After two mental gaffes during Monday night’s loss to the Braves, Phillies outfielder Odubel Herrera is in hot water again.
If you have been following the Phillies the last few years, you know how frustrating Odubel Herrera can be. He has arguably been the team’s best player since being selected in the Rule 5 Draft in 2014. However, that has come with several mental gaffes that often earned him the ire of former manager Pete Mackanin.
Even with Gabe Kapler now aboard as the new manager, Herrera’s dichotomy struck yet again Monday night.
Herrera started the game off on a high note, hitting a first-inning home run off Atlanta’s Julio Teheran. It was a strong at-bat as Herrera worked a full count before hitting a 79 mph slider at 106.2 mph over the center field wall. It was the only run Philadelphia scored the entire game.
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Part of the reason only one run was scored can be attributed to Herrera. In the third inning, he came to bat with a runner on first and one out. He laced a hit into right field and tried to stretch it into a double. He went into second base standing and was easily thrown out by Nick Markakis. Had he slid, it’s far more likely he would have been safe, putting runners on second and third with one out and Rhys Hoskins coming to the plate. Instead, there were two outs, and Aaron Altherr struck out to end the inning.
After the game, Herrera explained that he didn’t think he would have to slide on the play: [quote via Todd Zolecki of MLB.com]
"“It’s two things,” Herrera said. “No. 1, I misjudged the play. I really thought I could make it without sliding. No. 2, I looked at [Swanson] and it didn’t look like the ball was going to get to him. I really thought I was going to be safe without having to slide.”"
The next inning, Aaron Nola had runners on the corner with one out. Kurt Suzuki hit a fly ball into shallow right-center that neither Herrera nor Altherr called for. Altherr lunged for it and made the catch but was not set up well to make the throw home. Ozzie Albies scored on the play and ultimately became the winning run. Afterward, Herrera said he should have called for the ball and believed he could have made the play.
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It was another game that showed just how valuable Herrera can be but also showed how frustrating he can be. Since 2015, Herrera ranks 13th among all outfielders with 11.0 wins above replacement. He ranks ahead of Yoenis Cespedes, A.J. Pollock, and Dexter Fowler. While his production doesn’t allow him to make these kinds of mistakes, it at least reminds you why he remains in the lineup.
Kapler said as much after the game, recognizing that Herrera is better served on the field rather than on the bench: [quote via Matt Gelb of the Athletic ($)]
"“I continue to feel that this is a very good baseball player,” Kapler said. “An excellent teammate. A guy who prepares his butt off and a guy who we have an incredible amount of confidence in. He makes us a lot better every time he’s out on the field.”"
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Kapler and Herrera talked after the game about the two plays, and they both emerged confident things would be different next time. Herrera is back in the lineup Tuesday night, so Kapler will not follow in Mackanin’s footsteps and bench Herrera.