Philadelphia Phillies top third base prospect Alec Bohm understands the dynamics of service time manipulation, and he understands the business sense behind holding him back in the minors to start the year, per Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “That’s a smart business move,” Bohm said.
Bryce Harper isn’t quite as accommodating, speaking out recently about the possibility of Spencer Howard – another top Philly prospect – not making the Opening Day roster, per MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. With intrasquad games such a heavy component of the ramp-up to Opening Day this season, Harper has seen Howard’s stuff up close and personal – and he’s impressed.
The Phillies rotation is set with Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, Jake Arrieta slotted into the top spots with some competition for the final two roles. Still, there are plenty of capable veteran arms on hand, giving the Phils some plausible deniability when they decide that Howard needs more seasoning. Vince Velasquez, Zach Eflin, and Nick Pivetta all spent time in Philly’s rotation last season, and some combination of the three figure to get the early turns on the bump.
Howard, 24 in ten days, has a higher ceiling than those three, but he’s only pitched as high as Double-A – he made just 6 starts in Reading last year after starting the year in High-A. Given traditional development paths, it would be surprising for Howard to make the rotation from the jump – but that’s not to say he’s not capable.
As for Bohm, the 23-year-old is the long-term answer at third base for the Phillies. Like Howard, he made it as high as Double-A last season, hitting .269/.344/.500 across 270 plate appearances. His case for making the big league roster out of camp gained some traction over the winter, but all indications were – under normal circumstances – for Bohm to continue to develop in Triple-A at the start of 2020.
As in the rotation, the Phillies could certainly make room for Bohm if they so desired, but there’s more than enough veteran talent on-hand to make due. Jean Segura and Scott Kingery can split time between second and third, and veterans Josh Harrison and Neil Walker are also in camp as non-roster invitees. Jay Bruce slots in as the regular designated hitter – another veteran totally capable of handling a starting role, even if he might be better suited to the bench. In a vacuum, there’s room for Bohm, but it’s also not against baseball wisdom to give the vets a couple of weeks or more to prove they’re still capable of handling starter’s minutes.
With the shortened schedule, teams need only keep their top prospects off the major league roster for the first 6 games to secure an additional year of team control down the road. The issue, of course, has been hotly debated for years now, culminating in a grievance filed by Kris Bryant against the league. His grievance was unsuccessful. The issue persists year after year with players like Harper taking up the mantle to speak out for the rights of younger players. Service time manipulation of this sort will continue to be a hot button issue until it’s addressed – in some form or fashion – at the time of the next CBA negotiation in 2021.
Relax Harper! It must suck that your childhood team the Yankees didn’t even make you an offer last year? Time to get over it and to stop being such a pre-Madonna. Enjoy 3rd place in the NL East this season
The man just said he wants a prospect who can help the team win make the roster. He said nothing wrong. These comments are so deranged.
Phillies got the best manager in baseball in my opinion. I feel bad for him going to the Phillies when he wanted to go to his dream job: the Cubs. Phillies are a 3rd place team this season. Hopefully they are better then the Mets?
Well said
Thank you my friend. Was really hard not to root for the Blue Jays in 1993. Couldn’t do it. Any interest in a Vladimir Guerrero Jr- Aaron Judge swap? Lol! Let me know. His father was my favorite player growing up.
I think If the jays trade vlad there will be riots in Canada
I think Harper said more than he wants a prospect who can help the team win.
“If Spencer Howard isn’t starting in our rotation by Game 6 in New York against the New York Yankees, there’s a problem. That’s all I’ll say.”
Lol! I hear you. Just don’t wanna see Harper crying after the game at Yankee Stadium. Hopefully one day in the future you can trade him for Mike Trout? Since Trout’s favorite team growing up was the Phillies. (He grew up in New Jersey)
Have you seen the Philles rotation the last few years? It stinks and they need all the talent they can get, espically in a 60 game season. Service time manipulation is trivial for a big market win now team like Philly. Pivetta, Eflin, Velazquez ain’t cutting it.
Or Bryan Price could unlock them , Jon Ritchie was giving him high praise already. Let’s see what Price can do to fix them. I think those three guys have all the things to be good pitchers, they never had the right pitching coach, the stuff is there , they got to put it together. Anything can happen in this 60 game season.
