Spring Training #GrapefruitGators
In front of a packed crowd in Clearwater, Florida, the Philadelphia Phillies played host to the Minnesota Twins in Spring Training action.
Fans are starting to fill in the “bleachers” pic.twitter.com/8iHAgbsZrC
— Bailey LeFever (@blefever10) March 5, 2018
Philly Philly in Clearwater
Philadelphia outfielder Rhys Hoskins enters the 2018 season with a lot of excitement surrounding his emergence.
On Monday afternoon, Hoskins was the spark plug to the Phillies’ offense in a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins at Spectrum Field in Clearwater.
Hoskins had a slow start to Spring Training, going 2-14 at the plate, good for a struggling .143 average.
Working off Twins pitcher Kyle Gibson, Hoskins smacked a home run in the bottom of the second frame to open the scoring for either side.
Gibson has a fantastic finish to the 2017 season, hitting 18 home runs in his first 34 games. The Sacramento State product was also the quickest to reach 10 home runs in major league history, doing so in just 17 games.
Philadelphia utilized that momentum to build an early lead that Minnesota couldn’t match.
In the top of the bottom of the fourth, Hoskins reached base safely after a Minnesota throwing error. Two batters later, catcher Andrew Knapp hit a sac fly deep enough into center field to bring home Hoskins and give the Phillies a 2-0 advantage.
Cesar Hernandez, acting as the designated hitter in the matchup, belted a RBI double off Twins righty Aaron Slegers in the fifth, followed by another double from Maikel Franco.
Minnesota did its best to muster up some late offense, but early mishaps kept it from finding a groove.
Philadelphia starting hurler Vince Velasquez allowed a few early hits, giving up two hits within the first four batters he faced.
But Velasquez found his command and rhythm against the middle of the Twins’ order, striking out back-to-back batters to retire the side and leave two runners stranded.
Velasquez is expected to pick up a hefty role as one of the starting rotation of pitchers for the Phillies and first-year manager Gabe Kapler.
The 25-year old will look to improve on struggling numbers through the 2017 campaign, going 2-7 with a 5.14 ERA.
Philadelphia pulled seven other pitchers out of its bullpen, with Mark Leiter receiving the most amount of work with three innings.
Kapler’s assortment of pitchers stood tall against the Twins, allowing seven hits in total. Minnesota plated three runs in the final two innings, but Garrett Cleavinger tossed the final out to secure the Phillies’ fifth Spring Training Victory.
Philadelphia will take a day of rest before taking on the Boston Red Sox back at Spectrum Field on Wednesday.
Twins Struggle in Loss
The Twins fell short of a comeback but are looking forward to moving on to the next game. Now the Twins have lost 3 games in a row after falling short of a victory on the road.
For the Twins, the game started to a slow start. The Twins weren’t on the board until the top of the 8thwhen Gregorio Petit came up to plate to kick-start the Twins.
Vargas gets the game started for the #Twins with a smooth double with some 🔥🔥🔥 on it #grapefruitgators
— Bailey LeFever (@blefever10) March 5, 2018
The game went into the bottom of the eighth with a score of 4 to 2 when Brok Stassi sent Tanner English to home. Petit kept the momentum going when he stepped up to bat again in the top of 9th to give the Twins their last point of the game.
Romero is in for the @Twins hoping to quell the bat-breaking force that is the @Phillies today #grapefruitgators
— Bailey LeFever (@blefever10) March 5, 2018
Now, the only thing they can do is take that momentum into the next game. With a few weeks of spring training left, there is still room for adjustments before the regular season kicks off. Last season, a loss by the Los Angeles Angles helped the Minnesota Twins clinch a spot in the post season.
Baseball. The Beach Boys. Birds? Yep, this is spring training. #grapefruitgators pic.twitter.com/piVxQJiOKh
— Bailey LeFever (@blefever10) March 5, 2018
Their postseason run fell short when they lost to the Yankees 8 to 4 in the wild-card game. Now that the past is behind them, time will tell what’s in store for the Minnesota Twins this season. With the Twins matching up against the Orioles tomorrow, it could be time for another comeback for Minnesota.
Spectrum Field in Photos
Spectrum Field has played host to the Philadelphia Phillies since 1967 when it was then referred to as Carpenter Field. The stadium features seating for 7,300, with berm seating that allows for another 1,500. Spectrum Field is also located in Clearwater, which is a Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary Sportstown, and No. 1 in the state of Florida. Philadelphia has been training in Clearwater since 1947.
