I’ve had a chance to finally soak in the latest from Clearwater. Here are some initial reactions.

Jimmy Rollins

Is it really necessary for Jimmy Rollins to show up for everything at the last minute? I know that Jayson Werth and Greg Dobbs showed up today also, but neither are generally considered leaders of the ball club. I’ll bet that Jimmy really wanted to show up 4 days ago, but couldn’t possibly succumb to the notion of being early for anything in his life.

I love Rollins, and certainly think that he should be a Phillie forever, but I find his cavalier attitude about things like this to be really grating. Perhaps I am overreaching, but I don’t think so.

Chan Ho Park

So Chan Ho is now a Yankee, taking a one year contract with no guarantee to start for significantly less than he could have signed with the Phillies earlier in the offseason.

Well, that didn’t exactly work out so well, did it?

With Danys Baez and Jose Contreras already in the fold, Chan Ho was running out of options, and his contract terms indicate as much.

All things being equal, I’d rather have Park than Contreras.

Werth

Jayson Werth showed up at camp after auditioning for Castaway 2, and had more to say about his future with the Phillies than he did his new facial hair.

Like many of the players who have worn the red pinstripes over the past few years, Werth seems to genuinely want to remain a Phillie, but hoping for the lanky rightfielder to stick around beyond this year seems like wishful thinking. If Werth’s 2010 resembles his 2009 campaign in any way, shape or form, he will be due a big payday.

I think that you have to figure that both Werth and Ryan Howard are not long for this world as teammates. If Werth is able to command $15 million on the open market annually, keeping both he and Howard would seem not in keeping with the Phils budget.

I wonder how much time Ruben is spending weighing the possibility of holding onto Jayson Werth and possibly flipping Ryan Howard. Werth is just 6 months older, is probably built to go deeper in his career, and is a more versatile player than Howard.

The Fifth Starter

Is there any deal that Ruben Amaro Jr. has made since taking over as the Phillies GM after the 2008 World Series victory that is worse than giving Jamie Moyer a 2 year deal? Second place, whatever it is, has been lapped by the Moyer deal.

By all accounts, Moyer is on track if not ahead of schedule after surgeries to repair torn muscles in his groin and abdomen. With Kyle Kendrick’s cleats dangling from Roy Halladay’s ass and praise reigning down on the young righthander for his commitment to improving, Moyer’s hold on the fifth starter’s spot seems tenuous at best. If Kendrick can start missing more bats and retain his composure even when things are not going his way, he could pitch himself right into the rotation.

It’s great to know that the Phillies won’t plug Moyer into the rotation if he isn’t the best option. The handling of both Adam Eaton and Geoff Jenkins last year tells you all you need to know. Moyer’s situation will always be handled with kid gloves because, well, he’s Jamie Moyer. But the first objective is to win.

Halladay

While the Mets continue to embarrass themselves by saying stupid things, new Phillies ace Roy Halladay is going to steer clear of engaging in a war of words with a shell of a team that finished 23 full games behind his new squad. Chase Utley often quotes his father as telling him that “If you are good at something, you don’t need to tell people. They will tell you”. It sounds like that fits into Halladay’s philosophy and he will be a good fit on a team that has consisently outplayed the Mets while not necessarily outtalking them.

It is debatable as to whether or not the Mets have gotten better by even a little. Jason Bay had no choice but to sign with the Mets, despite appearing interested in doing anything OTHER than sign with them.