So let’s take a guy with all of 30 IP above A-ball and give him his MLB debut in Yankee Stadium, against the team with the best 2019 home OPS.
It’s not just service time manipulation that makes this a poor idea.
Yea i wouldn’t bring howard up yet either, I would rather call up Bohm instead.
Couldn’t have said it better. Sorry Philly fans
The man is about to be 24 years old. There is no minor leagues to develop in this season. He is ready. Whats the worse that can happen? He does poorly, the Phillies finish in 4th again and they lose his 2026 service? Wow thats horrifying.
That’s not going to happen. Mike Trout has a No Trade Clause/No Opt out in his 12 year contract.
Haha it’s Prima Donna not Pre-Madonna
Your right great call. Said prima Donna into phone and it came up pre-Madonna. I guess Harper is that to?
No he is post-Madonna haha but I understand, phones do funny things sometimes
Donna Summer had a lot of chart hits in the Pre-Madonna era
Yeah she was really hot also. That doesn’t hurt
Why are like 70% of the comments on this article yours?
Because I’ll cool like that!!!
I can think of 330 million reasons why he’s not too disappointed the Yankees didn’t make him an offer.
But I’m sure the Yankees would rather be paying Harper to play instead of Stanton riding the pine.
I beg to differ prima Donna Harper cried when Yankees didn’t make him an offer. Do you remember?
No I don’t. Because it didn’t happen.
The upside is the Phils get to play the red sox, marlins, and orioles a bunch. Downside is they have to face the rays, yankees, and braves a bunch.
Odds are, if you don’t win the division you don’t make the playoffs. The alignments and weaker cental/western divisions mean the wild cards probably wind up there where a mediocre team pads it’s win totals while the east beats itself bloody.
Save your prospect control for 2021. Bring them up delayed then a few weeks in unless your foots on the gas and you can pull away from everyone in 2020.
Harper was born in the 90s. Definitely not pre-Madonna
C’mon I know deep down you can’t stand this guy more then me?
I can’t stand Harper; he’s almost as annoying as bad spelling/grammar. That said, you’re right – I could probably stand him more than I could stand you.
Enjoy chasing 3rd place with the Phillies this year. Good luck with that!
I think the phillies are gonna be better then what people think, Anything can happen in this short season.
He’s being a Louise Ciccone?
Harper’s a union guy. Of course he’s going to push for Howard to make the roster. Even though Harper gets paid enough to play and possibly manage, he still isn’t the manager. Shut up and do your job, crybaby!
You don’t hear Trout inserting his managerial opinions.
Bryce Harper, be more like Mike Trout.
Harper is no Trout he never will be. How many more years will the Phillies have Harper? Phillies really need Mike Trout to come & save them. Harper is not going to make anybody better around him. The Nationals knew this when they let him go. Look at the results
Nobody except Trout is Trout; the guy is on a planet of his own.
Of course my friend. That was my point.
I’m pointing out the fact that Trout (the best player of this generation) doesnt run his mouth, so neither should Bryce.
You also don’t see the Angels playing playoff games with Mike Trout.
The Angels need pitching so bad. They should sign Paxton, Bauer, Tanaka, and Stroman next season to contend. Is that possible? At least they have Ohtani
Angels do need pitching badly , Philly atleast has a solid 1-2 punch of wheeler & nola. If the angels could add another starter to go with Ohtani & Heaney.
Sorry my friend Wheeler and Nola is a horrible 1-2 punch. Just be patient with your Halo’s. They need a few years. Can we still call them Halo’s anymore? Just checking
Nola is an ace , Look at his stats from 2018 , then in 2019 Chris Young changed him , Now with Bryan Price as pitching coach, I think he goes back to his 2018 form. Wheeler is a solid number 2 , something they needed. I think if they could get robbie ray or marcus stroman in free agency and keeping JT long term.
