Philadelphia Phillies going a lazy, unpopular route in center field

It’s lazy, unpopular, and won’t win a championship. Am I talking about what the Philadelphia Phillies or me in high school?

The team is reportedly set to reunite with outfielder Odubel Herrera. In a weak free agent market of center field options, it appears the Phillies have been left with doing nothing more than getting cozy with the devil they already know.

The ball club is beginning to look a little less inspiring than many could have hoped for at this point. With Herrera back in center field—either as the starter or in a platoon—the Phillies are not making enough winning moves to convince me this is their year.

A reunion with Odubel Herrera is not the right move for the Philadelphia Phillies to make.

There was a brief time when Herrera was widely popular. His domestic abuse suspension changed that. Coincidentally enough, the team already brought in relief pitcher Jeurys Familia who, several years ago, had his own domestic abuse-related suspension.

It’s not a good PR look for the team to bring in two guys with this history. Even if we go the route of forgiveness and can justify that they served a punishment, the on-field issue isn’t fixed in center field. It is still a major weakness and one they failed to address properly.

Sadly, Herrera might have been the best free agent center fielder for the Phillies to add. In his 2021 return, he did hit .260/.310/.416 with 13 home runs in 492 plate appearances. He also played what we can refer to as above-average-defense in center field.

Many fans were hoping the Phillies could find a solution via trade. A deal with the Tampa Bay Rays for Manuel Margot or Kevin Kiermaier was one possibility. With Herrera looking likely to return, it would seem the only hope for Phillies fans eager for change is for him to be the Geoff Jenkins to someone else’s Jayson Werth.

The Phillies can salvage this by adding a big name in left fielder and possibly even doing something special at another position, too. Adding a left fielder, DH, and a quality player to compete for center field reps against Herrera changes the story. At the moment, it’s not such a positive one.