The Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros have made key changes to their rosters ahead of the World Series, which kicks off with Game 1 Friday at Minute Maid Park.
- Phillies utility players have been swapped, with Nick Maton in over Dalton Guthrie.
- Philadelphia also added righty reliever Nick Nelson over left-hander Bailey Falter.
- The Astros made one roster change, adding left-handed relief pitcher Will Smith.
Our 2022 #WorldSeries roster is set! pic.twitter.com/JWFLpP5Zeq
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) October 28, 2022
Our #WorldSeries roster is set. đź”’ pic.twitter.com/jwiNA7B5Lo
— Houston Astros (@astros) October 28, 2022
Nick Maton scouting report
In Maton, the Phillies added someone who crushes fastballs. He hit .290 with a .844 slugging percentage against them in the regular season. But the scouting report is well-known. Maybe there’s a spot where the Phillies think Maton could pinch-hit and see some fastballs regardless. He was on the roster for the Wild Card Series, but not the NLDS or NLCS. Guthrie was more of a threat to steal as a pinch-runner and profiled better as a defensive replacement, but he saw action in only one game over the last two series. – Gelb
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Why the Phillies are going with Nick Nelson
Nelson spent the entire regular season on the Phillies’ roster but had been excluded from the postseason until now. His best pitch is a changeup, and Houston hitters were about league average on changeups during the regular season. Nelson had good numbers against lefties; he was used mostly as a long reliever but had some bigger spots at times. The Phillies chose him for depth in this World Series over Falter, who started Game 4 of the NLCS but did not make it through the first inning. – Gelb
The 33-year-old had been left off of both the ALDS and ALCS rosters thus far in the postseason. Righty reliever Seth Martinez came off the roster. He hadn’t pitched yet in the postseason and was only on the roster for the ALCS. The Astros haven’t had a lefty in the pen throughout the postseason. That typically isn’t an issue because several pitchers have very strong reverse splits and thrive against lefty hitters. But with the Phillies lineup consisting of left-handed hitters Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh and Bryson Stott, it made sense to stock the pen with the extra left-hander. Smith also has a familiarity with the Phillies, having spent much of the last three seasons with the Braves.
It seems likely that Smith would really only be in to face lefties, as he can be a liability against right-handed batters. His strikeout-to-walk ratio is 30/5 against lefties and 35/20 against righties.
Smith has a 3.27 ERA in 24 appearances since joining the Astros mid-season. – Blum
World Series schedule (all games at 8 p.m. ET on Fox)
Game 1: Friday at Houston
Game 2: Saturday at Houston
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 31 at Philadelphia
Game 4: Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Philadelphia
Game 5: Wednesday, Nov. 2 at Philadelphia (if necessary)
Game 6: Friday, Nov. 4 at Houston (if necessary)
Game 7: Saturday, Nov. 5 at Houston (if necessary)
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Further reading
(Photo: Bill Streicher/ USA Today)
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