Howard finally has some fun

CLEARWATER, Fla. - This spring, Ryan Howard said, is about fun. "Smiling again," he said Thursday, soon after he doubled and homered against a lefthanded pitcher.

Fun, because there is no such thing as a platoon in the Grapefruit League. When the season starts April 4, Howard is likely to split time at first base with Darin Ruf. A few at-bats in the spring will not change that, but Howard is unequivocal in his belief that he can still hit lefties.

He is happy to have the chance, for now. This spring, he is 3 for 6 with two doubles, a home run and one strikeout against lefthanded pitching.

"I mean, you have to see them in order to be able to hit them and make adjustments against them," Howard, 36, said. "So spring training is a great time to be able to do that. It's tough. You may get maybe 10 at-bats against a lefty over the course of spring training. You try to take them as much as you can, because you're going to see them during the season coming out of the bullpen and sometimes with starters, as well."

Phillies manager Pete Mackanin adopted a diplomatic approach when asked about Howard's spring success, albeit small, against lefties.

"It's good to see," Mackanin said. "I think he's rising to the challenge. We'll continue to get a look at that for the rest of the spring."

Howard tagged Tampa Bay's Matt Moore for a homer on an 0-2 change-up. He is 5 for 25 overall this spring.

"I feel fine," he said. "I feel like my at-bats have been good at-bats. Not a lot of results, necessarily, to show for it. But it's spring training."

Cody Asche (strained rib cage) played four innings in left field during a minor-league intrasquad game. He did not have a ball hit to him. And he did not hit in the game because of the injury.

He could open the season on the disabled list.

"I feel like we're progressing in the right direction, for sure," Asche said. "I'm about as anxious as anybody to return. It's been no fun. But at the same time you've got to realize, take your time with it."

Asche said he is taking some pain-free swings in the batting cage.

"If another week goes by and he still hasn't hit," Mackanin said, "then he probably won't be ready."

Jerad Eickhoff (fractured right thumb) threw four innings in a minor-league intrasquad game and allowed one run. He threw 58 pitches. The Phillies believe he will be ready for the season. "There's no issues and everything feels great," Eickhoff said. . . . Elvis Araujo allowed home runs to two Rays minor-league hitters in the eighth inning. His spring ERA is 9.64. . . . Darnell Sweeney, a candidate for a bench job, struck out three more times Thursday. He has 11 strikeouts in 21 at-bats this spring.