With the exception of a few roster battles on the outskirts, the Philadelphia Phillies’ major league roster appears to be set. The Phillies will enter the 2024 season with many of the same everyday players that they did in 2023.
The 2023 version won 90 games and earned the first wild card spot, but fell 14 games short of the NL East title for the Atlanta Braves. Despite the success of the 2023 team, there is a good chance that Rob Thomson will change the lineup. Even if he ends up reverting to what worked last year, the start of the season is the best time to experiment because there is still time to recover.
While most players will be the same, the main difference will be that Bryce Harper will be healthy and ready to play at the start of the season. This frees up a DH spot for someone like Kyle Schwarber as well as an outfield spot for someone else.
Predicting the Phillies’ Opening Day lineup in 2024
2B Bryson Stott
Trea Turner, shortstop
1B Bryce Harper
C J.T. Realmuto
DH Kyle Schwarber
RF Nick Castellanos
3B Alec Bohm
LF Brandon Marsh
CF Johan Rojas
Of course, the biggest change is Schwarber’s promotion to fifth place. Last season, the lefty power hitter hit 29 of his 47 home runs with the bases empty, which is more common for leadoff hitters. The Phillies should prioritize getting Schwarber into more RBI situations and at the plate with more men on base.
Stott moving to the leadoff spot makes a lot of sense for this team. He’s demonstrated the ability to work counts, get on base, and limit strikeouts. If he can repeat his 2023 season, he’ll be the ideal leadoff hitter to get on base in front of Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, and Schwarber’s big bats.
The position of Realmuto at cleanup may be easily changed in future iterations of this draft lineup. Sure, the 32-year-old catcher will have a down year in 2023, but he still has the ability to hit home runs and has a chance to rebound after a difficult year. The key here is to drop Nick Castellanos to sixth place in the lineup. While he was the lone All-Star last year, his power numbers have dropped, and he has a streaky streak that can lead to extended offensive droughts.
Finally, Johan Rojas makes his debut in center field, batting ninth. By putting Harper at first base, the Phillies are able to move Brandon Marsh to a corner outfield position while keeping Gold Glove defensive star Jose Rojas in center field. Because of his exceptional glove in the outfield, the Phillies will give him every opportunity to make the Opening Day roster. He’ll have to prove he can hit MLB pitching after his bat was exposed in the playoffs. If his recent Instagram post is any indication, he has put in the work this offseason and is ready to come out swinging.
We’ll continue to tweak the Opening Day lineup prediction as the offseason progresses, but this seems like a good place to start.
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