Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Posted: 11:29 a.m.By Jim SalisburyCSNPhilly.com
CLEARWATER, Fla.Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt is in Phillies camp for his annual stint as a guest instructor.
Like everyone else, he is impressed with the clubs pitching staff. He believes this could end up being the greatest Phillies team ever.
But Schmidt made it clear that the offenseparticularly leadoff man Jimmy Rollins -- has to improve if the Phillies are to maximize their potential as a team.
With the exception of a few guys, I think they underachieved as hitters last year, Schmidt said during his annual chat with reporters Wednesday morning.
Tiger Woods used to be able to win a golf tournament without playing well. Well, the Phillies proved to me that they could win a division last year without really playing well, without clicking on all cylinders all year.
Whether they can do that this year remains to be seen. Other teams have toughened up in the division. They need to get better performances from their hitters, theres no doubt about that. And from talking to them, I think they know that.
MLB
Injuries hit the Phillies lineup hard last year and Schmidt acknowledged that. Rollins, Chase Utley, Placido Polanco, Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino all spent time on the disabled list. Raul Ibanez had abdominal surgery before the 2010 season and struggled offensively in the first half.
Despite these injuries, the Phils led the majors with 97 wins and were second in the NL in runs scored."Theyre part of a winning team, so dont get me wrong, but I still think they are underachieving as players," Schmidt said.
Schmidt contends that when the Phillies lineup was healthy, it underachieved. Carlos Ruiz, he said, was the exception.
Schmidt believes Phillies hitters are motivated to turn it around this year.
I look for big years out of a lot of guys, he said. We have a combination of great things going on here. Weve got a fantastic starting staff, good bullpen, always good defense, and a whole bunch of hungry hitters.
Schmidt said the Phillies need to play more small-ball this yearand that they need to be held accountable for that. Hes not the only one who suggested that the club needs to improve its situational hitting. After being beaten by San Francisco in the NLCS last season, general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said the team needed to improve in that area.
They need to be accountable for themselves a little more in that regard, Schmidt said. By that I mean the game rewards you if you go on the field each day and try to do what youre required to do to win the game in your role, whether youre a leadoff hitter, two hitter, four hitter, or eighth-hole hitter.
The baseball gods will reward you if you say, Its not about me. Its about what I can do for the team that day. Utley, Victorino, Polancothey need to be geared into getting on base, setting the table, stealing bases, creating havoc. You cant maximize that part of your game if youre hitting a lot of fly-ball outs, if youre getting a lot of 1-0 fastballs and youre flying out, thinking that youre a home run hitter. Youre a get-on-base-guy and face it. Thats what going to make the team go.
They need to be accountable for who they are. Victorino is not a power hitter. And I think they are sensing they need to be more accountable and that they underachieved last year.
Schmidt turned his attention to Rollins. He believes Rollins has the ability to inject some Pete Rose into his game.
I look for Jimmy to push a 200-hit year, and I look for Victorino to have 200 hits. Were talking in those terms100 walks, 200 hitsgoals for these guys that you havent seen in the last few years," Schmidt said.
Jimmy Rollins cant do what Pete Rose did?" Schmidt asked rhetorically. "Pete got 200 hits for 10 straight years and Jimmy is faster. I just think Pete understood better what his role was, and Jimmy gets to being Jimmy and Jimmy needs to be more Peter Rose-like in his approach to the game. He needs to be more accountable for getting on base and understanding that hes about running and getting on base and leading the league in hitting. He should want to look at the paper each day and see his name leading the league in hitting and so should Victorino.Rollins said he took Schmidt's comments as a compliment."He's right," Rollins said. "I should have 200 hits. I strive for that every season."Later, Rollins told Comcast SportsNet's Leslie Gudel that he was not upset by Schmidt's comments."They all just want me to be better thanlast year," Rollins said. "I'm not mad at him. Just because someone expresses their thoughts of how they want you to be or who they want you to be doesn't mean they're taking a shot at you."He wants what's best for me and Pete was a leadoff man so it's a natural comparison. He wants me to get 200 hits and so do I. We talk about it every day he's here and how to go about doing it."Rollins has reached 200 hits once in his career -- in 2007 when he had 212 and won the NL MVP award. He had 190, 196 and 191 in the three preceding seasons. Last year, Rollins missed 74 games with assorted leg injuries and hit a career-low .243.Rollins has never been a player that records high walk totals so his batting average fuels his on-base percentage."Jimmy can definitely play better," manager Charlie Manuel said. "He's had a couple of off years and he was hurt last year.Being healthy will help him this year. I think he's motivated to have a big season."E-mail Jim Salisbury at jsalisbury@comcastsportsnet.com
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