After the Phillies made the surprising decision to option Scott Kingery to Triple-A, manager Joe Girardi was in need of a utility option for his opening day roster. Thus, Ronald Torreyes has been told that he made the team, per MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki (via Twitter). Torreyes, 28, appeared in four games with the Phillies in 2020, though he saw significant playing time with the Yankees from 2016 to 2018. Also appearing for the Dodgers and Twins, Torreyes owns a career .277/.306/.369 line in 639 plate appearances across six years. He has mostly split his time between second, third, and short, though he has technically seen time in each of the three outfield positions, albeit sparingly.
The Phillies also announced the release of C.J. Chatham, per the Athletic’s Matt Gelb (via Twitter). The right-handed infielder and former second-round pick of the Red Sox was another contender for the roster spot that went to Torreyes. Chatham has yet to make his Major League debut, though he posted a solid season in the upper minors in 2019. He marked a .297/.333/.403 in 376 plate appearances in Double-A and a .302/.333/.430 in 91 plate appearances with Triple-A Pawtucket.
Torreyes’ presence on the roster likely means that only two of Adam Haseley, Roman Quinn, and Odubel Herrera will make the team. The likeliest outcome is that Haseley begins the season in the minors. He has options remaining and missed a decent chunk of the spring due to injury. Quinn has the best numbers this spring with a .294/.351/.441 line across 38 plate appearance, and since he is out of options, it’s safe to assume he’ll make the roster. That said, the stats themselves aren’t necessarily the barometer that Girardi and company are using to make these roster decisions.
Philadelphia does have two open spots on their 40-man roster. Torreyes needs one of those spots, however, and Matt Joyce would need one as well if he makes the team. Herrera and Brandon Kintzler are also roster candidates who would need to be added to the 40-man.
Aaron Judge: “Good job little buddy.”
I thought Chatham had a chance to make the team specially after DD acquired him from the Red Sox. DD spoke so well about him and he was acquired the same day that Sam Fuld was introduced as the new general manager.
Looks like they want kingery getting everyday ABs or they want him to work on something.
Work on something! Guy hit .159 last year and this spring fanned in almost half of his at bats. I’d say he needs to work on everything.
The guy needs to get back to being a contact first guy who’s a burner on the bases. Kapler had all these guys bulking up and using coconut oil and he got away from his real game- being Jetpax. I gotta be real, I miss bunts and stolen bases in today’s game.
poor Chatham hopefully he can make his MLB debut somewhere else
This is the last year of Odubel Herrera’s original contract. He’s getting $10 million this year. As much as some fans (and team mates) are unhappy with this guy, he may be playing more CF than some want.
WTG little Toe.
Odubel needs a new hairdo. Without a helmet he looks like Cousin Itt after being left in the spin cycle too long. BTW, only the older dudes on this board will know who Cousin Itt is.
I dont get it really. Give that roster spot to Joyce and select Kintzler. Dont agree with the Scotty thing either. He could have platooned in CF with Odubel and spot Segura and maybe Didi against a lefty he doesnt handle well. Still would have got regular playing time with PH and defensive duties late on his days off. Hasely missed most of the spring, so optioning him makes sense. If I had to guess, Torryes doesn’t make it to the Allstar break.
Kintzler and Joyce already made the roster, they probably just haven’t worked out the details yet.
Yes – that was reported the other day. They also reported that Simon Muzziotti was going on the restricted list (visa issues). That opens one 40-man spot and releasing Chatham opens another. They’ll likely have to DFA at least one young pitcher on the 40-man – Mauricio Llovera or Francisco Morales seem like likely candidates. One or two depends on whether they add Herrera. I’m not sure I agree with the writer that Haseley is a shoo-in for AAA. They might go with Quinn/Haseley to start and leave Herrera off the roster as depth to start the season. But, IMO, Herrera has clearly hit the ball better than other CF candidates.
@ seillihp;
Agree with your point about Haseley – who I like a lot.
Dombrowski and Girardi are all about winning this year….and beyond. Past Phillie FO and managerial theories / actions have to be thrown out. The days of the country club locker room are gone. Actions taken on the roster will all be geared towards winning. Period.
not to be rude, but if you think Morales is first off you dont know that much about our roster.
