Depth is never a bad thing
In the never ending quest to add depth to the organization, the Phillies announced two more non-roster invitees that will be among those that open camp on Monday.
Christian Arroyo was a first round draft pick by the Giants in 2013 and started making top 100 prospect lists a few years later. He was traded to the Rays in the deal that sent Evan Longoria west, but in the years after, he never really found his footing at the major league level. He’s bounced around the past few years, his most productive time coming when he joined the Red Sox. His 2022 season in Boston was the best for him where he posted a 102 wRC+ in 87 games played, but since then, it’s been downhill. He spent last season in the Brewers minor league system. He’s been injured a lot. He’ll be infield depth.
Oscar Mercado was once a top outfield prospect in Cleveland. He even backed up some of that promise in 2019 when he had a 98 wRC+ with 15 home runs in 482 plate appearances as a 24 year old. Good, right? Below the surface, there were signs that those numbers didn’t look like they would hold up in the long run and lo and behold, they haven’t. He can still play a solid outfield though and can more than hold his own in center field. One cannot have too many center fielders in an organization.
The addition of the two players puts the team’s total number of non-roster invitees to Clearwater at 27.