Phillies: Odubel Herrera, Jean Segura have become an elite 1-2 punch

Back over .500 for the first time since May 20th, the Philadelphia Phillies have to be feeling pretty good with themselves considering how things have transpired over the past week or so. They’re winners of three straight series, they record three straight walk-off victories heading into the weekend, and they put up a combined total of 15 runs against the New York Yankees.

While Aaron Nola’s 7.2 inning gem on Sunday stole a majority of the spotlight, it was the offense that really set the tone for the entire afternoon, spotting Nola with a clean 4-0 lead by the time the second inning was finished.

Right at the top of all that offense was the Phillies one and two-hole hitters: Odubel Herrera and Jean Segura.

While Herrera started off the season down in AAA, and then went hitless through his first 12 MLB plate appearances, he’s quickly established himself as one of Philadelphia’s top hitters. He’s worked his way from the eight-hole to the leadoff position, and seemingly keeps getting better as time progresses. He hit .292 in the month of May, and is currently batting .333 in June. Since being moved into the leadoff spot, Odubel is slashing .327/.352/.538 with five doubles and 12 runs scored.

Herrera’s current strikeout rate of 16.9% is by far a career low, and his walk rate is nearing a career high. He’s been one of the Phillies more consistent hitters all season long since breaking out of his early slump, and the decision to move him into the leadoff spot has quickly proven to be a good one.

The Phillies are getting elite production out of their one and two-hole hitters at the moment.

Part of Odubel’s recent leadoff success can likely be attributed to the guy batting behind him, as Jean Segura continues to build himself a half-decent All-Star Game bid. He’s currently batting a career high .339 at the plate – the fourth highest average amongst all MLB players with at least 190 plate appearances.

While Segura has been a “hittin’ machine” for the Phillies all season long, the moving of Herrera into the leadoff spot has positively affected Jean’s game as well. Segura is batting .409 with a .992 OPS over the past 11 games, which is obviously exceptional.

Early on in the 2021 season, one of the biggest issues with the Phillies offense was the inability to get runners on base for the likes of Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto, the Phillies main two middle-of-the-order bats. All eight of Harper’s home runs this season have been solo shots, which is a huge reflection of just how little base-path traction the top of the Phillies order was generating.

Despite his previous success as a leadoff man back in 2019, it quickly became clear that Andrew McCutchen was no longer the man for the job.

While it’s unlikely that the Herrera will continue to hit .327 and Segura .409, the connection that these two have formed at the top of the batting order is fast approaching “elite” status. Both like using the entire outfield, and both have above average speed. The Yankees struggled all weekend long trying to keep the pair of hitters off the base-path, which was resulting in deep pitch counts and a whole lot of early runs.

If these two can play at just 90% of where they’ve been at the past two weeks, the Phillies could find themselves possessing an offense that is somewhat resemblant of the elite one that they fielded in 2020.