Spring training will be a little different this year.\u00a0The Phillies have a remarkable 16 players appearing in the World Baseball Classic, with 10 of them are likely to be on the team’s 26-man roster.<\/p>\n
So while the non-Classic players will partake in a typical circuit around central Florida working to round into baseball-playing shape, a bevy of players will be playing in meaningful games, getting a crash course in competitiveness after nearly four months off.<\/p>\n
One has to ponder, as the Phillies attempt to compete for a third straight NL East title and make a deeper playoff run than their two prior early exits, is this a good thing?<\/p>\n
Strictly from a reps perspective, it most certainly is. There are more at bats and more innings to go around for the players still in Phillies regular camp. And the high pressure situations are great practice for October.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The rules of the event also protect pitchers, who are limited by pitch count in each round of the tournament.<\/p>\n
Historically speaking, the WBC has actually had a positive effect on offensive production too.<\/p>\n
A full scientific study of the exact ramifications of being actively on a World Baseball Classic roster and its impact on performance on the subsequent regular season has yet to be conducted, but an unscientific dive into some of the bigger names who played in 2023 does suggest there is a positive correlation.<\/p>\n
We took a sample of 48 of some household names who participated in the last event and saw 31 of them post a higher WAR than their season average \u2014 including Phillies Trea Turner (4.9 WAR in 2023, career 3.6 WAR per season) and J.T. Realmuto (5.2 in 2023, 3.5 on average). Turner memorably led the entire WBC with five homers and had had the second most RBI with 11. Kyle Schwarber, however, saw a rough 2023 \u2014 his worst as a Phillie \u2014 and 0.7 WAR, lower than his 1.8 per season average.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There are a lot of success stories. Shohei Ohtani posted a 10.1 WAR in 2023 \u2014 his career average is 5.9.\u00a0Mookie Betts,\u00a0Kyle Tucker,\u00a0Juan Soto,\u00a0Rafael Devers,\u00a0Ronald Acu\u00f1a Jr.,\u00a0Freddie Freeman and\u00a0Luis Robert Jr. are other big name stars who each saw their 2023 seasons produce substantially higher production than their usual above average performances.<\/p>\n
It takes extra prep work, but clearly from the large number of noteworthy participants, players find it worth the effort.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to prepare a little bit differently in spring training for that,\u201d Turner\u00a0told reporters after players arrived at spring training<\/a>\u00a0last week. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to kind of get out there earlier, and get your at-bats earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n While it’s not any sort of guarantee the three everyday hitters and now five (after\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Alvarado had to drop out)\u00a0impact pitchers the Phillies are sending to the event will be better off for it, it certainly feels like a worthwhile endeavor.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI think we\u2019re in a good spot to win,\u201d Turner said of the US team after not being selected for it again (h\/t Inquirer.com<\/a>). \u201cI\u2019ll definitely be watching it, and I wish Kyle and Bryce and all these guys, [Edmundo] Sosa, everyone playing, I hope they perform well for their countries, and it\u2019s a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n A quick breakdown (*designates they’re in the pitcher player pool, ^ designates they’re a current minor leaguer):<\/p>\n United States Dominican Republic Venezuela Mexico Italy Israel Panama Brazil Australia Netherlands SIGN UP HERE to receive the PhillyVoice Sports newsletter<\/a><\/p>\n Follow Evan on Twitter:@evan_macy<\/a><\/p>\n Like us on Facebook:\u00a0PhillyVoice Sports<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2022 Kyle Schwarber
\u2022 Bryce Harper
\u2022 Brad Keller\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2022 Johan Rojas
\u2022 Cris\u00a0S\u00e1nchez<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Jos\u00e9 Alvarado\u00a0(Recently ruled unable to play due to insurance issues \u2014 you can read about that here<\/a>)
\u2022\u00a0Jes\u00fas Luzardo*<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Taijuan Walker
\u2022\u00a0Alan Rangel*^<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Aaron Nola
\u2022\u00a0Dante Nori^<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Max Lazar^
\u2022 Garrett Stubbs^<\/p>\n
\u2022 Edmundo Sosa<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Gabriel Barbosa^<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Mitch Neunborn^<\/p>\n
\u2022 Jaydenn Estanista^<\/p>\n