CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Phillies play their Grapefruit League opener at 1:05 p.m. ET Saturday against the Yankees at BayCare Ballpark. They'll send a split squad to play the Tigers in Lakeland, too.

Thursday seemed like a good time to speak with Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who discussed several topics during a 20-minute-plus press conference.

A few highlights:

Harper's progress
Bryce Harper is recovering well from Tommy John surgery.

In fact, he might even be ahead of schedule.

“He’s doing great,” Dombrowski said.

Harper is taking dry swings at home in Las Vegas, meaning he is swinging a bat but not making contact with the baseball. The next progression is hitting off a practice tee, then building up until he is taking batting practice and ultimately facing live pitching. The Phillies still maintain their original timeline that the two-time National League MVP Award winner could be back by the All-Star break in July. But there is reason to think he might beat that timeline.

“You could say that he’s a little bit ahead, but oftentimes you say that about players and all of a sudden you have a setback,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “I’m just knocking on wood. We’re just going to make sure we’re careful with how we keep progressing with him. We’ve got a way to go.”

Nola extension talks
The Phillies and right-hander Aaron Nola’s camp have been talking about a contract extension, with both sides exchanging proposals at some point.

“I can just say that Aaron’s a player that we want to keep in the organization for an extended time,” Dombrowski said.

The Phillies would like to strike a deal before the end of camp. If they don’t, it is not the end of the world, although Nola said he does not want to negotiate once the season starts because he does not want the distraction.

In a perfect world, Philadelphia would lock up Nola, then also extend righty Zack Wheeler’s contract, which runs through 2024. In that scenario, the Phillies believe they would have three aces atop the rotation (Wheeler, Nola and top prospect Andrew Painter) for years.

Hoskins' future
Rhys Hoskins, like Nola, will become a free agent after the 2023 season. There are no indications the sides are digging deep into talks.

“In Rhys’ case, we have free agents just like we had last year with [Jean] Segura,” Dombrowski said. “He was in that position. Rhys is a tremendous player, a tremendous person. He’s done a lot for the organization. And so we’ll just analyze it and see what takes places, but we love him. We think the world of him.”

The bench
Garrett Stubbs, Edmundo Sosa and Josh Harrison are locks to make the Phillies’ five-man bench. That leaves two jobs available, with Dalton Guthrie, Jake Cave, Kody Clemens and Darick Hall the top candidates.

Scott Kingery has an outside chance. He is entering the final year of a six-year, $24 million contract. But Kingery, who is not on the 40-man roster, has much to prove.

Kingery homered against Nola on Thursday in live batting practice.

“He’s shortened his stroke,” Thomson said. “He’s worked a lot with [hitting coach Kevin Long] in Arizona all winter. He’s getting on top of the ball and hitting more line drives, making more contact.

"We know how talented this guy is. He can play anywhere on the diamond. He can run. He can steal bases. He just got away from his swing at one point. He looks like we’re getting him back close to where he was. That home run today was pretty impressive. I know it’s BP, but it’s moving forward, for sure.”

Kingery can play the infield or outfield, including center field. The Phillies are looking for somebody to back up Brandon Marsh in center.

Guthrie and Cave play center, too. Sosa is going to play there this spring. If Sosa plays well, the Phillies could look differently at how they shape the bench.

“If it’s Sosa, if it’s Guthrie, if it’s Cave, even though he’s a left-handed hitter, one of those players has to make the club, because we have to have somebody who can go out and play center,” Dombrowski said.

Hello, Soto?
Left-hander Gregory Soto, acquired from the Tigers in a five-player trade on Jan. 7, remains in the Dominican Republic because of visa issues, and he is continuing to throw at the team's academy there. He is supposed to compete with the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, but that might not happen. The Phillies believe Soto's arm will be in shape whenever he arrives.