CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Vince Velasquez entered Spring Training the favorite to be the Phillies' fifth starter and they awarded him the job on Monday, when they announced they had optioned left-hander Adam Morgan to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Velasquez and Morgan had been the finalists to be the fifth starter behind Jeremy Hellickson, Aaron Nola, Charlie Morton and Jerad Eickhoff.
"We like Velasquez's power arm," Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. "We want to see him in the big leagues."
It was not an easy call to make.