With each opportunity, four Phillies starters have the goal to separate themselves from the other three, and a difficult inning or two will be a test along the way.

Challenge accepted:

While the Philadelphia Phillies are off and running with a quarter of their 162 completed, the starting staff has two competitions. For one, Jerad Eickhoff‘s return means general manager Matt Klentak will have an odd man out with the possibility of a delayed reactivation.

IN OTHER WORDS: “Competition can be the most nerve-racking experience. Some people just thrive on it.” – Itzhak Perlman

Except for Ben Lively and Drew Anderson, the rotation for the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs has hurlers who are not on the 40-man roster, and the only southpaw is Cole Irvin. Ergo, right-handers Enyel De Los Santos and Tom Eshelman probably won’t receive promotional consideration until the second half.

As for the red pinstripes, Zach Eflin, Vince Velasquez, and Nick Pivetta are pitching for their major league lives because Eickhoff is rehabbing in the minors. And those MiLB outings will depend on his progress and the home schedules of their top-three affiliates.

But even though fans aren’t thinking about it, those four moundsmen are also in a second competition. Yes, management is looking ahead to the postseason to determine if they have a solid three-spot arm, and Eflin is the early leader.

While Klentak isn’t currently trading for a solid rotation piece, he is manning the phones to lay the groundwork for a July deal if he doesn’t have an in-house candidate to pitch behind Aaron Nola and Jake Arrieta. That’s a GMs job!

If you review the last Bank appearances by Pivetta and Velasquez, you’ll notice Pivetta was on the ropes in the first inning of an eked-out victory totaling five scoreless frames. And Velasquez allowed three runs in the first two innings before being a different hurler after his first three outs.

If you remember the rainout against the New York Mets, Kapler skipped Eflin’s turn because the preferred matchup against Jacob deGrom was Nola. And the decision-makers wanted Eflin facing the St. Louis Cardinals, not the Baltimore Orioles. So, Pivetta and Velasquez drew the easier team before the inclement weather.