The Phillies are short on right-handed-hitting outfielders. Could this be the year that Brandon Marsh finally gets a run of playing time against lefties? And is Taijuan Walker's resurgence for real?

There is enough evidence, even halfway through spring training, to suggest that Walker is a different pitcher from last year's poor version.

"This is your bread and butter as well as mine,” declared Phillies manager Pat Moran in a pep talk to his players at Spring Training in 1915. A lot was new about the club that year. A reserve catcher with the team since 1910,

Walker faced a Blue Jays lineup similar to the one they are expected to roll out on opening day, including regulars Bo Bichette, Daulton Varsho, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Anthony Santander, George Springer, Andrés Giménez, and Alejandro Kirk.

For the first time in spring training, Taijuan Walker took the mound eager to prove that his abysmal 2024 campaign was just a fluke. An argument can be made tha