I’m pretty excited about the new bullpen. Lineup was very good last year and could be even better this year. McCutchen and Segura are finishing the spring strong. Starting pitching depth is their biggest weakness IMO. It will seem worse as AAA games take a while to start and we don’t really get a feel for how the depth starters are doing.
Not sure about Morales but they may only need to DFA one. Llovera seems like the obvious one to go first. After that, the choices get tougher. Which is why they may just leave Herrera off the roster for now. Dohy and Falter seem unlikely but maybe Dohy. Cristopher Sánchez is a maybe but they were pretty hyped on his potential when they traded for him. Part of the game this time of year is hoping for enough roster crunch that other teams won’t make claims. Then you circle back before Rule 5 and add who you need to protect (again sometimes).
Kingery looked absolutely atrocious in 2020, and those struggles continued in 2021 spring training. So there’s no doubt they want him to work, getting more at bats and hopefully fixing himself. I get the decision to keep him down. That being said, Torryes has not impressed as a Phillie. I really hope this isn’t just Girardi being loyal to one of his boys, but Torryes last Phillies stint was lackluster. Miller is hurt, so I guess they need another option at the start of the season.
They need two extra infielders – one more other than Miller. Torreyes is also a RH bat on the already lefty-heavy bench (Joyce, Miller and maybe Haseley). Torreyes plays all infield positions and has also played outfield and has some decent PH experience. He’s your typical last man on the bench IMO. If Miller is hurt, expect lefty Maton to get the call up. He’s had a good spring.
Plus Girardi loves him and knows the value he brings to a winning team.
Agree. I think the old Phillies would have released Torreyes and gone with Kingery. There’s a definite change with Girardi and Dombrowski.
Kingery has been terrible since the second half of 2019. This is no mystery, he’s just not that good.
I’m embarrassed to say I used to get this guy mixed up with Gleyber Torres all the time when he was a yankee.
Wow, I thought I was the only one.
Make that three, lassies
We need to start support group.
Red Sox should resign CJ to a minor league deal with no roster spot of course
He not only makes it to the All Star break, he makes the All Star team! Ahahaha!
Not too thrilled about Ronald Torreyes, but there’s no doubt Kingery still needs work. I’m still more baffled by the Romero option.
I’m hoping the Phillies can bring Watson back, in the same way the brewers got Zimmermann back and the rangers with Nick Vincent.
Me too.
I see Donbrowski sitting alone at ST games with some forms that he’s filling out about the Phillies players as the game goes on.
I like Watson. But there’s either something about his salary or game that DD and/or Girardi see that the average fan (myself included) doesn’t.
I think Watson will be back on a minor league deal. Tough to get a roster spot this time of year when you haven’t been in camp with a team. He would have made $3 million if he were added to the roster. I sensed for a while they’d only go with one of those $3 million contracts – Kintzler or Watson – and Kintzler clearly was the one to go with. Watson also had that one awful ST game that ballooned his ERA up to 7.20 – also a 2,20 WHIP! He’s better than that but he’s also lost velocity in recent years.
Von, can you make heads or tails of releasing Chatham over simply trying to outright him? is this an overseas move, because i cant imagine DD soured on him that quick to see him outright released.
@DarkSide seems odd to me as well. I was a bit baffled by a lot of today’s moves.
I was wondering the same thing.
Romero will be up soon enough. It’s a roster numbers game and I think they really liked what they saw with Coonrod and Brogdon so they get the nod over Romero. But 3-4 of those bullpen spots will be a shuttle bus deal. Girardi said the decider was Romero needs to get ahead more and throw more strikes.
@seillihp Great points. 1 lefty in the pen just seems odd to me. That’s the only thing I’m hesitant about here. So I’d want Romero up, but as you said, he’ll be here eventually.
Wrote earlier today that I thought Joe Girardi wanted Ronald Torreyes. Cashman really screwed up when he let Torreyes go. Subsequent troubles in the games of Gleybor and Miguel Andujar could have been mitigated some as Torreyes was a friend and mentor to those young guys (as well as others). It’s not like he was making a lot of money. And he produced on the field when he played – the fans loved him.
