The Phillies have enough pitching to make the offense stand up on most nights. With that in mind I would have to lean towards the over. Not many teams in the National League can score with them and they get to beat up on the Nationals & Marlins quite a few times. Take the over.

33-year old lefty swinging Geoff Jenkins and 29-year old righty swinging Jayson Werth will likely form a lethal platoon in RF for the Phillies in 2008. Jenkins played in 132 games for the Brewers last season and he was 107 for 420 (.255 avg, .790 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 21 homers and 64 RBIs. He played in 121 games in LF last season and he made 3 errors while showing off impressive range. Jenkins hit much better against righties than lefties so a platoon is a good idea here.

29-year old righty swinging Jayson Werth had a very solid season for the Phillies in 2007. He played in 94 games for the Phillies last year and he was 76 for 255 (.298 avg, .863 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 8 homers, 49 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Werth only made 2 errors in 58 games in RF last season and he showed off good range. Werth dominated lefty pitching last season as he was 33 for 88 (.375 avg) with 5 homers and 22 RBIs against them. He should benefit from getting a lot more at bats against lefty pitchers this season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B

27-year old switch hitting Shane Victorino has shifted to CF from RF for the 2008 season. He will replace Aaron Rowand who was outstanding last season. Victorino played in 131 games for the Phillies last season and he was 128 for 456 (.281 avg, .770 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 12 homers, 46 RBIs and 37 stolen bases. He played in 114 games in RF for the Phillies last season and he made 3 errors while showing above average range. He also has a strong throwing arm as he had 10 assists last season. Victorino will do a good job in CF for the Phillies this season.

38-year old righty swinging So Taguchi will be the Phillies top backup in CF this season. He played in 130 games for the Cardinals last season and he was 89 for 307 (.290 avg, .718 OPS) with 48 runs scored, 3 homers, 30 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Taguchi is also a solid defender as he only made 1 error in 63 games in CF while showing above average range.

26-year old lefty swinging Brandon Watson will likely start the season in the minors but he could get a call from the Phillies at some point. Watson played in 5 games for the Nationals last season and he was 5 for 18 (.278 avg, .649 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 2 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He also played in 103 games in AAA ball last season and he was 125 for 399 (.313 avg, .733 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 2 homers, 29 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C+

31-year old righty swinging Pat Burrell is back as the starting LF for the Phillies. He played in 155 games last season for the Phillies and he was 121 for 472 (.256 avg, .902 OPS) with 77 runs scored, 30 homers and 97 RBIs. He’s not the best defender around as he made 10 errors in 138 games in LF while showing poor range. Look for Burrell to have another good season in 2008 for the Phillies.

So Taguchi will be the top backup in LF this season for the Phillies. He played in 41 games in LF last season for the Cardinals and he made 2 errors while showing off outstanding range. Jayson Werth also played outstanding in 37 games in left field last season for the Phillies. He didn’t make any errors while showing off outstanding range.

26-year old lefty swinging Chris Snelling could also get some P.T. in left field this season. He played in 30 games for the Nationals & A’s last season and he was 17 for 69 (.246 avg, .728 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 1 homer and 7 RBIs. He didn’t make any errors in 21 games in LF last season while showing slightly above average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B

The Phillies were disappointed in the defense they were getting at the hot corner and that was the reason that they signed 33-year old righty swinging Pedro Feliz in the off season. Feliz played in 150 games last season for the Giants and he was 141 for 557 (.253 avg, .708 OPS) with 61 runs scored, 20 homers and 72 RBIs. He should provide more power in Philly with the short outfield there. Feliz played in 143 games at 3B for the Giants last season and he only made 11 errors while showing outstanding range. Feliz will be a nice addition to the Phillies in 2008.

29-year old lefty Greg Dobbs came out of nowhere last season and he played pretty well for the Phillies. Dobbs played in 142 games last season for the Phillies and he was 88 for 324 (.272 avg, .781 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 10 homers and 55 RBIs. Dobbs made 7 errors in 68 games at 3B for the Phillies last season while showing above average range. Look for Dobbs to be one of the better reserve infielders around for the Phillies in 2008.

32-year old righty swinging 3B Wes Helms wore out his welcome in only one season in Philly. The Phillies would love to trade him before the season starts as he was a failure for them after he was handed the starting 3B job last season. Helms played in 112 games for the Phillies last season and he was 69 for 280 (.246 avg, .665 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 5 homers and 39 RBIs. Helms played in 68 games at 3B last season for the Phillies and he made 9 errors while showing about league average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C+