Phillies: This is the perfect lineup for the 2021 season
2. Rhys Hoskins, 1B (R)
Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins is on the mend from his left elbow injury and should be ready to go come Opening Day on April 1, home against the Atlanta Braves. Earlier this offseason, Hoskins shared on social media of him swinging in the batting cage. “Progress! I appreciate everyone for the love, it didn’t go unnoticed,” he said. “I am on track for spring training and I miss it like crazy.”
Hoskins and the Phillies recently avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $4.8 million deal. If he plays up to his full potential in 2021, the salary will be well worth it for the team’s president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and general manager Sam Fuld.
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Similar to Andrew McCutchen, the four-year veteran in Hoskins is known to work counts and get on base. He led the National League in 2019 with 116 walks. This past season, Hoskins recorded the 20th-most walks in the league (29), despite only playing 41 games due to the injury.
Hoskins has a .346 career on-base percentage while batting second in the order, drawing 105 walks across 161 games. He has also produced 37 doubles at the lineup spot, along with 35 home runs and 95 RBI.
If anything was learned from the 2020 season, it is that the Phillies need Hoskins in their lineup. During the 17 final games, the team went just 5-12 without him and finished only one game out of qualifying for the postseason for the first time since 2011.
3. Bryce Harper, RF (L)
It is hard to believe, but right fielder Bryce Harper is already entering his third season in red pinstripes after signing a historic 13-year, $330 million contract in late winter 2019.
Through 215 games in a Phillies uniform, the six-time All-Star has slashed .262/.385/.518 with 45 doubles, 48 home runs, and 147 RBI. In the field, he has committed just six errors spanning 1,702 innings and 372 chances. It is hard to ask for much more out of Harper. His success should continue into the 2021 season.
“Batting third, number three, right fielder Bryce Harper.” pic.twitter.com/DSGaAiB7h7
— Matt Breen (@matt_breen) March 28, 2019
Harper aligns well batting third in the lineup. He has the most familiarity in that lineup spot throughout his career, and has performed up to expectations. Across 624 games and more than 2,700 plate appearances, Harper has slugged 134 doubles, 136 home runs, and 401 RBI, while slashing .281/.406/.533. This past season, Harper hit .279 in the three hole as opposed to .222 while batting second.
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Harper batting third also allows him to be more aggressive early on in counts, rather than take pitches to lengthen out at-bats. There were 28 instances this past season with Harper on the first pitch. He slashed .357/.357/.964 on such counts with two doubles, five home runs, and eight RBI. On 0-1 counts, Harper hit even bette,: .429/.438/.714, through 17 plate appearances.
The Phillies star outfielder batting between first baseman Rhys Hoskins and the following hitter on our “Ideal 2021 Phillies Lineup” list should only bode well for the Las Vegas native.
4. J.T. Realmuto, C (R)
At the onset of the offseason, chances seemed slim that star catcher J.T. Realmuto would re-sign with the Phillies, especially since the New York Mets were expected to be heavy favorites given their new owner, Steve Cohen. Instead, the Mets went another direction and signed James McCann. The Nationals were also linked to having interest in Realmuto, but instead opted for the duo of Yan Gomes and Alex Avila. Even the Atlanta Braves seemed to have a slim chance to steal the catcher away at one point.
The Phillies played the “waiting game” successfully and were able to retain their star catcher on a five-year, $115.5 million deal — setting an all-time record for average annual value at the catcher position.
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It feels like without bringing back Realmuto, the Phillies would have a steep hill to climb if they wanted to contend this coming season amid their strong National League East division. The hill is still there even with Realmuto re-signed, but the Phillies have more traction and ability to make significant strides this coming season.
This past season, Realmuto received 187 plate appearances at the cleanup spot. On top of scoring 32 runs, the Oklahoma native slugged five doubles, 11 home runs, and 31 RBI. The seven-year veteran is a constant threat at the plate and behind the plate defensively. If Andrew McCutchen, Rhys Hoskins, and/or Bryce Harper get on base and into scoring position, the Phillies should have confidence in Realmuto to get the job done and bring them home.
