This is the time of year when local Philadelphia sports fans change their wardrobes.
For the last six months, they’ve been donning green sweatshirts, jerseys and hats in support of the Eagles.
Now it’s time to break out the red and pinstripes.
The Phillies held their first spring training workout in Clearwater, Florida earlier this week and are scheduled to start playing Grapefruit League games Saturday when they head over to Dunedin to face the Toronto Blue Jays.
Six weeks from now, they open the 2026 season against the Texas Rangers at Citizens Bank Park.
There are some interesting storylines to follow both on and off the field over the next month or so.
Top prospects Andrew Painter and Justin Crawford are in Clearwater and are expected to have big impacts.
Painter, a hard-throwing right-hander, will join a starting rotation that is in flux. Ace Zack Wheeler is still recovering from surgery to correct thoracic outlet syndrome. In one of the odder side notes, Wheeler had one of his ribs removed during the procedure and kept it.
In addition, top left-hander Ranger Suarez signed a five-year, $130 million contract with the Red Sox.
The Phils are counting on Painter to join 2025 Cy Young runner-up Cristopher Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo, Aaron Nola and Taijuan Walker in the rotation.
“One of my goals is to come back as soon as I can,” Wheeler told MLB.com.
Crawford is also part of an outfield that’s going to have a new look this season.
The 22-year-old is expected to be the Phillies’ starting centerfielder, along with newcomer Adolis Garcia and holdover Brandon Marsh and perhaps Johan Rojas.
Garcia, 32, who signed a one-year deal, was the 2023 ALCS MVP for the Texas Rangers.
He’s taking over for Nick Castellanos, whose controversial tenure with the Phillies ended last week when the club opted to release him. Castellanos subsequently signed with the San Diego Padres. The Phillies are responsible for $19 million of his $20 million salary.
The Phils decision to dump him apparently stemmed from an incident in Miami last summer when the outfielder brought a bottle of Presidente beer into the dugout after getting pulled for a defensive replacement.
“After being taken out of a close game in front of my friends and family, I brought a Presidente into the dugout,” Castellanos said in a handwritten note he posted on social media. “I then sat right next to (Phillies manager) Rob (Thomson) and let him know that too much slack in some areas and too tight of restrictions in others was not conducive to us winning.
“We aired out our differences (after the game) and the conversation ended with my apologizing for letting my emotions get the best of me.”
There’s another potential distraction still permeating in the clubhouse with star Bryce Harper.
Phils general manager Dave Dombroski suggested earlier this offseason that the two-time NL MVP was not an elite player last season and questioned whether he could regain that status.
Harper batted .261 last season – his lowest average since he hit .260 in 2019 – with 27 home runs and 75 RBI.
Harper was subsequently shown taking batting practice wearing a “Not Elite” t-shirt and still seemed bothered by the comments upon reporting to Clearwater.
“I don’t get motivated by that kind of stuff,” Harper said. “For me, the whole situation was kind of wild of that happening. The big thing for me was when we first met with the organization, it was ‘we’re always going to keep things in house and we expect you to do the same thing.’ When that didn’t happen, it kind of took me for a run a little bit.
“Obviously, I didn’t have the season I wanted, I didn’t have the postseason I wanted. My numbers weren’t where they needed to be. I know that. I don’t need to be motivated to be great. It was wild.”
Harper doesn’t drink alcohol, so sharing a cold beer is out of the question, but maybe he and Dombroski can clear the air over some iced tea.
High School postseason heating up
Several Cape-Atlantic League schools are involved in championship competitions this week.
The CAL boys and girls basketball tournaments are scheduled for Saturday at Egg Harbor Township High School.
The girls final will feature the winner of Wednesday’s semifinals. Defending champion Middle Township faced Hammonton in one semi, while Wildwood Catholic played Egg Harbor Township.
In the boys tournament, Middle played Atlantic City in one semifinal while St. Augustine Prep faced Ocean City.
Several wrestling teams were scheduled to compete in the first two rounds of the state group team tournaments.
Top-seeded Lower Cape May Regional and fifth-seeded Middle were in South Jersey Group II; and Ocean City was the fourth seed in Group III. The South Jersey finals will be held next Wednesday.
In boys swimming, perennial power Mainland Regional was scheduled to face top-seeded Chatham in the state Group B semifinals on Wednesday at Gloucester Tech. A win would send the Mustangs to the state final Sunday at Rutgers University.
St. Augustine Prep won the Non-Public A South championship on Monday with a 127.5-42.5 win over Christian Brothers at the Neptune Aquatics Center. The Hermits will swim against Delbarton in the state finals Sunday at Rutgers.
David is a nationally recognized sports columnist who has covered Philadelphia and local sports for over 40 years. After 35 years with The Press, he has served as a columnist for 973ESPN.com and created his own Facebook page, Dave Weinberg Extra Points. Send comments to weinbergd419@comcast.net.
