Phillies Notes: Domonic Brown closing in on starting job
TAMPA, Fla. - The Phillies named Cole Hamels their opening-day starter earlier this week, and Charlie Manuel came tantalizingly close Saturday to saying Domonic Brown would man one of his corner outfield spots - most likely left field - in the April 1 opener against the Atlanta Braves.
TAMPA, Fla. - The Phillies named Cole Hamels their opening-day starter earlier this week, and Charlie Manuel came tantalizingly close Saturday to saying Domonic Brown would man one of his corner outfield spots - most likely left field - in the April 1 opener against the Atlanta Braves.
"I would say right now, he's got the lead," the manager said after the Phillies' 7-0 exhibition win over the New York Yankees at Steinbrenner Field. "Kind of like Smarty Jones or something out front. Big Brown out front."
Brown, 25, has earned that distinction by having the best spring training of his career, which continued when he slammed a three-run home run off veteran righthander Hiroki Kuroda to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning. It was the fourth home run of the spring for Brown, who is hitting .365 with eight RBIs.
Perhaps more encouraging were a couple of defensive plays - a diving catch in the sixth and a running catch in the gap in the seventh.
Brown said he was happier with the home run than the defensive plays because it put the Phillies in front.
"I'm making sure I'm doing the little things," Brown said. "I'm going out, doing my early work, and working my butt off."
With Cole Hamels pitching against Phillies minor-leaguers in Clearwater, lefthander Raul Valdes got the start against the Yankees and continued to make his case for a place in the bullpen. Valdes, 35, threw three scoreless innings, which was the same result he had in his previous appearance against Detroit.
Manuel said Valdes was competing for a spot as the Phillies' long man and specialty lefty in the bullpen.
"He pitched pretty good last year if you stop and think about it," the manager said.
Valdes had a 2.90 ERA in 27 appearances.
After throwing five innings against minor-leaguers at the Carpenter Complex, Hamels was asked about the first opening-day assignment of his career.
"It really is [an honor]," he said. "A lot of great pitchers have had that honor, and to be one of them is something I will cherish. To be able to get your team off to the right start sets the tone for the entire season."
The Phillies' 2013 ace was asked about Roy Halladay, who will try to rebound from his rough outing Tuesday against Detroit when he pitches Sunday against Baltimore.
"If Doc's not Doc, OK, now he just went from immortal to still sort of immortal," Hamels said. "He's one of the best pitchers in baseball and he knows how to fight to the very last breath. He's not going to give up. He still has the best pitches. He has the best sort of game knowledge. He prepares himself to win and he's going to win."
