daniel Nava | S | 3 | C | Gary Sanchez | R |
| 4 | 1B | Tommy Joseph | R | 4 | DH | Matt Holliday | R |
| 5 | RF | Chris Coghlan | L | 5 | 1B | Greg Bird | L |
| 6 | LF | Tyler Goeddel | R | 6 | 2B | Starlin Castro | R |
| 7 | C | Andrew Knapp | S | 7 | 3B | Chase Headley | S |
| 8 | SS | J.P. Crawford | L | 8 | LF | Aaron Hicks | S |
| 9 | 3B | Hector Gomez | R | 9 | RF | Aaron Judge | R |
Broadcast Information:
- First pitch: 1:05 p.m.
- TV: MLBN
- Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
Game Notes:
- Daniel Nava and 2009 National League Rookie of the Year Chris Coghlan will make their Phillies debuts. Both are non-roster invitees who were respective World Series champions in 2013 and 2016.
- Barring injury, Asher will compete for a bullpen role this spring due to the expected starting rotation of right-handers Jeremy Hellickson, Clay Buchholz, Jerad Eickhoff, Aaron Nola and Vince Velasquez. All 12 of Asher's major league appearances with the Phillies since 2015 have come as a starter. He was suspended 80 games in June for a testosterone-related PED.
- The Phillies' home opener on Friday, April 7 against the Washington Nationals is exactly six weeks away. Either Velasquez or Nola are expected to earn the starting nod.
What's Next:
- Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017: vs. New York Yankees, 1:05 p.m.
- Spectrum Field (Clearwater)
- RHP Adam Warren (2016: 7-4, 4.68 ERA) vs. LHP Adam Morgan (2016: 2-11, 6.04 ERA)
- TV: CSN; Radio: SportsRadio 94 WIP
