Phillies: Why is Odubel Herrera the lightning rod for Phillies’ struggles?
By John Town
Odubel Herrera has become a villain in Philadelphia for how he plays the game, but why is he the one Phillies fans take their anger out on this season?
Tuesday night the Phillies lost their 64th game to an Astros team who has won 67 games this season. The narrative surrounding the series was the contrast between a rebuilding team and one that was in that same spot a few years ago. Now, that narrative has once again centered on Philadelphia’s polarizing center fielder, Odubel Herrera.
In the first inning of the game, Herrera hit a deep line drive that Derek Fisher, Houston’s center fielder, tracked to the wall and caught. Thinking he had an extra-base hit, Herrera did his signature bat flip, which the Astros mocked on Herrera’s way back to the dugout.
The jesting clearly got to Herrera, who later did not run out a dropped third strike. Manager Pete Mackanin swapped out Herrera in a double switch in the next inning, which he said was partly motivated by the lack of effort. Mackanin said he would talk about the incident with Herrera.
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This is by no means the first time Herrera has received criticism for how he plays the game. He has made mental errors and lacked focus, even reaching the point of being fined. Fans who want players to “play the right way” often get on Herrera for how celebrates, albeit he does do it prematurely at times.
Herrera always winds up being criticized by the team and the fans, but he has been one of the few bright spots for the team this year.
As a whole, he has a .272/.316/.438 line in 95 games with a team-leading 1.9 fWAR among hitters. He has been dynamic since June started with a .934 OPS and 141 wRC+.
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In fairness, Herrera had his struggles in May (.453 OPS with one walk in 112 plate appearances) but he is far removed from those struggles and his overall numbers this year are starting to return to his career norms.
Cameron Rupp called out Herrera after the game, but he has been one of the team’s worse hitters this year. His .713 OPS is ninth on the team among players with 100 or more plate appearances. He is hitting a measly .228 with a 33 percent strikeout rate.
However, he has not received nearly the same criticism as Herrera along with several other struggling players.
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Herrera will never have the demeanor of Chase Utley, but it is something the fan base will have to accept with Herrera signed to a long-term extension. His play has been strong, and there are people more deserving of criticism than Herrera.