CLEARWATER, Fla. - Clay Buchholz owns both a World Series ring and the indignity of being demoted from a rotation to a bullpen. He is 32, and he is the most experienced starter on the Phillies roster.
He has enjoyed the relaxed status this spring as team elder. His stuff was not crisp at the beginning of his second start, in which he allowed four runs in three innings of an 8-5 Phillies win over Detroit. But, now on a rebuilding team, Buchholz said he can tinker in the spring without the scrutiny of being on a team without large expectations.