Cartoon: You’ll need special masks to watch the Phillies

The good news? Phillies fans will be allowed back into Citizens Bank Park this season.

The bad news? They might not want to watch this team.

I know, we’re supposed to be giddy about the return of the Phillies, especially considering spring training is a welcome break from the COVID-19 sewer we’ve been festering in for the past year. But at this point, it’s hard to see how this team will be that much different from last year’s disappointing squad, considering it’s basically the same team.

Okay, Bryce Harper is entertaining, and it’s easy to see how the lineup could score runs in bunches. And maybe the bullpen has been improved a bit. But really, it would be hard to do worse than the 7.06 ERA it allowed last season, and we’ll have to wait and see if the team’s woeful defense has gotten any better (hopefully J.T. Realmuto’s return offers a boost here).

Then there’s Odúbel Herrera, who’s back for spring training. After spending last year in the minors, he’s getting a second chance after being arrested for domestic assault, suspended by Major League Baseball, and removed from the team’s 40-man roster last season.

His girlfriend didn’t press charges, but that doesn’t make what happened any less gruesome. It’s hard to read Marcus Hayes’ most recent column (the Atlantic City police report said his girlfriend had “visible signs of injury to her arms and neck that was sustained after being assaulted...”) and feel good about rooting for a team that decides to give him a chance to wear their jersey.

» READ MORE: Marcus Hayes: Why the Phillies should cut Odúbel Herrera while they still can

As I noted in my cartoon, here’s hoping we won’t have to be embarrassed to watch this team come this summer. But hopefully by then, we’ll also have better things to do.

Here are some Phillies cartoons I drew during last year’s virus-shortened season. For more editorial cartoons, visit inquirer.com/opinion/cartoons/.