Phillies' Cameron Rupp: Played through injury last season

Rupp played through much of last season with an undisclosed arm injury, Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Analysis:

The injury didn't seem to impact Rupp at the plate as his .447 slugging percentage put him among the top catchers in baseball. It did hurt his ability to slow down the run game, however, as he threw out just 27 percent of possible base stealers after averaging 38 percent his previous two seasons. The Phillies want to see Rupp improve on his game calling and pitch framing this season after he struggled in both areas last year. Phillies bullpen coach John McLaren, who also works with the catchers, said Rupp needs to improve his focus during games. It will be important for Rupp to further develop defensively this season with top prospect Jorge Alfaro in Triple-A Lehigh Valley this year. Alfaro could start pushing for Rupp's job as soon as midseason if he gets off to a strong start in the minors.