The Phillies need to be cautious with Bryson Stott | Sports Daily Newsletter

Top Phillies prospect Bryson Stott is having a great spring and pushing to make the team’s opening-day roster.

But the Phillies will need to be very careful with how they handle and utilize their young shortstop. Why? if they aren’t, Marcus Hayes argues they could soon have another Scott Kingery situation on their hands.

In 2018, Kingery, also a middle infielder by trade, was the Phillies’ top prospect and made the team after a strong spring. The Phillies proceeded to shift Kingery around in the field, deploying him at six positions in his first six games. In hindsight, it was the worst thing for his development.

Kingery, now 27, is back in the minors trying to reignite his once-promising career. His tale should be a cautionary one for the Phillies and how they handle Stott, whom the team seems hell-bent on experimenting with at different positions.

A young player like Stott needs consistency, not flexibility, writes Hayes. Hopefully, the Phillies have learned their lesson.

On the heels of WIP-FM host Jon Marks saying he would get a tattoo of Bryce Harper on his back if the Phillies win the World Series: Which Philly athlete past or present would you consider getting a tattoo of? sports.daily@inquirer.com

Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie announced that in 2023, the Eagles are bringing back their kelly green jerseys as alternate uniforms. Lurie has for years been determined to work with the NFL to make it happen. The Eagles did wear kelly green alternates for a game in 2010. The 2023 versions that are being developed with Nike could closely resemble the classic jerseys that Randall Cunningham and Reggie White once wore.

Lurie also praised coach Nick Sirianni for his first season as head coach. Earlier on Tuesday, Sirianni spoke of preparing for another season of using the run to set up the pass. The Eagles know they have a quarterback in Jalen Hurts who’s continuing to develop and is working in Southern California with various coaches. “We’re going to work like crazy to get our pass game where we want it, to get it better,” Sirianni said at the NFL owners’ meetings.

The war of words between L.A. Clippers coach Tyron Lue and 76ers president Daryl Morey continues.

After Lue made snide comments about the free-throw attempts of Joel Embiid and James Harden, Morey took to Twitter and said stars are fouled more often because they are harder to defend. “Say it with me again — players are fouled because the other team cannot stop them …” Morey said.

For now, as The Inquirer’s Keith Pompey notes, Lue has the last word. And he hit below the belt, making a reference to a tweet Morey sent in support of Hong Kong protesters fighting for democracy. “Should he really be tweeting anything right now?” Lue asked. “Last time he tweeted, he cost the NBA a billion dollars. So, I don’t think he should be doing too much tweeting. Just worry about his own team.”

It’s too bad these teams won’t face each other again this season.

The defending NBA champions beat the Sixers on Tuesday night, as Giannis Antetokounmpo’s block of Joel Embiid’s shot all but sealed a 118-116 win for the Milwaukee Bucks.

Next: The Sixers will take on the Pistons in Detroit on Thursday (7 p.m., NBCSP).

Line kings: Villanova is shooting 83% as a team heading into the Final Four and is poised to break the 1983-84 Harvard Crimson’s record (82.2%) for the best free-throw percentage in a season. Nowhere was the Wildcats’ free-throw shooting prowess more important than in Saturday’s Elite Eight win over Houston. Villanova went a perfect 15-for-15 against the Cougars and as Mike Jensen found out, that was no accident.

“Coach K knows my name”: The last Big 5 team to beat Mike Krzyzewski and Duke? It wasn’t Villanova, it was Temple in 2012. Matt Breen caught up with Khalif Wyatt, the former Temple guard who spearheaded the upset.

Believe it or not, opening day is just nine days away! What will the Phillies’ opening-day lineup look like? That is in flux, as the team still has several key questions to answer. Our Scott Lauber makes his projections for the Phillies’ 28-man roster for the opener against Oakland.

One player who will not be on that roster is outfielder Adam Haseley, who was traded to the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday for minor league pitcher McKinley Moore. The trade of Haseley, who was a first-round pick in the 2017 draft, could open the door for Mickey Moniak in center field.

Next: The Phillies face the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday at 1:05 p.m. in Clearwater, Fla. (NBCSP+).

The Flyers lost again on Tuesday night, falling, 4-1, to the Minnesota Wild in Noah Cates’ NHL debut. The defeat ends a five-game road trip in which the Flyers compiled a 1-4 record.

In other news, the Flyers signed college All-American Ronnie Attard to an entry-level contract. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound defenseman recently completed his junior season at Western Michigan.

A 2019 third-round pick, Attard has been lauded for his offensive upside on the back end, and finished as the third-leading scorer in the NCAA among defenseman this past season with 36 points.

Next: The Flyers are back on home ice Saturday to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs (7 p.m., NBCSP).

Wednesday will officially mark the end of an era for the United States men’s national team, as barring a six-goal defeat in Costa Rica, the U.S. will qualify for the World Cup. It’s an accomplishment a certain Union player secured on Tuesday.

The qualification will be even more significant this time around, after the U.S. failed to qualify for the 2018 edition of the tournament. It will also likely be the last qualifier for six years for the U.S., who likely will receive an automatic berth in the 2026 World Cup as co-hosts.

While one era is set to an end, another one is beginning for the women’s national team. Ahead of the team’s April friendlies, one of which will be played April 9 at Subaru Park, the U.S. revealed a very young roster. Jonathan Tannenwald has the skinny on which new faces you need to know.

On Tuesday, we asked you how many men’s basketball coaches Villanova has had since the school started playing basketball in 1920.

Believe it or not, the answer is A: eight. Jay Wright became just the Wildcats’ eighth head coach when he was hired in 2001. While Wright has the most wins (520) and has coached the most games (716) in school history, he is not the longest tenured Villanova coach. That distinction goes to Al Severance, who spent 25 seasons at the helm for the Wildcats from 1936-61.

Starting to think it’s fate that Duke will win the NCAA title in coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final season? Not so fast. That’s because the previous three times Villanova and Kansas have met in the NCAA Tournament, the victor has cut down the nets.

Kansas beat the Wildcats in the Sweet 16 on its way to the title in 2008, while Villanova edged the Jayhawks in the Elite Eight in 2016, and the Final Four in 2018, on the way to championships. Kansas opened as a four-point favorite against Villanova for Saturday’s game.

We compiled today’s newsletter using reporting from: Marcus Hayes, Giana Han, Olivia Reiner, Mike Jensen, Keith Pompey, Scott Lauber, Matt Breen, Jonathan Tannenwald, Jeff McLane, and Jeff Neiburg.