Was Jake Arrieta right to criticize Phillies after embarrassing sweep?

Phillies pitcher Jake Arrieta dug into his teammates after being swept by the Giants, criticizing their offensive performance and the defensive shifts.

After the Phillies lost to the Giants Sunday afternoon to complete a three-game sweep, Jake Arrieta was pissed. He went into the locker room visibly angry, telling reporters that it was a “horse-shit series”. The veteran pulled no punches, criticizing both the defense and offense in many aspects.

Arrieta’s tirade capped off what was a frustrating series. Even if Arrieta was the only one to verbalize his frustrations in such a negative way, he certainly wasn’t the only one feeling that way. What he said is finally getting people to look into the team’s flaws.

The most obvious issue the team had over the weekend was on offense. They went 0-for-17 with runners in scoring position and hit just .160 overall in the series. The only run came off the bat of Arrieta with his solo home run Sunday. The team faced two rookie starting pitchers, yet Arrieta’s run was the only one they managed.

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Arrieta also took aim at the team’s defensive shifts. In the sixth inning Sunday, Scott Kingery was lined up the middle against Alen Hanson, who hit a weak dribbler towards where Kingery would have been in a normal defensive alignment. Due to this, Kingery could not make the play at first, leaving runners at first and second with one out. The inning snowballed from there as the Giants scored five runs.

This one play displayed a larger trend: shifting is hurting the team more than it is helping it. There are plenty of examples of this happening throughout the season, as Ben Harris of the Athletic dives into. As a whole, shifting has cost the team 11 runs according to Sports Info Solutions.

The Dodgers are the only other team who have been hurt by shifting.

The players on the field are not used to playing in the shift. Kingery is already not used to playing shortstop. It’s tough enough to learn the position, and it’s even tougher when he has to learn to play it from all over the infield. While players in the minors will learn how to play with shifts before coming to Philadelphia, those already here who didn’t deal with it last season are learning on the fly.

Arrieta did not spare himself from criticism either, stating that he should not have allowed that many runs. It was the second-most runs he has allowed in any start and the most he has allowed in one inning all year.

Manager Gabe Kapler, who has been at the forefront of using shifts, met with Arrieta after he made his comments. Kapler said the team will analyze how they use shifts to make sure both the pitchers and fielders feel comfortable with them.

Next: Phillies Prospect Report: Sanchez lights out

The Phillies have to make a serious turnaround with more tough series coming up. If they keep playing the way they have the last two weeks, it will not go well for them.

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