Jean Segura ain’t the problem

There was a time when uttering Jean Segura’s name around certain Phillies fans was sure to be followed with an expletive of some sort.

We all remember the play. During Gabe Kapler’s second season, 2019, Jean Segura failed to run out a ground ball in a May game against the San Diego Padres. As a result, Andrew McCutchen was forced into a rundown, a series of events that ultimately resulted in McCutchen tearing his ACL and missing the rest of the ‘19 season.

Fast forward two years. Segura, after expressing contrition at those events, entered the 2020 season in better shape, although the pandemic and the shortened season screwed everyone up, and came into ‘21 prepared to improve and be an impact player in the Phils’ lineup.

Simply put, Jean Segura was one of the most consistent and valuable members of the 2021 Phillies.

2021 stats

.290/.348/.436, 14 HR, 58 RBI, 76 runs, 6.9% BB%, 13.8% K%, 109 wRC+, 2.5 fWAR

The good

Segura almost played himself onto the All Star team with a remarkable first half of hitting. He hit .322 with an .827 OPS and a 121 wRC+. He was also outstanding defensively, making all the plays at second base and some of well above average plays as well.

The bad

There was nothing particularly “bad” about Segura’s 2021 season, although his second half numbers weren’t quite as good as what he put up in the first half. His OPS of .747 was still decent and was a league average run producer (99 wRC+). Much of it could be traced to some bad luck as he saw his BABIP drop from .371 in the first half to .271 in the second half, although his walk rate and strikeout rate were both better in the second half.

Unfortunately, even though Jean Segura was not the problem, or even a problem, with the 2021 Phillies, his production at second was in the lower half of the National League. Among qualified second basemen, his 2.5 fWAR ranked tied for 9th among 13 players in the NL. If the Phils had more production at other positions, this wouldn’t be a big deal, but Segura was 3rd on the Phils in fWAR, which speaks more to the lack of quality players around Segura rather than Segura himself.

The future

Next year, Segura will play his age 32 season with a base salary of $14.25 million and a luxury tax salary of $14 million. The club holds a team option for him of $17 million in ‘23, a number at which it seems unlikely the Phils would hold onto him, however, his spot on next year’s Phillies team is secured.

Final grade: B

Jean Segura is a fine baseball player. Any concerns about hustle or drama appear to be a thing of the past. He has been in good physical shape each of the last two seasons and it appears as if maturity has done Segura some good. He was the Phils’ third-best player this season and in no way the reason the Phillies fell short of the postseason for the 10th straight season.

It’s certainly possible Dave Dombrowski could use Segura in a trade as a way to reshape the roster, but it’s unlikely the team is looking to move on from their second baseman. The Phils have a lot of fish to fry this off-season and will likely welcome him back next year with open arms.