Phillies option four players to Triple-A Lehigh Valley as Opening Day roster starts to take shape

The Philadelphia Phillies announced Tuesday afternoon that they have optioned four players — 1B/DH Darick Hall, INF Rodolfo Castro, RHP Kolby Allard and RHP Max Castillo — to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. This is the start of the roster getting trimmed down the 26-man mark it will have to be at before the Phillies host the Atlanta Braves on March 28 for Opening Day.

All four of these players are on the 40-man roster, which is why they had to be optioned to Triple-A, as opposed to catcher Cody Roberts, RHP Austin Brice and RHP Ricardo Pinto, who were simply reassigned to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Of the four players optioned, Hall and Allard are the most notable.

Hall played a major role for the Phillies during the 2022 season in the absence of Bryce Harper, homering nine times and posting an .804 OPS in 41 games. However, he tore the UCL in his right thumb in the second series of the 2023 season, and ultimately wasn’t able to make much of an impact in 18 games for the Phillies. The 28-year-old has struggled mightily in 25 Grapefruit League at-bats, recording just two hits and striking out 11 times.

Meanwhile, Allard signed a split deal with the Phillies in January, as they looked to add pitching depth. The former first-round pick is guaranteed $375,000 on the contract, and will make $1 million (with additional incentives available) if he reaches the majors, per Matt Gelb of The Athletic. Allard is 1-0 with a 3.18 ERA in 5 2/3 innings pitched this spring.

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