How will the Phillies line up in 2016?

Projecting the starting nine, rotation and bullpen for Philadelphia

February 16th, 2016

PHILADELPHIA -- Phillies pitchers and catchers hold their first workout Thursday in Clearwater, Fla. Opening Day follows 46 days later.
This figures to be the most interesting Spring Training for the Phillies since 2011, when they had arguably one of the greatest rotations in baseball history with Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt.
Prospects | Comeback candidates | Newcomers | No. 5 starter battle
This time, things will be interesting for different reasons. The Phillies are rebuilding, which means this camp will feature players with plenty to prove.
In the fifth part of a seven-part series previewing Phillies' Spring Training, MLB.com takes a look at the projected lineup, rotation and back end of the bullpen. It is worth noting that while Cameron Rupp is expected to play more regularly than Carlos Ruiz behind the plate, it would not be a surprise to see the Phillies give the starting spot to Ruiz on Opening Day. It also is worth mentioning that there are multiple candidates for closer and setup men. Projecting a favorite at this point would be a bad bet.
2015 record
63-99, fifth in the National League East
Projected batting order

  1. 2B Cesar Hernandez :
    .272 BA, .339 OBP, .348 SLG, 1 HR, 35 RBI in 2015
  2. CF Odubel Herrera :
    .297 BA, .344 OBP, .418 SLG, 8 HR, 41 RBI in 2015
  3. 3B Maikel Franco :
    .280 BA, .343 OBP, .497 SLG, 14 HR, 50 RBI in 2015
  4. 1B Ryan Howard :
    .229 BA, .277 OBP, .443 SLG, 23 HR, 77 RBI in 2015
  5. LF Aaron Altherr :
    .241 BA, .338 OBP, .489 SLG, 5 HR, 22 RBI in 2015
  6. C Cameron Rupp:
    .233 BA, .301 OBP, .374 SLG, 9 HR, 28 RBI in 2015
  7. SS Freddy Galvis :
    .263 BA, .302 OBP, .343 SLG, 7 HR, 50 RBI in 2015
  8. RF Peter Bourjos :
    .200 BA, .290 OBP, .333 SLG, 4 HR, 13 RBI in 2015
    Projected rotation
  9. Aaron Nola , 6-2, 3.59 ERA in 2015
  10. Jeremy Hellickson , 9-12, 4.62 ERA in 2015
  11. Jerad Eickhoff , 3-3, 2.65 ERA in 2015
  12. Charlie Morton , 9-9, 4.81 ERA in 2015
  13. Vincent Velasquez , 1-1, 4.37 ERA in 2015
    Projected bullpen
    Closer: Edward Mujica, Ernesto Frieri or Andrew Bailey
    RH setup man: David Hernandez , 4.28 ERA in 2015
    LH setup man: Elvis Araujo , 3.38 ERA in 2015