Schmidt: Phillies can't build around Herrera because of language barrier
The Philadelphia Phillies own the worst record in baseball, and former Phillie and three-time National League MVP Mike Schmidt thinks one factor in the franchise's current rut is its attempt to build around Odubel Herrera.
When the "94WIP Morning Show" asked Schmidt if the 20-35 Phillies should be building the team around a player like the 25-year-old Herrera - currently struggling in his first season since signing a five-year, $30.5-million extension - Schmidt said no. He identified a language barrier as one reason why Philadelphia chose the wrong player as a potential cornerstone.
"My honest answer to that would be no because of a couple of things," Schmidt said Tuesday, according to CBS Philly's Andrew Porter. "First of all, it's a language barrier. Because of that, I think he can't be a guy that would sort of sit in a circle with four, five American players and talk about the game. Or try and learn about the game or discuss the inner workings of the game. Or come over to a guy and say, 'Man, you gotta run that ball out.' Just can’t be - because of the language barrier - that kind of a player."
Herrera is batting just .243/.283/.403 with five home runs and 22 RBIs in 53 games this season, but the Spanish-speaking Venezuelan can also understand and speak English, as he's displayed in interviews before.
Schmidt thinks Herrera could be an effective player on a championship team, but not necessarily one who could get a team to a championship.
"I think the fans love him. He's not afraid to do things that sort of irk the other team if you will, and you know what that is," Schmidt said. "I probably would hate him if I played against him because of his antics on the field, but he's not afraid. He's not afraid to do that. He's learning to play a really good center field. They haven't figured out where he needs to hit in the batting order yet.
"To answer your question, those are the reasons that I don't think you can build a team around him. Now, I truly think he can hit second or first on a championship team. There's no question about that."