CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Phillies finalized their bullpen Thursday morning and will complete the rest of their roster later in the day, manager Pete Mackanin said.
Lefties Adam Morgan and Joely Rodriguez were named to the final two spots in the bullpen after veteran Luis Garcia was optioned to Triple A.
The final two spots on the roster are both bench jobs. Brock Stassi, Daniel Nava and Jesmuel Valentin are the final candidates.
"We're going to pick two out of three and we'll know by the end of the game," Mackanin said before the Phillies were to play the Yankees in a 1 p.m. game.
There are indications that Stassi will make the roster, leaving the final spot down to Nava and Valentin. Nava is a first baseman/outfielder. Valentin, 22, is a second baseman by trade. If he doesn't make the club, he will play every day at Triple A.
Andres Blanco, Aaron Altherr and rookie catcher Andrew Knapp are already set on the bench.
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Garcia was sent to the minors one day after pitching poorly against the Detroit Tigers in Lakeland. He was tagged for five hits and two runs in two innings of work. One of the hits was a double. Garcia needed 45 pitches to get through the two innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out three.
Garcia will likely close at Triple A.
"He developed a splitter over the course of spring training and we want him to go down and work on it," Mackanin said. "It could be a real good pitch for him in the future."
As far as bullpen roles, Morgan will work as a long man while Rodriguez will be more of a situational lefty. Jeanmar Gomez, Hector Neris, Edubray Ramos, Joaquin Benoit and Pat Neshek round out the bullpen.
Gomez will open the season as the closer. He saved 37 games last season but lost the job in September.
"I'm going to go with Gomez," Mackanin said. "He's going to get every opportunity to do the job. If he doesn't, we're going to take a look at it."
