Whenever spring training rolls around, there are players that show up and perform over expectations. Usually, it’s the players that are looking to earn a spot on the Opening Day roster. A reliever that is shutting hitters down, a bench player looking for one more shot at a roster spot.

This spring, in Clearwater, the Phillies have had some solid performances of their own. Maybe they aren’t the biggest statistical surprises, but they’ve been eyebrow raising nonetheless. Granted, the sample size is small, statistically insignificant even, but hey – it’s something to talk about.

• Christian Arroyo: 4 for 9, 1 HR, 3 RBI – Arroyo is fighting to make the Phillies roster this season as the final bench piece. The injury to Weston Wilson has propped the door open a bit, but there is still a ways to go.
• Gabriel Rincones, Jr.: 3 for 10, 2 HR, 4 RBI – Rincones has been probably the most surprising of the prospects in camp. The two other big name prospects – Aidan Miller and Justin Crawford – have had a bit of a struggle, so seeing another young hitting prospect hit a few balls over the fence has been a pleasant surprise.
• The rotation candidates – Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo have all only had one outing so far in spring, but boy have they all looked very good. Sanchez and Luzardo have shown increased velocity while the top two names were their usual selves. They should excite fans heading into the season.