It’s the first week of January, which means we can all begin the countdown to spring training.

Pitchers and catchers are expected to report to training camps between Feb. 12-15, and position players a few days later.

Still, there are plenty of free agents out there, and the Phillies, Mets, and Yankees are all mulling over some situations.

In this week’s version of my Behind the Plate column, I’ll take a look at the Phillies’ bullpen arrangement, as well as the prospects of a key position in the field.

Also, what will the Mets do to fill a current gaping hole, and how can the Yankees solve their infield issues?

Finally, what famous Phillies’ catcher began as a third baseman?

Catchin’ On ... Along with trying to resolve their outfield situation, the Phils may make a move this season with catcher J.T. Realmuto, who is in the final year of his five-year $115.5 million contract.

Realmuto, who will turn 34 in March, is coming off a season in which he played just 99 games due to recurring knee problems he’s had the past two seasons. He also went 0-for-11 in the postseason series against the Mets.

Over his first two full seasons with the Phillies, Realmuto hit a combined .272 average with 36 homers and a .814 OPS. The last two have produced 34 homers, a .258 average, and a .757 OPS.

Realmuto is among the Phils’ core of high-priced and slowly aging stars, whom they will decide if a championship run can occur in the next two years.

Speaking of deciding what to do with catchers heading to the down side of the mountain, the Phils had a similar situation with Carlos Ruiz in 2013 when they signed the then 34-year-old to a three-year, $26 million deal to avoid free agency. There was a fourth-year option for $4.5 million with a buyout.

Ruiz had been an integral part of the club’s glory days in the late 2000s. He hit .333 in the 2007 NLDS, .375 in the 2008 World Series, and .333 in the 2009 World Series.

Unfortunately, Ruiz had his least productive year in 2013 that began with a 25-game suspension for amphetamine usage, and missed nearly a month due to a hamstring pull.

Ruiz played in only 92 games in 2013 and hit .254. He played in 110 games the following year and hit .252, but his overall numbers continued to decline.

In 2015, Ruiz again was bothered by injuries and slumps, as his average dipped to .211. At age 36, Ruiz was traded to the Dodgers in August 2016.

Besides Realmuto on the current roster, the Phils have Garrett Stubbs and Raphael Marchan as backstops. They acquired minor leaguer Paul McIntosh in the Jesus Luzardo trade, and recently inked Payton Henry, who had just 43 at-bats in two seasons with the Blue Jays.

I Don’t Want To Be Free ... The Phillies still have relief pitchers Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez on the free agent market.

Estevez had drawn some interest, and apparently was on the verge of signing with a handful of teams. Hoffman had good numbers last season (3-3, 2,17, 10 saves, 89 strikeouts in 66.1 innings), but apparently doesn’t fit into the Phillies’ plans. He has drawn some recent interest from the Red Sox.

Spot-starter Spencer Turnbull also is on the market. Turnbull made seven starts in his 17 appearances last season, and pitched to a 3-0 record with a 2.65 ERA before he endured shoulder soreness.

The Phils signed him to a one-year deal last February, and they may make the same move within a month. If not, Turnbull will assuredly latch on with some team.

No Pistol Pete ... There’s plenty of unrest in Queens, as the Mets continue to decide whether or not to resign first baseman Pete Alonso. He would be the long-ball bat they could use to pair with Juan Soto.

According to reports from the West Coast, the Giants and Mariners are interested in Alonso, and are prepared to offer him the contract he and agent Scott Boras are seeking.

Alonso turned down a three-year, $90 million pact from the Mets. Currently, the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman tops the first-baseman market, making $27 million a year, and the Braves’ Matt Olson is at $22.

For Alonso and the Mets, it will be a game of who blinks first. The Mets could also look at former Oriole and free agent outfielder Anthony Santander, who blasted 44 homers last year.

