LAKELAND, Fla. -- The last time Edmundo Sosa played center field, he borrowed Kyle Schwarber's outfielder¡¯s glove.
It happened on April 5, 2023, at Yankee Stadium. Josh Harrison had pinch-hit for Cristian Pache in the top of the seventh inning and Harrison stayed in the game to play third, moving Sosa from third to center.
Sosa had played only one-third of an inning in center in his career at that point.
He played there for the first time since that day at Yankee Stadium in Saturday¡¯s 1-0 loss to the Tigers in a Grapefruit League game at Publix Field.
Sosa used his own glove this time. He ordered one before Spring Training.
¡°I have it ready to play,¡± Sosa said through the team¡¯s interpreter.
The Phillies are playing Sosa in the outfield this spring because they are trying to find the best way to build their bench. Sosa is the team¡¯s only lock to make the four-man bench. Rafael March¨¢n and Garrett Stubbs are competing to be the backup catcher, leaving two other spots available. Johan Rojas is a frontrunner to make the team as the fourth outfielder, although manager Rob Thomson reiterated on Saturday that Rojas must earn it.
If Rojas does make the team, Kody Clemens and Buddy Kennedy are top contenders for the final job. Clemens hits left-handed. Kennedy hits right-handed. They can each play both infield and outfield and both are out of Minor League options, which will be a factor. Outfielder Cal Stevenson is the only other candidate on the 40-man roster, but he has an option remaining.
If Sosa can play the outfield, the Phillies will have another right-handed-hitting option to play left or center, if they want to rest Max Kepler or Brandon Marsh against a tough left-handed pitcher. It also could allow them to option Rojas, opening a wider path for Clemens and Kennedy -- or somebody else in camp.
Sosa played left field on Thursday, but he did not have a ball hit his way. He caught two balls on Saturday. He caught one in shallow left-center in the third. He got a good jump, but almost overran it. He caught another one in left-center in the fifth, breaking in initially before going back to catch it.
¡°He¡¯s getting better,¡± Thomson said.
It¡¯s a work in progress.
¡°I feel all right,¡± Sosa said. ¡°I feel much better. I¡¯m seeing the ball much better. I¡¯m seeing the angles much better. My reactions are quicker.¡±
Does he think he could play the outfield during the regular season?
¡°Yeah, I could do it,¡± he said.
If he can, it¡¯s another way to get his bat in the lineup.
¡°That¡¯s a privilege,¡± Sosa said. ¡°We have a lot of good players on the Phillies. There¡¯s a lot of great players here. Being in the lineup is a privilege. I'm always here to help my team win. I'm always here to do whatever they need to do to win a game, and you know, I'm always prepared for it. I'm always working hard for it. Being here feels like a dream.¡±
Nola makes his debut
Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola allowed one hit and struck out two in two scoreless innings against the Tigers in his Grapefruit League debut.
He worked on his fastball command and his changeup. They were such a focus that Nola did not throw a single curveball, his best pitch.
Nola threw four changeups to the Tigers, inducing one swing and miss. He threw a 1-0 changeup to Colt Keith in the second inning that Keith turned around with a 110.7 mph line drive directly at Nola and into center field for a single.
¡°Almost got hit in the head -- which [it] was nice it didn't hit me,¡± Nola said. ¡°The other ones felt pretty good.¡±
Nola hopes to find a better, more consistent feel for his changeup this season. Last season, opponents batted .279 with a .426 slugging percentage against it. In 2023, they batted .222 with a .322 slugging percentage against it.
¡°It was on and off, but I feel like it was more consistently out of the zone, rather than more of an aggressive pitch in the zone,¡± Nola said. ¡°I wasn't able to even counts with it or get back into a count with it, so I had to rely on other stuff. Every year, I try to sharpen that pitch. That's always a feel pitch for me, like try to get it to sharpen before the season starts and have it all season.¡±