Did Joe Girardi’s fondness for Ronald Torreyes impact his managing of the 2021 Phillies?
Philadelphia Phillies manager Joe Girardi made no secret of his appreciation for utilityman Ronald Torreyes, whom he relied upon immensely in 2021, and with whom he has a relationship that dates back to their days on the New York Yankees.
Torreyes was one of several players who elected free agency rather than be outrighted at the end of last week. However, Torreyes being included in said group surprised Phillies fans, who had grown fond of the underrated player this season. More than that, he was estimated to command less than $2M in arbitration for 2022, more than affordable for a Phillies team that had just declined the $15M option on Andrew McCutchen and sent the $11M Odúbel Herrera packing.
Then, a Twitter user posited a compelling theory in response to my first article on Torreyes’ free agency:
In August, with third baseman Alec Bohm struggling, Girardi started Torreyes nine games in a row. Between August 7-22, Torreyes started all 14 games and played the entirety of all but one of them. By season’s end, he had appeared in 111 games, a new career-high and the most he’s played since 2017 with the Yankees, Girardi’s final season managing there.
Ronald Torreyes filled in for Alec Bohm more than may have been necessary in 2021
Torreyes is 29 and 2021 was his seventh year in the big leagues. 2021 was Bohm’s sophomore season, and it was a far cry from his debut in 2020 when he hit .338/.400/.481 with a .881 OPS and finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting.
Of course, to compare 44 games in a 60-game season to the 115 games he played in this full season is irresponsible. The true comparison will be 2021 and 2022, once Bohm has worked with the Phillies’ new hitting coach, Kevin Long, and spent some time working on his fielding fundamentals, as he made 15 errors in 103 games at third.
When Bohm’s struggles were amplified in the second half, Girardi sat him for days on end, and eventually, he was sent down to Triple-A for a while to get his head on straight. He returned at the end of the season as a bench player, but Girardi drew criticism for how he handled the young player’s struggles.
The Phillies have long struggled with developing prospects, especially with making the jump from Triple-A to the big leagues. But Bohm is supposed to be the Phillies’ everyday third baseman and one of their rising stars. As productive as Torreyes was in 2021, he cannot be Girardi’s crutch. The Phillies need to fix their problems, not avoid them.
While many still think the Phillies bring Torreyes back in free agency, this theory makes too much sense to dismiss.