Philadelphia Phillies: 3 underrated players from rebuilding era

Utilityman Howie Kendrick

While Howie Kendrick only played in 39 games as a Phillie, he was another productive veteran leader who left an impact on the team. Howie is a passionate player and a hard worker who led by example. In the end, he had plenty of value at the trade deadline and had to be dealt to a team while the opportunity was there. His time here was short, but he still gave Phillies fans some memories during his short tenure in Philly.

In his 141 at-bats and 156 plate appearances in the 2017 season, he hit .340/.397/.454 with two home runs, 16 RBIs, eight doubles, eight stolen bases, 48 hits, and sixteen runs scored. If he had played a full 162-game season in Philly, he would’ve finished with about eight home runs, 66 RBIs, 33 stolen bases, 199 hits, and 66 runs scored.

There is no guarantee he would’ve been consistent throughout the entire season, but he still had a more than respectable tenure in Philly. Some days it seemed like he was guaranteed to do something productive every time he came up to the plate such as when he went 3 for 5 with four RBIs in a 17-3 win over the Washington Nationals. Kendrick was also a versatile player. He played left field, second base, and first base for the ‘Phils’ and batted in almost every spot in the lineup.

Sometimes we don’t appreciate what we have until it’s gone. After he left Philly, it was expected that the veteran might start to show some signs of age but that didn’t happen. Howie continued to lead by example for the young guys on the Nationals and it turned out way better than both sides could’ve imagined.

In his past few regular seasons in that nation’s capital, he’s played in 213 games with 650 at-bats and 707 plate appearances, and he’s slashed .322/.367/.529. This year they ended up on top with a World Series Championship and Kendrick was the NLCS MVP. He finished the 2019 postseason with a .286/.328/.444 line, two home runs, 12 RBIs, four doubles, and eight runs scored in 17 games.

Howie’s productivity and work ethic kept Phillies fans interested in the first half of the year and gave them something to cheer about. Everywhere he goes, he gets the job done in some fashion. He was easily one of the most exciting players from this era that went unnoticed.