Philadelphia Phillies: The meaning of signing Josh Harrison

The Philadelphia Phillies signed an intriguing, seemingly declining player in Josh Harrison. Are they sure he’ll rebound, or is it “all options on deck”?

The Philadelphia Phillies made their first intriguing move of the off-season Nov. 26, signing Josh Harrison to a minor league contract and inviting him to spring training. Many baseball fans likely first heard the term super-utility man during Harrison’s 2014 season with the Pittsburgh Pirates, when he was an All-Star for the first of two times and finished 9th in the NL MVP vote.

Utility man, of course, has been a well-known term for decades, but before 2014, perhaps, few such players inspired remarks like, “Hey, this guy’s pretty damned good.” A .315 batting average will do that, however.

Unfortunately, after that season, Harrison’s career has been a rollercoaster ride, including another All-Star selection in ’17, then the low-point last season when he suffered shoulder and hamstring injuries and was released by Detroit in August after hitting .175 in only 36 games.

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The invitation to spring training, however, makes this signing seem a hopeful one by the Phillies, one suggesting the guy isn’t merely seen as bench insurance (or some other vaguely negative designation attached to a very nice salary, surely, for any time in South Philadelphia).

As Paul Casella has observed, “Cesar Hernandez and…Maikel Franco are both potential non-tender candidates for the Phils, who are [also] expected to pursue a third baseman from outside the organization.”

But what if the Phillies find themselves, after the holiday season, running after two big-name starters, and the accountants say they can’t sign both guys and a free agent third baseman – not to mention they’re maybe still flirting with Didi Gregorius?

But say they “go for it,” meaning they pick up two (badly needed) starters worth big bucks and Gregorius, but not a big-name third baseman. What’s the infield look like, assuming Hernandez and Franco are gone?

Weirdly, with Gregorius at shortstop, the Phillies would have three guys who could play third or second – Jean Segura, Scott Kingery, and Josh Harrison, assuming Harrison fires out of the starting blocks in Florida.

All of which is to say, as Philadelphia Phillies GM Matt Klentak thinks long and hard about how to protect his job this winter, GM Matt Klentak could overthink all this.

However, there would be nothing wrong with Josh Harrison pushing himself up off the floor of his career after ’19. The guy has had two seasons in his career with OPS figures over .770 without the benefit of actually having a position. In ’14, the guy was slamming doubles all over the place. You could look it up.