Philadelphia Phillies’ Heart of the Order
By Tal Venada
Hitting cleanup for Philadelphia, Maikel Franco – chants of Maik, Maik, Maik – learned he can’t be the entire offense; but adding Kendrick and Saunders will relieve the pressure the third baseman struggled with last summer. Yes, Mackanin reviewed the 2016 campaign with Franco and told him in October to have a plan, relax, coax walks, hit doubles; and the home runs will come. Recently, Franco took the first step publicly in an interview by admitting his lack of plate discipline to a beat writer at the Phillies Winter Banquet in Bethlehem. Expectation: Franco is a power hitter who can blast 30 long balls or more, and he’ll average .280 and drive in 100 runs if he improves his approach.
"IN OTHER WORDS: “Home runs just come from accidents by me, … I just try to hit it solid and sometimes they go out. The record is nice to have but I’m not trying to hit them.” – Craig Biggio"
In the five-spot for the Phils, Michael Saunders – we want a hit; we want a hit – is also in a contract season and the sole left-handed bat in the meat of the order. The idea here is to split up Franco and Joseph in the lineup with Saunders because the opposing manager might have to compensate with three relievers in the later frames instead of only one due to a right-left-right alignment. In other words, the strategy is to force the other team to use their bullpen.
Health-wise, Saunders is two years removed from knee surgery, and ’16 was his first full summer since 2013, which explains his defensive difficulties for the 2016 Toronto Blue Jays. Expectation: He could have tired in the second half last season, but now more stamina might help him maintain a .280 mark with 25 homers. Keep in mind, he has a club option for 2018, and Klentak will probably exercise it if right fielder Dylan Cozens isn’t ready for more than just a September call-up.
Saunders’ stats:
- Total: 140 Gms., 490 AB, .253 Avg., 24 HR, 57 RBI and an .815 OPS.
- First half: 82 Gms., 305 AB, .298 Avg., 16 HR, 42 RBI and a .923 OPS.
- Second half: 58 Gms., 185 AB, .178 Avg., 8 HR, 15 RBI and a .638 OPS.
- Home: 69 Gms., 241 AB, .266 Avg., 10 HR, 25 RBI and an .834 OPS.
- Away: 71 Gms., 249 AB, .241 Avg., 14 HR, 32 RBI and a .797 OPS.