Mickey Morandini on Trea Turner, Darick Hall & Phillies expectations
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Baseball is back. The National League champion Philadelphia Phillies kick off a new season Thursday in Texas against a familiar foe, Jacob deGrom, and the Rangers.
Former Phillies second baseman Mickey Morandini joined CBS News Philadelphia on Thursday morning to talk about the 2023 season. Morandini is currently a team ambassador with the Phils.
CBS News Philadelphia: There's so much excitement following last year's World Series run. What are you most looking forward to about the start of a new season?
Morandini: I want to watch Trea Turner play. I mean, if you watched him in the [World Baseball Classic], he just had a great, great series. He's a tremendous player. He's going to add a lot to this team, especially with Bryce [Harper] out for at least the first couple of months of the season. So I'm glad he's on our side this year.
CBS News Philadelphia: How do you think Turner's presence will impact the Phillies?
Morandini: Yeah, he's going to love Philadelphia. This ballpark is built for him. He does a little bit of everything. He can hit some home runs, as you saw in the WBC. He plays defense, he can run. He's going to get a lot of infield hits. He does a lot of different things for this team and to top it off, he's a great person. He's a great clubhouse presence. So he's going to really bring a lot to the table for this team.
CBS News Philadelphia: A significant loss out of the gate. How will the Phillies fill the void after Rhys Hoskins tore his left ACL?
Morandini: Yeah, it's really unfortunate. We were looking for some big things from Rhys this year and the injury obviously has set him back for the entire year. But we're fairly deep at first base.
Darick Hall can play there. [Alec] Bohm can play there. We have some guys who can play over there. We'll see how Rob Thomson is going to play this, but from what I understand, I think Darick Hall will get that first shot to be the everyday first baseman.
CBS News Philadelphia: Could we see Bryce Harper back in the lineup ahead of schedule?
Morandini: Yeah, I think he's got a chance. I mean he's not going to be doing a lot of throwing, he's not going to be playing right field. He's just going to be DHing probably for most of the year, if not all of the year. From what I understand again, he's taking swings already. They won't rush him, but I know Bryce will be pushing to get out there as quickly as possible.
We're looking forward to having him back. He's going to come back better than ever and hopefully, this team will be playing some good baseball when he does return.
CBS News Philadelphia: deGrom, a former New York Mets pitcher, is getting the start Thursday for Texas. What kind of challenge do the Phils face Thursday?
Morandini: I thought we were done with him when he went to Texas. He's one of the best out there. The Phillies have their hands full today. He's going to be excited. He's on a new team, he's going to want to prove his worth there. So he's probably going to come out pitching really well. Hopefully, Aaron Nola can match him pitch for pitch. I think it's going to be a great ballgame today. It's going to be really exciting.
