And don't even get me started on Joe Thurston pinch-hitting for Pat Burrell
January 4
2007
The Phillies' bench
didn't really shine with the bat in 2006. It wasn't for lack of
opportunity, however. Phillies' hitters went 57-for-272 (.210) as pinch
hitters, hitting three home runs and driving in 29 runs. The 272 at-bats
for pinch hitters was the second-most in the league, but the 563 OPS
(210/262/301) was 15th-best of the 16 teams. Only the Mets' pinch-hitters
were less productive offensively, and New York at least had the good sense
to limit them to 214 at-bats.
The combination of having your pinch-hitters get more at-bats than most
other teams and being less productive is definitely not a keeper.
Here's a look at some of the players who got the most at-bats as
pinch-hitters in 2006 (the stats for Jose Hernandez include his time with
the Pirates):
| Player | AB | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Dellucci | 60 | 267 | 313 | 467 | 780 |
| J Hernandez | 39 | 231 | 302 | 308 | 610 |
| A Nunez | 39 | 128 | 171 | 179 | 350 |
| Victorino | 38 | 237 | 293 | 289 | 582 |
| R Simon | 21 | 238 | 304 | 238 | 542 |
| Sandoval | 18 | 167 | 211 | 222 | 433 |
That's miserable. But
was it predicable? Dellucci is a good hitter who didn't hit well as a
pinch-hitter last season. Nunez, Victorino, Simon and Sandoval could have
been expected to struggle in their 116 pinch hit at-bats. The opening day
lineup certainly isn't complete, but it seems sure the Phils won't have as
good a hitter as Dellucci on the bench to give pinch hit at-bats to in '07.
Dellucci-free or no, this is actually one place I think the Phillies'
offense will be better in 2007. While whoever it is that turns out to get
the most pinch hit at-bats likely will not be as good a hitter as Dellucci,
he is certainly capable of putting up similar numbers to those Dellucci put
up last season. And the bench is almost certain to be deeper. Whoever the
second-best hitter on the bench turns out to be, whether it's Werth or Coste
or the left-handed outfielder the Phillies don't have yet, he seems sure to
be able to out produce the 128/171/179 line from Nunez in his 39 pinch hit
at-bats last season.
Chris Reitsma's agent says his client is seriously considering an offer from Colorado.
An article on the Phillies' web site reviews the team's catching situation.
The 2007 editions of the
Baseball America
Almanac and
Ron Shandler's
Baseball Forecaster