Now is the time for some of the Phillies young players to breakout.
With a new coaching staff and the growing motivation to win, the Phillies hope to see several of their young players have breakout years.
Here are three players who are on watch to have those breakout seasons under new manager Joe Girardi in 2020 for the Phillies.
Adam Haseley, CF
The most obvious selection on this list, center fielder Adam Haseley is primed to truly have a breakout season in 2020. Not only did Haseley shows flashes of brilliance on both offense and defense last year, but as of right now it’s looking he will be the everyday center fielder. All the stars are lining up for him to seriously increase his production.
Haseley was an impromptu call-up during last year’s campaign, swiftly being streamlined from AA to the majors in order to fill the hole created by Andrew McCutchen’s knee injury. At just 23 years old and only having been in the Phillies system for two years, this was quite a bit to ask from the lefty outfielder.
However, Haseley did nothing but impress. In his first month with the team he hit .278 and knocked in 11 RBIs. Haseley’s “out of nowhere” production was a huge boost to a team desperately trying to stay afloat in the NL Wildcard race.
Haseley finished the season slashing .266/.324/.396. He hit 5 homers and knocked in 26 RBIs on the year, he also had 5 steals and 30 runs scored.
Outside of his above average batting, Haseley also routinely made hit-saving and run-saving plays out in center field. This isn’t blind optimism either, the numbers back it up. Haseley had the 17th best WAR among all rookies last season. He was just 0.4 points behind HR derby champion Vladimir Guerrero Jr. despite having over 200 less at bats.
With Haseley surrounded by a better coaching staff, while also receiving more regular at bats. The numbers all point to the youngster having a true breakout year in 2020.