Mar. 21 -- MAN OF MANY GLOVES

BY SCOTT LAUBER

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Apologize for the lack of bloggage yesterday, but the goal was to write, dine with old family friends who spend their winter in Jupiter, then make the nearly 4-hour drive through Yeehaw Junction, past the infamous "Panther Crossing" sign and back to Clearwater without colliding with any cows or deer on dimly lit State Road 60.

Mission accomplished, on all counts.

Anyway, since I'd rather blog late than not at all, I thought we could talk about Miguel Cairo, who is making a serious push for a spot on the Phillies' bench. As I wrote in today's News Journal, Cairo is a 13-year major-league veteran with a knack for pinch-hitting. He also has more gloves than Isotoner. Cairo plays six positions and told me he routinely keeps three mitts (first base, infield, outfield) in his equipment bag. He's batting .314 this spring and even has hit two home runs (he hasn't homered in a regular-season game since July 28, 2005, a span of 781 at-bats). Cairo has outplayed fellow veteran infielder Marcus Giles, and I get the distinct impression that he's more of what Charlie Manuel is looking for from a bench player than John Mayberry Jr. or Jason Donald, both of whom could benefit from playing everyday in Triple-A.

So, will Cairo make the team?

Check back in two weeks. For now, the Phillies' bench is at full capacity with Greg Dobbs, Eric Bruntlett, Geoff Jenkins, Matt Stairs and either Chris Coste or Ronny Paulino. But, with three days off in the season's first eight days, Manuel is considering carrying 11 pitchers early in the season (he usually prefers 12) and keeping an extra bench player. Also, the Phillies are shopping Jenkins and are willing to pay all or most of the $8 million left on his contract. If they can't unload Jenkins, they could release him. Or, they could trade Stairs. Regardless, Cairo could find himself with a spot on the opening-day roster if he continues to play well this spring.

A few other nuggets to start your Saturday:

1. Refresh my memory: Didn't Chase Utley have hip surgery Nov. 24? Well, you wouldn't know it by watching him play this week. Batting in his standard No. 3 spot in the lineup yesterday, he went 2-for-3, scored a run and played 5-1/2 innings against the Cardinals. He's 3-for-9 (.333) in four Grapefruit League games and showing no signs of weakness or fatigue. Charlie Manuel said Utley likely will play today vs. the Twins, then get tomorrow off.

2. Ryan Howard swatted another homer, his sixth of the spring. He also picked up a single against lefty reliever Trever Miller, yet another good sign considering how much Howard struggles to hit southpaws.

3. I asked Manuel if he's really considering batting lefty-swinging Utley, Howard and Raul Ibanez back-to-back-to-back in the middle of the lineup. He said he likes that configuration against right-handed starters, but he hasn't made up his mind about lefties. Really, though, he said the decision may come down to how many lefties the opposing team has in the bullpen. Last week, Baseball Prospectus analyst Joe Sheehan told me he believes that grouping the three lefties together will leave the Phils susceptible to late-inning matchup problems, and I tend to agree with him.

4. Cool story from yesterday's game: After pitching 4-2/3 innings, Carlos Carrasco was running behind the outfield fence when he came face-to-face with Albert Pujols. The Cardinals slugger complimented Carrasco on a decent outing, then told him he had been tipping his pitches ever so slightly. Apparently, Pujols noticed a hitch in Carrasco's delivery that gave away whether he was about to throw a fastball or changeup.

Finally, on tap today: Phils-Twins at Bright House. Chan Ho Park is scheduled to start, assuming his balky hamstring feels OK. When we know about Park's status, you'll know.

But the day's most important event will happen on a mound at the Carpenter Complex, where Cole Hamels will be throwing a bullpen session. Hamels has played catch for the past two days and reported no serious discomfort in his left elbow. But the stiffness that prompted him to get an anti-inflammatory injection this week in Philly has flared only when he pitches, sits down and tries to resume pitching. He will presumably take that action today during his bullpen session.

More later.