Where does Gavin Floyd fit in on the Phillies? That’s a question I’ve been asking myself since the beginning of last season. He pitched poorly enough in his first few attempts at the big league level to warrant a demotion to Scranton, and the Phillies didn’t really need him anyway. As stated many times before, the Phils are chock full of young starters that have yet to prove themselves (i.e. Madson, Tejeda, Brito, and Hamels). Barring injuries to the current rotation, it’s virtually impossible to give all these guys a chance at a starting spot, but you would think Floyd, as the Phils number one pick in 2004, should at least make a decent run for one of those spots even though he hasn’t yet.
To his credit, he started to improve towards the end of his minor league season last year and has done well in Winter Ball in Puerto Rico – better than Eude Brito playing at his home in the Dominican Republic. Yet, this is surely not enough to secure a starting spot and unless Floyd has a phenomenal spring training, it’s likely he’ll be headed back to Scranton to start the year. Even that doesn’t guarantee him the job as the Phils first callup starter as a relatively healthy Cole Hamels might be that guy (yes, I predict he’ll start the season in AAA too). Plus, there’s even more pressure to on Floyd with Gio Gonzalez, Daniel Haigwood, and Scott Mathieson all on his heels. So rather than have Floyd waste away in minor league limbo, it’s logical that Gillick might try to move him at some point – maybe at the trading deadline if the Phils are still in it. If not trade him, at least move him to the bullpen because at the current rate I still cannot answer the question as to where Floyd fits in on this team.
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