Centerfield is an Issue for the Philies But They Have Options

The Phillies have a centerfield problem.

While they might not have a perfect fix, they do have options.

The combination of Adam Haseley and Roman Quinn simply isn't getting it done, the duo is hitting a combined .135 this season with just one extra-base hit.

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Adding to the issue, Haseley is also an average defender, as evidence in the bottom of the fourth with one out and one on. Mets outfielder Kevin Pillar hit a lazy, short fly to center, Haseley took a drop step, which allowed to fall in front of him.  The next hitter, Johnathan Villar, would rip a double, scoring two.

If Haseley isn't going to produce at the plate, he needs to help eliminate runs, not add them to the scoreboard.

Meanwhile, Quinn has had his issues at the plate, striking out nine times in 17 at-bats. His redeeming quality is his speed, but if your not on-base, you can't use your speed.  In Tuesday game, he was one base, but had an issue on the base path.  The speedy outfielder attempted to steal third base with two outs, while the he made it safely, he thought the ball went in to leftfield and attempted to get up.  He was tug out, ending the inning with Rhys Hoskins at the plate.

"Right now these are the guys we have," Phillies manager Joe Girardi said via zoom after the doubleheader. "There are guys down in Lehigh Valley trying to get up here.  I think if we felt they were ready they would be here, but I don't think we feel they are where they need to be."

Those guys include a trip of players, who were all involved in the centerfield battle in Clearwater. Scott Kingery, Mickey Moniak and Odubel Herrera off the team three different remedies, none of which stand out.

One option is to swap out Haseley and Quinn with Kingery and Moniak, see if that platoon works better than the current option. A second option would be to add Herrera to the 40-man roster and send Haseley down for more seasoning, and using Herrera everyday with Quinn has a utility type of outfielder and late inning pinch runner.

I would prob try the Kingery/Moniak platoon, moving Quinn to the bench, send Haseley and utility man Ronald Torreyes down.  Torreyes has only found his way into one game with one at-bat, striking out.

If that doesn't work, you can make the call to Herrera, who team President Dave Dombrowski said needed more consist at-bats when he was sent to the minor league camp.  This would have given the Haseley/Quinn duo a shot, the Kingery/Moniak duo a chance before they took on what could become a PR issue by calling Herrera up.

The team can elect to ride it our and hope this duo is just off to a slow start.  Either way, the team has options, not great ones, but definitely something to consider.