Spring training is so close you can almost smell the freshly mowed grass at Bright House Field. As the days count down to Clearwater, we take a daily look at something related to the Phillies. Some days, it will be newsy, some days it will be lighter in nature, some days it will be a thought or quick observationanything to get us in the mood for a little warmth, a little sunshine and those three sweet words: pitchers and catchers.
Having remade their bench with some power and versatility, the Phillies are now looking to add some speed.
Thats why they signed veteran outfielder Juan Pierre, a three-time league stolen base champ, to a minor-league contract on Friday. Pierre will compete for a big-league job in spring training.
Juans speed element is something we clearly do not have on our bench, general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. There are no guarantees hell be on our club. Hell have to earn it and be the right fit for our club. But he has a legitimate chance because of that speed element.
Phillies officials have been looking to add some speed to their bench all winter. Even before Pierre, the team had signed veteran Scott Podsednik to a minor-league deal and invited him to big-league spring-training camp. Podsednik was the National League stolen base leader with 70 for Milwaukee in 2004, but he will turn 36 in March and has been plagued by foot problems in recent seasons. Pierre, 34, won two National League stolen base crowns and led the AL with 68 while playing for the White Sox in 2010. He had 27 for the Sox last season.
With Domonic Brown likely headed for more development time in Triple A, Pierre and Podsednik will create a little spring drama by competing for the fifth outfielders job.
Theyll be battling, Amaro said.
MLB
Four outfield jobs are set with Shane Victorino in center, Hunter Pence in right and John Mayberry Jr. and Laynce Nix combining in left.
Pierre spent last season as the Chicago White Sox regular leftfielder. He hit.279 with a .329 on-base percentage in 158 games.
The Phils began reshaping their bench in November when they signed Jim Thome to be a power bat pinch-hitter. They traded for versatile Ty Wigginton to help at the corner infield spots and added free-agent Nix to be a left-handed-hitting complement to Mayberry, Jr. in left field.
The reshaping continued this week when the Phils traded Wilson Valdez, their top utility infielder, to Cincinnati. Amaro said he was still looking to add another piece, probably on a minor-league contract, before camp begins Feb. 19. Finances will dictate how much more the Phillies can do. The club is concerned about pushing the 178 million luxury-tax threshold in 2012. Major League Baseball determined the Phillies payroll to be about 500,000 shy of that mark in 2011.
E-mail Jim Salisbury at jsalisbury@comcastsportsnet.com