The Phillies have agreed to sign infielder Logan Forsythe to a minor league deal, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Forsythe will receive an invitation to Philadelphia’s big league Spring Training camp.
This will mark the second minor league deal in as many years for Forsythe, though last winter’s pact with the Rangers translated into some pretty regular playing time (and $2MM in salary) at the MLB level. Forsythe played in 101 games for Texas and received 367 plate appearances, hitting .227/.325/.353 with seven home runs. Fueled by a .404 BABIP over his first 167 PA, Forsythe began his year with a scorching .307/.410/.486 slash line before his fortune turned, and he hit only .164/.255/.249 over his final 200 PA (with a .221 BABIP over that stretch).
The 33-year-old Forsythe will now look to win himself a bench job amidst a Phillies infield that has some moving parts. Philadelphia is set to go with Rhys Hoskins at first base, Jean Segura moving to second base, the newly-signed Didi Gregorius installed at shortstop, and Scott Kingery at third base. Kingery, however, is still expected to get his fair share of time in center field or elsewhere around the diamond, leaving room for another infielder. The Phillies will have Forsythe, Josh Harrison, T.J. Rivera, Ronald Torreyes, Neil Walker, and Phil Gosselin in camp battling for that job, with that entire group perhaps ultimately slated for pure backup duty if and when top prospect Alec Bohm is called up to the Show.
After excelling as the Rays’ regular second baseman in 2015-16, Forsythe has struggled at the plate over the last three seasons and gradually became a utility player with the Dodgers, Twins, and Rangers. He saw action at all four infield positions in 2019 and also has past experience as a corner outfield, so that extra versatility could give him a bit of a leg up in garnering a spot on Philadelphia’s 26-man roster.
He sucked anyway
it’s all to create competition for the bench and to fill that AAA roster. It keeps the kids together in the minors a little longer and the goal this year is to make the wildcard game which they have a shot to win and they will get bounced in NLDS but this sets the stage for 2021 when there will be numerous starting arms available and the Phillies will be out of 3 bad contracts. 2021 They are in the World Series with 4 good starting pitchers and choices in the pen finally.
2021 still won’t be the best team in the division.
who will be better?
Braves
The Phillies have an ace and a legit #2. If they go out and sign 2 pitchers or even 1 pitcher who is a 2 or 3 which is very likely to happen and Spencer Howard comes up, that rotation will be top 3 in all of baseball. The Braves are very good but they won’t be good enough and the Phillies, Mets, and Braves will beat up on one another. 2020 90wins gets you the NL East with Mets probably at 88 wins and Phillies at 87. In 2021 the Phillies add 2 rotation pieces and they will be 5 games better and will be all in for whatever else they need. Braves can’t do that. They have one shot and that’s 2020.
Would’ve been a nice pickup for the Pirates..Moran is the worst
The Phillies have a great crowd of competitors for that fourth infielder slot. I like Forsythe’s chances unless Harrison has the hamstring healthy.
It is great to see teams signing vets again.
seems burnt out at this point, but you can do a whole lot worse.
What is the thinking behind stockpiling all these 30 something mif’s…. I get it’s a low/no-cost depth thing. Just a bit odd…..
I almost wonder if they trade Segura to the reds, who need a ss. Plenty of options now in house to play 2b. I’d like to see Segura + prospects for Senzel. Maybe that’s bc I’m still on tilt from drafting Moniak over him
@ Christopher Wilson. Keep dreaming!
I’m a Phillies fan, but c’mon CW, there’s no way the Reds will trade Senzel for Segura. Frankly, Segura was a tad of a disappointment last year. His BA, pop and SB numbers were all down.
Obviously the prospect would be noteworthy..
you answered your own question there
Can we PLEAAAAAASSSSEEEE sign a starting pitcher
Nobody good is left
id say Walker is an easy upgrade to VV, but hard to tell what hid asking price is.
Walker is going to be in rehab mode. Not going to be an upgrade for anyone this season
Next year will be the year for that. Phillies will splurge on that healthy FA class. For 2020 the Phils best hope to land a starter is a trade.
He should be a great guy to have on the bench
To me, the Phillies just keep getting better. It’s a tad frustrating as a Braves fan. This is by no means a huge move, but just a really solid potential depth move. K think he’s well done, but a low risk worth taking. Now, I’m happy they have been wasting their money on overall bad deals (in my opinion), but I think their moves have been making them a better team today.
lol did you see Logan’s numbers? Braves are a far better team
We already have Neil Walker and Josh Harrison. Not sure why Forsythe is needed. Just another puzzling move by Klentak. Guy is in over his head.
We already have Neil Walker and Josh Harrison. Not sure why Forsythe is needed. Just another puzzling move by Klentak. Guy is in over his head.
You could find a better player on any AAA team than Forsythe. He is terrible.
and usually those players get put on 40 man rosters.
Neil Walker will be there too
Walker is solid. Can’t believe Brad Miller isn’t in the mix. Miller killed the Nats.
Always liked this guy when he was on TB. Looked like he’d blossom into a solid hitter. Then he became addicted to the quirky character “Six” from Blossom and was never the same.
Awful player.
Dang they are signing everybody for depth!!
Phils are obviously looking for the next Eric Bruntlett……
Surprised the Brewers did not sign him.
Thought hed be a Pirate for sure
Iron Pigs utility man. Only gets to Philly if there is an injury.
When on the basepaths, should see Logan’s run.
It’s insane to me that he had a 5.2 WAR one year
2015. Yeah. 3.4 in 2016 and 1.9 in 2017. Nothing above .9 before 2015 or since 2017.
Neil Walker and Josh Harrison will win the two utility infield jobs.
Goesselin, Torreyess, Forsythe– in addition to Szcur & Nick Williams– stick around in AAA.
Just my opinion.
Neil Walker and Josh Harrison will win the two utility infield jobs. Both primarily play 2B, so dont be surprised to see Segura playing some SS should Didi get hurt or is ineffective against lefties.
Goesselin, Torreyess, Forsythe– in addition to Szcur & Nick Williams– stick around in AAA.
Just my opinion.
Can’t figure out Forsythe. First half of 2019 season he was a hot commodity with the bat at Texas and inexplicably in the second half just went south! Don’t think he suffered any serious injury at the time. Completely baffled.
These moves aren’t exciting and Forsythe may never play in the majors for the Phils, but last year the Phils severely lacked depth. Their starters were fine, but the bench was pathetic. So when guys got hurt the team fell apart. I really like some of the depth moves the Phils made this offseason. Guys like Neil Walker and Josh Harrison…etc. The team is still far away from winning the division, but they’re much better than last year.
Phils have a better team this year by adding Wheeler and Didi. But I’m not sure that means we’ll end the year with a better W/L record. Fact is, I don’t see them being much more than the team they’ve been the past few years: Hang around .500 and either make or just miss the final wild-card slot.
Nats, Braves and Mets are all better teams, and especially when it comes to SP.
4 years ago having Forsythe, Walker, and Harrison would’ve been great!