Phillies: 4 Reasons the Universal DH is Great News
By David Esser
#2. More Roman Quinn in the Phillies lineup
This might seem like a strange point to make considering Roman Quinn for the most part has made a minimal impact with the Phillies, but there’s a serious amount of value he gives a team when healthy. Not only did Quinn post a 1.139 OPS in the month of August last year, but he was also electric in the outfield. Quinn routinely covered ground and made plays that no other centerfielder on the roster could dream of making. His speed and athleticism is simply something you cannot teach.
Despite appearing in only 44 games last year, Quinn recorded eight stolen bases. That gives him the most stolen bases per game on the Phillies by a pretty large margin. Considering the fact that Gabe Kapler was a more cautious manager when it came to baserunning and Joe Girardi tends to be more aggressive, it’s completely reasonable to assume Quinn could get the number up into the mid-20s if healthy.
Having someone like Quinn on the bases poses a constant threat to opposing pitchers. Not only can he swipe a bag at any given moment, but he can score on hits that an average player usually couldn’t. If Quinn is on second base, a single is scoring him almost 99% of the time.
On top of the above mentioned boost that Quinn can provide to a lineup, this also allows the Phillies to properly maintain Andrew McCutchen’s health over the next two or so years. “Cutch” turns 34 this October and is coming off a pretty nasty ACL injury. The idea of him being an everyday option in the outfield simply isn’t feasible anymore.
With the new DH rule, McCutchen can now routinely take afternoons off in the field, and instead, just focus on being productive at the plate. This is a win-win scenario for both Quinn and Cutch.