Philadelphia

Phillies

Phillies manager Rob Thomson told reporters that Miller will continue to undergo treatment this week. The 21-year-old infielder is one of — if not the — best prospects in the Philadelphia system, and he could be a player who helps fantasy managers in 2026 if he’s healthy enough to do so.

Schwarber’s homer off Braxton Ashcraft was a no-doubter launched 438 feet to right. Ashcraft’s mistake was not sticking with his strategy from 2025; he intentionally walked Schwarber the one time the two were set to face off last season.

A groundball machine in the minors, Crawford opened up with an impressive double in a lefty-lefty matchup against Eric Lauer, lining a 390-foot double to left-center. He seems pretty well assured of being the Phillies’ center fielder against right-handers to begin the year, but handling lefties well this spring could earn him some extra at-bats beyond that.

Crawford is the favorite to start in center field for the Phillies on Opening Day. He’ll need a strong performance in Grapefruit League action to lock up the spot but he doesn’t have a ton of competition. The 22-year-old former first-round pick batted .334/.411/.452 with seven homers and 46 steals in 112 games at Triple-A Lehigh Valley this past season. He’ll make a fantasy impact in the stolen base department, but counting on anything beyond that in his first taste of the majors might be too optimistic, especially since he’s likely to bat at the bottom of the order. Here is the full lineup: Crawford (CF), Adolis García (RF), Edmundo Sosa (SS), Otto Kemp (LF), Bryan De La Cruz (DH), Rafael Marchán (C), Dylan Moore (2B), Christian Cairo (3B) and Keaton Anthony (1B).

Realmuto mentioned that Painer was about 98 or 99 mph in the bullpen and that the ball came out of his hand easy, without any effort. Perhaps more importantly, Realmuto mentions that the version of Painter he saw this week has far better command than he showed last year as he worked back from Tommy John surgery. “I think a lot of guys coming back from that injury don’t have the feel of the baseball to be able to command it like they normally do. Painter is one of those rare instances where he has such quality stuff, but he also commands the baseball really well...last year, he was just leaving some balls in the middle of the plate or getting behind in some counts... When he’s right, he’s kind of like [Zack] Wheeler where his stuff is so elite, but he’s still able to throw the ball on the edges.” Painter has an inside track to win the fifth starter spot in Philadelphia and is a nice target in fantasy drafts.

The Phillies are taking a cautious approach with the 35-year-old hurler and the expectation is that he’ll open the season on the injured list. It’s unclear how much time into the regular season he may miss though and if we don’t wind up seeing him at all in Grapefruit League action, it’ll be tough for fantasy managers to know what to expect from Wheeler to open the 2026 season.

Thomson didn’t say what order the top three guys would bat in, but that’s the order they finished last year in and there wouldn’t seem to be much reason to make a change. The Phillies have tended to rotate cleanup hitters based on whichever right-handed hitter has the hot hand, and that shouldn’t change. One imagines Adolis García will hit sixth initially, unless he can overtake Bohm this spring. Brandon Marsh will probably hit fifth against righties.

He’s not slated to see outfield time. The 21-year-old Miller has played shortstop exclusively to date, but the Phillies don’t have a need there at the moment. If Miller thrives at third, it could lead to more Alec Bohm trade talk as the season progresses. Miller probably isn’t ready for the majors just yet, but he impressed while hitting .259/.382/.427 in Double-A last year. He also went 9-for-27 with a homer and nine walks after a late promotion to Triple-A. Overall, he was 59-for-74 stealing bases.

The Phillies have been hoping to get a little something back for Castellanos if they pay down enough of his $20 million salary, but they might just wind up releasing him. The 33-year-old is entering the final season of a five-year, $100 million deal.

He’ll be “a little behind” but it’s not expected to prevent him from being ready for Opening Day at this point. Jhoan Duran projects as Philadelphia’s closer and Kerkering only figures to have spot opportunities to close when healthy, so there’s not much reason to roster him in shallow leagues.