5. Alec Bohm, 3B (R)
The player in the Phillies everyday lineup that benefits the most from both J.T. Realmuto and Didi Gregorius being back is third baseman Alec Bohm. Imagine the added pressure Bohm would have to perform offensively, if say the Phillies instead had Andrew Knapp catching and Kyle Holder or C.J. Chatham receiving plate appearances as the shortstop.
Bohm quietly had a very impressive rookie year in 2020, and finished tied for second in the Rookie of the Year Award race. Spanning 44 games and 180 plate appearances, the former third overall pick from the 2018 draft slashed .338/.400/.481 with 11 doubles, four home runs, 23 RBI, 16 walks, and just 36 strikeouts.
Bohm batted more often than not in either the seventh or eighth spot in the 2020 lineup, but a “promotion” is well-deserved for him to hit higher up. A strong showing from Bohm in 2021 could significantly increase the club’s chances to contend for the postseason. Bohm had four plate appearances batting fifth last year, and collected a single and double, along with a walk and RBI.
In a recent interview, Bohm said one of the things he learned from his rookie season — “a small taste of just a couple of months up there” — is that “it’s a long year.” He said that he has a lot of work to do still, and that his priority this offseason was to focus on getting his legs strong.
“Over the course of a 162-game season, that will be the first thing to go,” Bohm said. “[I will] just take care of everything in the weight room and get back into some baseball stuff. Before I know it, spring training is going to be rolling around and we will get back to business.”
Bohm had the right mindset for a rookie heading into year two. Time will tell if that will translate into the stats columns.
6. Didi Gregorius, SS (L)
Many people within the Phillies organization are happy that Didi Gregorius has re-signed to a two-year, $28 million deal. Joe Girardi, who also managed the shortstop with the New York Yankees, is usually the first in line to praise him.
“I know what he brings on the field and in the locker room. I think he solidifies our infield and keeps everyone in the right spot and right frame of mind,” the skipper recently told reporters. “Didi plays the game with love and hunger and I think it wears off on other people. For me, I think he’s a real leader and I think it was important that we got him back.”
The top observation Girardi noticed in Gregorius this past season was that he continues to improve as an offensive player, to the point where he is a “middle-of-the-order hitter” and is “very dangerous.”
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“It doesn’t matter if you’re right-handed or left-handed, he’s very productive,” Girardi continued. “That’s where I’ve seen a ton of growth in Didi.”
Gregorius is known to put the ball in play. He has yet to have a season with more than 85 strikeouts. Over his past 1,150 plate appearances dating back to 2018, he has struck out just 150 times — a 13 percent rate.
The fact that the Phillies lineup is so deep that they can afford to hit Gregorius in the sixth spot is a positive sign. This past season, Gregorius received 65 plate appearances batting sixth. He slashed a respectable .273/.354/.491 with one double, one triple, three home runs, and seven RBI, while walking more times (6) than he struck out (5).
7. Jean Segura, 2B (R)
At one point this offseason, it was thought that Jean Segura would be dealt, perhaps to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Phillies may have worried whether they would be able to retain Didi Gregorius, which is why nothing further developed other than a single rumor.
Fast-forward to just days before spring training gets underway, and Segura now has advanced himself into having an “upper hand” for the starting second base job, according to manager Joe Girardi.
Although Segura’s batting average dipped from .280 to .266 between the 2019 and 2020 seasons, the two-time All-Star’s on-base percentage and slugging percentage did see an increase. If Segura can return to his .300-hitting days from 2016-18, he should be able to do damage down in the lower-third of the lineup.
8. Scott Kingery, CF (R)
Scott Kingery is the odd man out in the starting lineup as far as being a regular. The Didi Gregorius re-signing guaranteed Jean Segura the second base role, while once again putting Kingery in a utility-type role.
More often than not, Kingery will likely be penciled into the lineup at center field — instead of Adam Haseley or Roman Quinn. Kingery is in need of an improved 2021 season, considering he slashed just .159/.228/.283 in 2020 with 10 singles, five doubles, and three home runs across 124 plate appearances.
Perhaps Kingery getting the COVID-19 virus in summer camp set him back to where he could never make up lost time in preparing for everyday action. A full offseason under his plate to return to full health may be all the Arizona native needed.
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