Hey I love JT. Can we do a JT-Sanchez swap? I disagree I look at Nola as a #2 or a #3. The problem is I look at Wheeler the same way. Phillies gotta sign Bauer and Paxton, or Tanaka next season. Then they will contend for sure. Forget about Ray or Stroman they will get shelled in that ballpark
Tanaka would be great , he can go back with Girardi. They do need a lefty. I think they got to do whatever it takes to sign JT long term. After trading Sanchez & Alfaro , it would be wasted if he’s not there. harper isn’t gonna stop saying “sign him”. I say 5 years 130 mill , 6 years 140 is my max. He’s worth it. then go for bauer , stroman or tanaka.
Instead of signing Wheeler the Phillies should of signed Mad Bum. They will regret that. Mad Bum then would of been your ace. Then Nola could of been your #2. I think there could be a connection with Girardi and Tanaka. You gotta sign Bauer or Paxton also next season
They could of signed Wheeler & MadBum , and their rotation problems would of been resolved.
1.Nola
2.Wheeler
3.MadBum
4.Eflin
5.Pivetta/Vinny V/Howard
problem solved, then need bullpen help
Wheeler/Nola is a pretty good #1 and #2. Best in the league? No, but Nola was outstanding in 2017 and 2018. A lot of people overlook Wheeler. I think he could be a top 15 pitcher in baseball if he can get some defense behind him.
It’s not the best but its a solid 1-2 punch. I really wish they did get another starter this year like MadBum or Keuchel.
Yeah would of could of. That rotation is a little backwards though with the lst three:
Mad Bum
Nola
Wheeler
I’ll still put Nola at the top , move MadBum to 2.
Nola as a #2? You lost all credibility.
MadBum over Nola? I mean based on resume yea MadBum, but if we’re looking at what they’ve done more recently, it’s going to be Nola.
I’d even consider MadBum at #3. Wheeler is really good and nobody is giving him enough credit for it. His fastball averages 97 MPH, is in the top 86th percentile of exit velo, top 82nd percentile of hard hit rate, and has a lower FIP than Clayton Kershaw and Jack Flaherty in the past 2 years. Plus he has a six-pitch mix.
Disrespectful to put Wheeler and Mad Bum in the same sentence
Nola would be lucky to hold Mad Bum’s tote bag, sorry
You guys I feel are overrating Nola. Is he Gerrit Cole all of a sudden? Maybe a #2 or #3 at best. Nothing more
He’s better then Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg? Ugh no
madbum isn’t good anymore, way too many innings on that arm. he’d get rocked in philly.
Mad Bum wanted to pitch in AZ. Gets to have his horses at home.
Phillies would have had no better chance to sign him than the Giants.
there are a lot of #1s nor named Gerrit Cole.
And what is Bumgarner then? An ace? Maybe 3 or 4 years ago. I’m not saying that Nola is just as good as Jacob deGrom, nor is anyone else. But Bumgarner has been on a decline last year.
Last two years:
Nola: 3.10 ERA, 3.50 FIP, 1.117 WHIP, 139ERA+, 9.8 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 1.0 HR/9
Bumgarner: 3.66 ERA, 3.94 FIP, 1.171 WHIP, 110 ERA+, 8.3 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, 1.2 HR/9
Wheeler:3.65 ERA, 3.37 FIP, 1.194 WHIP, 107 ERA+, 8.9 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, .9 HR/9
The numbers speak for themselves. Out of all of them, Bumgarner has the worst ERA, FIP, K/9, and HR/9. He might limit more walks, but not too many more than Wheeler on average. Wheeler has the best FIP, and HR/9, and Nola has the best ERA, WHIP, ERA+, and K/9.
Ohtani, as great as he may be, has pitched a total of 50 innings in the mlb than had to get Tommy John
Harper’s comment was that if Howard wasn’t in the rotation for Game 6, something is wrong. That means he is saying Howard should be there once the team doesn’t burn a service year.
https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/phillies/bryce-harper-spencer-howard-alec-bohm-service-time
With the shortened schedule, teams need only keep their top prospects off the major league roster for the first 6 games to secure an additional year of team control down the road.
wow a whole 6 games.
Hey timpa: A “whole” 6 games of a 60 game SEASON is still 10% of the WHOLE season.
And if it’s a pitcher we’re talking about, he’d probably miss one whole start in that 6 games. Devastating.
