CLEARWATER, Fla. - Vince Velasquez was in trouble. As his pitch count mounted Thursday in the fifth inning of a 6-1 Phillies loss, his fourth Grapefruit League start neared its conclusion. A single followed by double off the wall put Tampa Bay runners on second and third.
Catcher Gabriel Lino trotted to the mound.
"Let's just get after it," Velasquez told Lino. "No messing around. Let's just get after it."
The 23-year-old righthander used his secondary pitches to reach two-strike counts. Then, he turned to the weapon that commands so much intrigue as the Phillies remake their roster.