I am not worried about the loss of Bourn, Iguichi, Nunez, and Barajas although I am a little worried about the overall impact of losing Rowand, who has been a consistent presence in the clubhouse and on the field for the past several years.

That said, the phillies offense should still be potent. Almost 70% of the day-to-day lineup will be the same with Rollins, Vic, Utley, Howard and Burrell. As long as Feliz, Jenkins, Werth, Dobbs, Ruiz and Coste collectively work to turn the lineup over, the phils should be fine. Here’s to hoping Golson learns a better approach at the plate, stops striking out at such a high rate, and makes it to Philly in August.

The bullpen looks to be a strength as long as it remains injury-free, stable and isn’t overworked because of ineffective starting pitching. Getting into the routine of closing out games with a 7-8-9 combo of Madson, Gordon, Romero and Lidge is more than serviceable. What a difference a year makes.

As for the starting pitching, Myers and Hamels will hopefully stay healthy. Otherwise, it won’t matter how good the offense or the bullpen is; it’ll be a long year. That said, the Phils went into last year with a “strong” rotation of Myers, Hamels, Moyer, Garcia, Lieber and Eaton, and only ended up using Moyer and Hamels while somewhat holding their own. That’s pretty lucky and a testament to a houdini-esque smoke-and-mirrors act. Unfortunately, the two pitchers that were serviceable, Lieber and Lohse both left. Trying to keep one of the two might have been more prudent given how weak the starting pitching market is.