He’s a pitcher and fighting for maybe 4th or 5th spot. You could have him pitch and give an extra day rest to your staff and basically not even really miss any starts.
Phillies look like a 30-30 team this season. Maybe a little better. 32-28 gets you in the playoffs?
Well, the Brewers had a .549 winning percentage last year, lowest of the playoff teams. That does indeed translate to 32.94 wins in a 60 game sprint… so 32 or 33 wins could do it.
I think Bryan Price is gonna have a huge impact on Pivetta & Vinny V. Chris Young ruined Nola last year , Let’s hope he can pay huge impact to this rotation. Also maybe after the deadline, Howard & Bohm do get called up.
Believe it or not. I like the Phillies a lot. Problem is I’m not a Bryce Harper fan. And it’s just not their year. The NL East probably will be the toughest division for years to come. Not their fault
Last year in free agency , at first I wanted Machado but then his post season problems his attitude threw me off. Then when Harper came into town, there is noway that Machado could bring the energy that Harper could. I feel like the phillies need one more starter and a bullpen arm. The lineup I think will score a lot of runs, It’s gonna come down to their 3 • 4 • 5 spots in the rotation. See if Eflin can pick up his second half stats, he was pretty good at the end of the season.
I respect a diehards view. You remind me of a guy I worked with for years. That loyalty goes a long way. Just stay that way. It’s a process just be patient with those Phils!!!
I think Bryan Price will have a big impact on the rotation
what does ‘Stumps’ mean?!…I’ve never heard that expression lol
to put one’s support behind an idea.
I love how people turn supporting a star pitching prospect into a bad thing. People love to hate Harper. It’s often baffling and hilarious.
How do you like this guy? Seriously why did the Nationals let him go? Look at the results of letting him walk. I’d take an injured Giancarlo over him
I would take Harper over Stanton any day of the week , Stanton can’t stay healthy to save his life imo, And the yankees have an albatross of a contract for many years unless they try to find a team to take his contract.
Yeah hopefully the Dodgers for Stanton if Mookie Betts leaves. Yanks probably got to pay like 35% of his contract. If so I want the young 20 year old catcher Ruiz
i doubt anyone would take Stanton even 90% paid down for a proepct of Kiebert’s caliber
Ceg outed himself as a fool with that comment.
I hope your wrong. Wow 90% percent? Sounds like a freebie. Yeah I can tell you like Ruiz. Are you prepared to go over $400 million for Mookie Betts? If not he’s leaving for the Padres. Sorry
What can I say I hear Ruiz is the next Victor Martinez? What’s there not to like about him? I just don’t ever see Ruiz hitting 50 homers. Who’s the fool now?
My worst nightmare would be both Betts & Realmuto sign with the braves. But would the dodgers trade prospects & risk taking on the stanton contract?
its not a freebie if Stanton cant play at all, which is where he’s on pace to be in due time.
I can see Betts signing with the Braves if they decide to open up their wallets. Can’t see JT Realmuto signing in Atlanta though. The Mets will be the Phillies biggest player for JT
Middleton I think needs to step in to get Realmuto signed like he did for Harper. Philly needs to get that deal done.
You think the Padres are going to pay $400 million for Betts? Are you currently smoking crack?
Why not they gave Machado $300 million. Why not offer Betts a better player $400 million?
This is such a dumb comment. The Nationals had an amazing team. They didn’t need Harper as much as the Phillies did. The Nats winning had more to do with the other pieces they added. If they had that rotation with Harper, they s
would’ve won earlier. I like Harper because he plays hard, is a great clubhouse guy, and is really embracing his role in Philadelphia. Plenty of Nationals players still love Harper too. There’s this false narrative about him because he’s this doofy overpaid bro, and the media covers his every move, but I don’t see how that’s his fault.
We’ll count your rings when Harper is done playing. Assuming you’ll have fingers then?
I think this year they will miss Rendon a lot though, thats a big bat to replace.
I never said anything about rings. The Nationals and Braves are both better than the Phillies right now. That’s not Harpers fault.
