There is not much mystery about the composition of the 2011 Phillies. Seven of eight positions are locked in, as are four bench spots. The entire starting rotation is set.
There are three bullpen locks (Lidge, Madson, Contreras), three more “almost certains” (Romero, Kendrick, Bastardo), and one final spot that will go to whoever looks better in the Spring: Danys Baez or David Herndon. The fact that Baez is due $2.75MM and Herndon can be optioned to the minor leagues at no penalty sways the odds in Baez’ favor.
(If you recall, Herndon was a Rule 5 pick last year, and, had the Phillies not kept him on the active roster for all of 2010, the Angels could have taken him back at half price. That is no longer the case this year. The Twins did this with Johan Santana once upon a time – kept him for all of his Rule 5 season, then sent him down to the minors for more seasoning.)
Despite the constant reminders of Charlie Manuel and Ruben Amaro that “Domonic B...
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