Santander would need a first baseman’s mitt this spring, or they could move Mark Vientos from third to first. If they look to move Vientos over to first, the Mets could look to highly-touted prospects Ronny Mauricio, Luis De La Santos, or Luisangel Acuna to man the hot corner.

Is It Second Or Third? ... The Yankees did an admirable job in replacing the loss of Juan Soto, but they still have a spot to fill in the infield.

They will need to decide if Jazz Chisholm will play second or third – likely second – and then whether to play Oswaldo Peralta or Oswaldo Cabrera at third. Veteran D.J. LeMahieu, coming off a disastrous two homer, .204 season, is also on the roster and can play both spots.

The Yanks once were in the market for free agent Alex Bregman, but his multi-year deal request (six or seven) ended the talks.

Readers Write ...

Pitching and Leading Off

Hi Jeff!

Your column of Thursday, Dec. 26, entitled “Phillies are stockpiling pitching” raised a lot of points. First of all, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS HAVING TOO MUCH PITCHING! Something always come up during the season to dispute that statement, injuries and/or inconsistent effectiveness. Cases in point are Taijuan Walker, Ranger Suarez, and Jose Alvarado. It’s good to see, however, the Phils going after pitching.

I hope Max Kepler does the job in LF, keeping Nick Castellanos in RF. Castellanos has given good defensive performances on balls hit to his left. Marsh or Rojas can take care of balls hit to his right. Hopefully Kepler will swing at balls only in the strike zone and remember that A WALK IS AS GOOD AS A HIT!

I still believe they could use a legitimate leadoff hitter, who can hit at least .280, doesn’t mind walking, and won’t clog up the base paths. When the Phils acquired Bake McBride in the summer of 1977, they just took off. Where would the Phils have been in 1980 without Lonnie Smith? That way, Kyle Schwarber could be dropped to the fourth slot behind Harper or to the fifth slot behind Bohm. Then, the opposing pitcher would have to pitch to them and not around them, knowing that Schwarber is coming up. They also couldn’t pitch around Schwarber, because the others behind him could get the job done.

Who knows? After a couple of years of almost, but not quite, maybe this is the year. We’ll see.

Richard Ochs

Walnutport

See Ya Lennie ... Lenny Randle, who had stints with the Yankees, Mets, Rangers, Cubs, and Mariners, passed away Sunday at the age of 75.

Randle’s most recognized for his 1977 spring training fight with then Texas manager and former Phillies’ skipper Frank Lucchesi, and was also Thurman Munson’s replacement in the lineup the day Munson died earlier from a plane crash.

Randle hit .257 for his career and stole 156 bases.

Time Passages ... Each week, I’ll recall a former player, team, or a game situation from our favorite pastime.

Recognized as a premier catcher in the Phillies’ baseball annals, Bob Boone began his career as a third baseman. Boone began to make the transition to catcher when he was at Double-A Reading in 1971. At the time, the Phils had a surplus of infielders and had aspirations for upstarts Don Money, John Vukovich and Larry Bowa. The club also drafted infielder Mike Schmidt from Ohio University.

While with the Phillies, Boone played third, first, and the outfield.

In 1977, Boone signed a three-year, $460,000 deal that carried him through the 1979 season. During the 1977 campaign, Boone had arguably his best year, with 11 homers, 66 RBIs, and a .284 average. He also hit .400 in the NLCS against the Dodgers.

After 10 seasons in Philly, and factions of the ’80 club broken off, the Angels acquired Boone in December 1981. Boone had a rebirth on the West Coast, as he became a pivotal part of the Angels’ success in the 80s being a clubhouse leader and shaping the pitching staff over seven seasons.

At age 40, he signed a free agent deal with Kansas City and spent two seasons there.

For his 19-year career, Boone had 105 homers with 826 RBIs and hit .254. He won seven gold gloves, and was a four-time All-Star.

Boone also managed the Royals and Reds for three years apiece, with his best finish a second with the Royals in 1995.

Your comments are always welcomed; email them to tnpsorts@tnonline.com.