Phillies: When the tenth-place team MVP becomes vital

The Philadelphia Phillies have an impending free agent that they need to lock up. And no, it is not J.T. Realmuto.

Here’s a question: Does it matter which player is the team MVP if that team just finished in 10th place? The Philadelphia Phillies had better consider that question before dismissing it out of hand because they are that 10th place team. That’s where the Phils finished in the expanded National League COVID Tournament of 2020.

And recognizing the team MVP is important because that player isn’t yet signed for next season, and it would seem that retaining such a player is important if Philadelphia ever hopes to escape their nine-year-long playoff drought.

And, no, we’re not talking about J.T.Realmuto here.

Oh, an argument can be made that, as the starting catcher and the best one at that, Realmuto is the team’s most valuable asset moving forward, assuming they can sign him too, but the value of shortstop Didi Gregorius should not be discounted.

Moreover, although it may be seen a dubious achievement, Gregorius really was the Phillies MVP this odd season.

Offensively, he had a terrific “year,” registering the second highest batting average on the team among those players with at least ten ABs. His .284 was second only to ROY candidate Alec Bohm’s .338, and the second best of his career for anything like a full season.

Gregorius’ 40 RBI led the Phillies by six – basically a week’s worth of picking up an RBI a day. Andrew McCutchen had 34, and the ultra-costly Bryce Harper booked 33.

The shortstop was also one of only two players on the team with at least 10 doubles, the same number of home runs he had, which tied for the team’s third place. In every fourth game he played this summer, Gregorius had more than one hit, and he batted in every game the Phillies played.

Defensively, he has been, throughout his career, a fielder who exceeds the league average for fielding percentage at the position that typically attracts the most athletic players (he missed that goal by two points this season, possibly because of the truncated schedule). Where he may have raised a few eyebrows this year, though, was in his RF/9 figure (putouts and assists/9 innings). For only the second time in his career he exceeded the league average.

The league average was 3.78; Gregorius posted a 4.04.

In terms of an eye-test, this player is clearly both an MLB everyday shortstop and a productive MLB hitter who does not seem to be declining at the age of 30. On the contrary, he may be getting better.

When Didi Gregorius was signed by the Phillies, many of their fans may have thought, “Eh – he’s the guy who replaced Derek Jeter, right? Not quite as good, right?” Now those fans should be thinking that re-signing him is almost as important as re-signing J.T. Realmuto.