Howard Outage

FEW PLAYERS IN the game of baseball inspire such divergent opinions as Ryan Howard, particularly in light of the 5-year, $125 million contract extension that begins this season. But general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said definitively this offseason that he has no second thoughts about the deal, which Howard signed in April 2010, and such hindsight is irrelevant at this point anyway.

Whatever your opinion of the first baseman's monetary worth, the fact is that the Phillies as currently constructed are a far less potent team without their marquee cleanup hitter in the lineup.

The great unknown, then, is what the unit will look like during what is expected to be an absence of at least 2 months as Howard recovers from surgery to repair the ruptured Achilles' tendon he suffered while making the final out of a season-ending loss to St. Louis in Game 5 of the NL Division Series.

Spring training, which opens on Sunday with the first workout for pitchers and catchers, is not built to answer such questions. It will be impossible to tell what identity the Phillies' lineup will take - starting with who will replace Howard in the cleanup slot - until Opening Day.

Unlike fellow veterans Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco, Howard has never missed a significant chunk of time due to injury. A sprained ankle held him to 143 games in 2010, but he played in 162 games in 2008, 160 in '09, and 152 last season. The fourth spot in the lineup is the one thing Charlie Manuel has rarely needed to worry about.

Compounding matters is the fact that the void in the middle of the lineup would never have appeared as gaping as it will this season. In 2009, four Phillies finished the season with at least 30 home runs, and five finished with at least 20. But over the last two seasons, that power has steadily waned. Jayson Werth left via free agency after the 2010 season, while injuries helped limit Utley to a career-low 11 homers in 2011.

Last year, Howard was the only Phillie to crack the 30-homer plateau. Finishing second behind his 33 was Raul Ibanez, who hit 20 despite struggling to reach base with any sort of consistency and currently is an unsigned free agent. Now, the only other proven power threat in the lineup is Hunter Pence. who has hit at least 22 home runs in each of his first four full seasons in the majors. In 2011, he hit 11 after the Phillies acquired him from the Astros (he finished with 22 between the two teams).