Philadelphia Front Page News TV-Radio Sports News In Brief: Turner leading off in Phillies' Opening Day lineup forward news by Sports Philadelphia frontpagenews1@yahoo.com
Jimmy Rollins believes that the Phillies are still the best team in the NL East, despite losing to the Mets in the 2024 NLDS.
Trea Turner? Kyle Schwarber?
In Game 1 of 162, it's Turner in the leadoff spot against Nationals left-hander Mackenzie Gore.
The Phillies have been interested in seeing what their offense can look like with Turner leading off. Manager Rob Thomson has said that for now, Turner will lead off against lefties and Schwarber against righties.
Schwarber has led off in 83.6% of his plate appearances as a Phillie and he's certainly performed, setting the major-league record last season in leadoff homers while also leading the National League with 106 walks. Pretty valuable skill set atop a lineup.
But there's also some more RBI potential if Schwarber hits second, behind Turner, or fourth, behind Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm. You can pretty much bank on Schwarber hitting 38-plus home runs in a healthy season, so putting that bat a spot or two after Harper's near-.400 on-base percentage could lead to more crooked numbers.