Your right. Nats couldn’t keep him. Too expensive. They should of over-paid for Josh Donaldson it would of been worth it. Donaldson is solid
Ok I agree with you. The Phillies really needed Mad Bum and Wheeler though. Not just Wheeler
I would of taken Madbum or Keuchel , But Klentak didn’t want to go over the luxury tax.
Probably needed both of them though. And Wheeler to win the division. I thought Phils had “stupid money?”
I guess they might be leaning towards the 2020 & 2021 free agency. I would like them to go for Tanaka & Paxton , then sign JT Realmuto to a long term extension. 2021 free agency you have Lindor & Bryant out there, philly might be waiting then to strike big
What about Bauer also? Phillies would be close. Great game plan
All great options , But they need a lefty in that rotation, I don’t think Cole Irvin will cut it, could be a long man out of the bullpen. So Paxton or Robbie Ray. Then Bauer • Stroman or Tanaka. Offer JT Realmuto whatever he wants, he’s the team MVP.
Not going to work with Ray or Stroman in Philly they will get shelled. Forget about them
Maybe your right, Tanaka would be awesome in philly red, he can rejoin Girardi, then Paxton? and sign JT Realmuto , that would be a great offseason,
they let him go because they had Robles and Soto. same reason they let Rendon walk for Kieboom.
I think Rendon was a bigger loss then Harper , The nationals still gonna make noise but losing Rendon might hurt more then they think.
They didn’t need to pay Harper all that money. They we’re smart and had talent and drafted well also
Imagine your employer makes a decision you disagree with so you go to the media and publicly throw them under the bus calling that decision a mistake.
Then you have people like VonPurpleHayes commending you for it too
Why do you think the Yankees never wanted him? Doesn’t this explain it to a tee?
He made the comment before the employer made the decision. He was asked directly about Howard. His comments are a bit much, but the context was showing support for the young player. He’s a union guy showing support for a teammate. You want that in the clubhouse. This is only a story because it’s Harper.
That’s the definition of Bryce Harper in the dictionary I promise
that’s Bohm lol
not a bad idea, then trade off Pivetta and Velasquez for a solid arm and bench bat ,the Royals will give you Kennedy and O’hearn , deal? lol
Wow, somebody’s trying to pull off a heist!
For the Royals or for the Phillies? That’s kind of a lopsided trade for the Phillies. Pivetta is controllable through 2024 and Velasquez is controllable through 2022. For that you’re getting a rental relief pitcher who’s entering his age 35 season and had his first productive season at the mound since 2016, and a platoon bench bat who has some pop, but really struggled last year, and is pretty much a 1B/DH? At that rate, they’d save a lot more money and value just signing like Adam Warren and Brian Dozier.
How about Pivetta or Velasquez plus prospects for maybe Soler?
Nah just throw the slow stuff at Soler. You’ll have him for lunch!
oh gosh please someone take those two scrubs. they both suck.
C’mon Soler had one good season! Not worth it. How many times did he strike out, 200? Lol
Not sure how the phillies couldn’t trade for Starlin Marte , the dbacks barley gave up anything to get him
I heard the Phillies were a close 2nd to getting Marte. It almost happened
He would of taken care the CF problem , not that I don’t have a problem with Hasley but they could of added another power bat and great defender.
i dont care if we pay to get Pivetta and VV gone. they are the two banes of my existence at this point.
Do you think Bryan Price could fix both of them? And he unlocks them
No only God could help them at this point
Yeah but not for Soler though. Anything but him
Phillies in 2030
Article kind of missed the point of what Harper actually said. He didn’t say Howard needs to break camp with the Phillies…he said if Howard’s not on the Phillies pithing staff by game 6—when the team gains a year control over him—something is wrong. He actually said the same thing that Howard said and accepted. Usually MLBTR is better than this.
Hey I heard Domingo German is available next season. Any interest? Lol! Say no and he’ll start smacking you around
Goodness you are not funny and a fool, but that goes without saying
Whatever dude, go back to sleep
Molina got Jordan hicks brought north after camp a few years back. Veterans expressing their opinions on who can help them win. Yes maybe it doesn’t fit the plan of the service time counters (though looks like Bryce was aware) but who cares. And not like it’s a demand.
Joe should bench Harper for game six.
So much Harper hate, yet if he was on your teams, you’d love him.