Odúbel Herrera likely to miss Opening Day with mild oblique strain
The sound you hear is our Philadelphia Phillies Opening Day lineup projection 1.0 going into the shredder.
Odúbel Herrera — who entered the camp seemingly as the favorite to be the Opening Day center fielder — has a mild oblique strain, Joe Girardi revealed Wednesday. Girardi, per Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer, estimated that Herrera will miss 4-6 weeks.
If not Herrera, Matt Vierling appears in line to start in center field when the Phillies welcome the Oakland Athletics to Citizens Bank Park on April 8. Vierling went 2-2 with two RBIs in Wednesday’s 8-7 Grapefruit League win over the Toronto Blue Jays. The 25-year-old impressed in a limited sample size last season, slashing .324/.364/.479 in 71 at-bats.
With Herrera likely to open the season on the injured list, it will open up another roster spot for a player capable of playing center field. Former first-round picks Mickey Moniak and Adam Haseley could both fit the bill, as could Simon Muzziotti. Scott Kingery is also in big-league camp, but the Phillies would probably prefer a left-handed hitter to pair with Vierling, and unlike the three options mentioned above, Kingery isn’t currently on the 40-man roster.
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