Phillies 2021 Spring Training Preview: Position Players
Adam Haseley
Former No. 8 overall pick Adam Haseley gets ready for his third season with the big league club and should have many eyes on him. Haseley will be one of the few lefty bats in the Phillies lineup next season.
Haseley came up quickly from the minors, playing only 62 games in both Double-A and Triple-A before being called up in 2019. The hope was that he could continue his great development into the Majors and so far it hasn’t entirely been the case.
In 2019 Haseley had a weighted runs created plus (wRC+) of just 88 and in a shortened 2020 season (for everyone) just 89. While this doesn’t sound great, he has only played in 107 games and now will have the chance to play in more this season.
No one knows who will be the everyday center fielder in 2021, or even if there will be an everyday player. If there is going to be someone there every day, Haseley surely has the best chance.
On defense, Haseley has been pretty good with a 1.3 UZR in center across 475 innings.
At only 24 years old we will see Haseley’s first full Major League season and see if he can break out, be the everyday outfielder Dombrowski, and Girardi knows he can be in 2021.
Roman Quinn
Roman Quinn is the other guy fighting for the starting center field spot in 2021, and while he doesn’t have the same status as Adam Haseley does, he will still compete for the chance to play every day.
Quinn has never gotten a chance to play a lot in a Phillies uniform, never playing in more than 50 games for a season according to. Despite that, he’s been in the Phillies organization for a while and he has a unique skill set that might not be around much more in modern baseball.
In 1975, he might’ve been the perfect lead-off hitter with his blazing speed, having the 2nd highest sprint speed at 30.5 feet per second (ft/sec).
However, what makes him not as valuable today to modern baseball teams is that he doesn’t have another calling card. Quinn is not a very good hitter with a career 78 OPS+ and has never gone over 100 in a season, so he is probably going to be a below-average hitter. Not to mention that even despite having great speed, he’s not a good defensive outfielder.
Roman has a career -1.0 UZR in center in over 743 innings, so if he can’t offer much on offense or defense, how much will he offer the Phillies in a starting role next season? He could still be a solid bench piece in a pitch runner role, but what else will he offer to the Phillies in 2021?