It’s the day many fans have been waiting for all Fall and Winter: the unofficial start of Spring Training as a truck is loaded with the Phillies’ equipment and leaves for the 1,058-mile trip south to the Carpenter Complex in Clearwater, Florida. In addition to the usual assortment, additional supplies for a pandemic will also be on board:
Items that will be loaded onto the trailers include several masks and plenty of sanitizer for players and front office staff, as well as 10,000 POWERADE cups; 2,400 baseballs; 2,000 short and long sleeve shirts; 1,200 bats; 900 socks; 600 pairs of pants; 600 batting practice hats; 350 pairs of shorts; 300 batting gloves; 250 batting practice tops; 200 fleeces; 200 light jackets; 140 batting helmets; 125 leather and elastic belts; 75 pairs of assorted spike, plastic and turf shoes; 40 heavy jackets; 20 coolers and a half pallet of POWERADE mix; and six bikes.