ESPN Chalk's Joe Peta is sharing his season win total projections for every MLB team, including a reason for optimism and pessimism.
Plus, he recommends an over/under play, or a pass. This is the entry for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Philadelphia Phillies
Reason for optimism: There are no plans for MLB to institute an English Premier League-like relegation system.
Reason for pessimism: The Phillies haven't come close to bottoming out yet.
The recent news that Cliff Lee will start the season on the 60-day disabled list almost certainly removes the faint hope of respectability the Phillies may have hoped to achieve in 2015. For projection purposes, let's assume Lee is done for the season. While he's eschewing surgery for now, the fact that two bouts of DL-induced rest during 2014, plus the offseason, did not help his arm recover, suggests the worst-case scenario. In any event, his injury helps highlight the drastic marginal effect on a team when it loses an ace in the rotation.