Again, at this point I see the Phillies winning the NLE this year. Girardi has those guys playing together as a team; playing strong fundamentals to win. Today’s moves by Dombrowski show that the Phillies FO and Manager are serious about winning. Now! The Phillies have become a professional operation, not a bunch of kids trying out statistical theories and playing favorites. Forget the ST player stats and record as ST is for trying things. The team is a joy to watch, and as long as they keep playing the way they are – and Girardi will see to it or they’ll sit….or Dombrowski ships then out – then the wins will come. That’s now a very talented roster that works off one another.
Wha….. ? I ….. you…… lololol.
@Yankee Clipper.. I know right?
Love the positivity. As long as we don’t play TOR in WS
Not sure I agree with that. He was a waste of a roster spot on the Yankees. Seemed like a good clubhouse guy, but couldn’t hit or field.
Ah, don’t think you know much about the Yankees there Samuel….and Cashman certainly didn’t “screw up” here….Toe, while a popular player was basically at 28 not exactly a mentor to anyone let alone the two players you mentioned who were just a couple of years younger than he……..he was basically just glad he had a major league job….while a nice contact hitter, had little to no power, and defensively was average at best at several infield positions…..the Yankees, while appreciating the popularity of this player nonetheless decided that they had better options replacing him on their roster which they did. That being said, the Phillies maybe don’t which is why he has made their roster….just don’t expect the world from a nice, but very average at best player….
I watched a lot of Yankee games at that time.
Torreyes, Andujar, and Gleyber were always hanging out together (the day Gleyber arrived – “Gleyber Day” – YES had video of the 3 of them hanging out together in the dugout, smiling, joking, and having a great time together. They were always sitting on the bench together talking about the game and encouraging one another (same as Alonso and Dom Smith with the Mets). One could see Torreyes mentoring them – as pointed out by the announcers.
MLB is not rotisserie baseball. It’s played on the field – and one must be prepared before they step on the field. There are games major leaguers use on one another that is nothing like AAA – which is why doing great in AAA doesn’t automatically assure success at the ML level. Young players need to be mentored some. Torreyes has always been a team guy. It’s something Girardi appreciates. But fans that think hitting routine fly balls into the right field bleachers at Yankee Stadium is the key to winning don’t get it, and don’t understand why the Yankees underperform each year since Girardi left, and why watching them play is like watching ‘Home Run Derby’ (had a number of Yankee fans tell me “Yankees suck” the past few years, as they turned the team off).
I’ve watched Torreyes play with the Phillies this ST. Same as always – plays solid D, works counts, get walks, keeps rallies going. He’ll be the last position player of the roster. As such he isn’t being paid a lot. A professional manager and FO exec appreciate that, but will cut strings if he stops performing. He knows that. A great teammate.
Okay….. holy blowhard Batman! That bloviating buffoonery has befuddled me yet again! He must be the Riddler, for only he can talk in such circuitous sentences!
I get he was a fan favorite, but we’re talking about a guy with an 80 career wRC+ and 1.7 fWAR in 638 plate appearances. If that’s the bench/back up option for Gleyber Torres, you’re bench is extremely shallow.
erm…
Nice job, Toe! Best of luck ya little firecracker!
The return of Toe!!!! Happy he is back in the bigs and trust me Philly fans who are skeptical of this, you’re going to love him in no time. He is a great utility guy and can get hits in bunches when you need him most.
You heard it here, Ronnie Short legs is going to blow ya minds!
@Joe Momma he was on the Phillies last year haha. We’ve seen him. He wasn’t great.
Seems like a nice guy, but Toe is pretty worthless.
While serviceable right now..Girardi will jump at the chance of upgrading when he has that option……nice guys won’t get you a pennant alone….you’ve got to have the roster talent to accomplish that….and Toe, given both his offensive and defensive game is definitely the end of the bench overall.
Yeah you say that but wait until he’s batting cleanup for the Phil’s dropping bombs and protecting Harper in the lineup. He gonna go Bruce Lee all over MLB!!!
The pirates are overrated
Kingery needs to rediscover himself at AAA and win his job back from Torreyes.
Haseley comes back and plays in 2 games and he makes the team..Goofy plays the whole spring albeit against lefties for the most part and he is not on the team..not sure I care for some of their moves..JoJo should have been on the team also..
I am not pleased at all..