Phillies' Fresh Faces Shine in Opening Day

0:00It's March 27, I'm Cory with the story. This is MLB News today, driven by AI and built for baseball fans. The Philadelphia Phillies kicked off their season with five players on the opening day roster who were experiencing it for the first time after spring, training. Three of them got into Thursday's game right away, while the other two are set to debut soon. Justin Crawford made a strong first impression, collecting two singles off a veteran starter and helping set up a key, three run homer in the fifth. Inning, Jonathan Bolan handled the seventh inning cleanly, throwing just eight pitches with his fastball topping out near 99 miles per hour. Kyle Bakus took the ninth with a five run lead, but ran into trouble, allowing a single and a two run homer before getting pulled after one out. Fans and teammates noted how poised Crawford seemed from the start, carrying himself like a veteran thanks in part to his dad being a former all-star, outfielder. He is locked in as the everyday center-fielder, batting ninth and pairing well with the speed

1:03at the top of the order. Bolan, acquired in the trade last year, looks ready for multi-inning stints with his team control through 2031. Bakus, a side-arm lefty new to the Phillies, knows he needs to sharpen up against right-handed hitters after they gave him fits in the past. Andrew Painter lines up for his big league start on Tuesday in the fifth game against the Nationals, and Otto Kemp should follow on Sunday versus the Rangers. These fresh faces bring energy and options to a Phillies squad chasing a title, blending right in as the early schedule heats up.