The Philadelphia Phillies will take the field for their first game action of the season this afternoon against the University of Tampa Spartans, who are 13-1 overall as a part of NCAA Division II's Sunshine State Conference.
First-pitch is set for 1:05 pm at Bright House Field, the Spring Training home of the Phillies since the 2004 season.
Starting Pitching Matchup:
|
University of Tampa Spartans |
Philadelphia Phillies |
||||
|
RHP |
2015: (3-0, 0.78 ERA) |
RHP |
2014: (0-1, 5.84 ERA) |
||
Scheduled Phillies to make an appearance out of the bullpen, per Ryan Lawrence:
|
Throws |
Player |
2014 Stats |
|
R |
(0-1, 19.06 ERA) |
|
|
R |
(6-3, 3.61 ERA) |
|
|
R |
(5-1, 6.27 ERA) |
|
|
L |
(2-1, 3.42 ERA) |
|
|
L |
(3-4, 2.53 ERA) |
Starting Lineups:
|
University of Tampa Spartans |
Philadelphia Phillies |
||||
|
|
Position/Bats |
Player |
|
Position/Bats |
Player |
|
1 |
3/L |
1 |
8/L |
||
|
2 |
6/R |
2 |
4/S |
||
|
3 |
7/L |
3 |
5/S |
||
|
4 |
5/R |
4 |
7/R |
||
|
5 |
9/L |
5 |
3/L |
||
|
6 |
4/R |
6 |
DH/R |
||
|
7 |
2/R |
7 |
9/R |
||
|
8 |
DH/L |
8 |
2/R |
||
|
9 |
8/L |
9 |
6/R |
||
* University of Tampa's Andrew Amaro is the nephew of Phillies' GM Ruben Amaro Jr.
Broadcast Information:
TampaSpartans.com shares how you can view today's action:
The University of Tampa has announced that it will provide a free video broadcast of Sunday’s game between UT and the Philadelphia Phillies. …
The game will be produced by UT through EZStream and Major League Baseball. Fans can access the game through TampaSpartans.tv or Phillies.com on the day of the game. The broadcasters for the game will be Jack Eich and Scott Lynn, who bring a combined 50 years of broadcasting experience at the NCAA and professional sports level.
What to Watch For:
- Odubel Herrera and Andy Oliver: Rule-5 Selections
- Herrera: Has been 'opening up a lot of eyes' in camp, according to Phillies' manager Ryne Sandberg; Could 'easily be the starting center fielder' come Opening Day, per ESPN's Jayson Stark.
- Oliver: Long-time starter that converted last season to be a relief pitcher.
- Phillies GM, Ruben Amaro Jr.:
“Oliver has a really big arm. We are officially converting him to the bullpen and we think he’s got a really good chance to do some damage in that role. He’s 94 to 98 (mph) from the left side. If he can throw enough strikes, we could have another Diekman.”
- Tommy Joseph
- Acquired in July 31, 2012 Hunter Pence trade with the San Francisco Giants
- Experienced concussion-like symptoms in 2013, limiting him to just 36 games; lingered to start of 2014 season, causing him to miss a week in early April.
- Played just 27 games in 2014 due to wrist injury suffered in early May.
- Will wear specially-designed helmet, seeking to prevent further injury to head.
- Darin Ruf
- At 28-years-old, time is running out for the Phillies' outfielder/first baseman who produced 38 home runs and 104 runs-batted-in with the 2012 Reading Phillies.
Matt Rappa (@mattrappa) is a contributor to Philliedelphia.com.
