Not surprisingly, when the Philadelphia Phillies posted manager Pete Mackanin's lineup for this evening's game against the Cincinnati Reds, Ryan Howard wasn't listed in the starting linuep. As Mackanin promised this spring, Darin Ruf will start for the team against left-handed pitchers, and the Reds are going with lefty Brandon Finnegan to start tonight's game.
2016 isn't really the first time that Howard and Ruf have platooned — it's essentially what happened in 2015, but Mackanin's openness about the set-up has made it more of a story.
Howard spoke to a group of reporters before tonight's game, including MLB.com's Todd Zolecki, and seemed not only resigned to the platoon, but resigned to the notion that this will be his final season in Philadelphia.
Ryan Howard in a reflective mood today as he discussed platooning at first and Phillies career coming to an end. pic.twitter.com/WpGEtqVy8f
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) April 6, 2016
Though this seems rather early for Howard to be discussing 2016 being his final season in Philadelphia, it's not a secret that the Phillies plan to exercise his $10 million buyout for 2017, rather than pay him $23 million. Beyond the all-world power that he once supplied, Howard's best attribute throughout his career may be that he's a very genuine guy. This was a very genuine quote.
The possibility does exist that Howard performs better against left-handed pitching than he did in 2015, forcing his way into the lineup more often against left-handed hitter. Conversely, Darin Ruf performed well against right-handed pitching this spring, so the possibility does also exist that Howard becomes less of a platoon and more of a bench piece as the season goes on.
Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) is managing editor of Philliedelphia.com, focusing on news and features.
