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Harper talks deadline moves, Phillies explain decision to release Gregorius

The Phillies released Didi Gregorius on Thursday. (Cheryl Pursell)

Before Thursday’s game, the Phillies reinstated Jean Segura from the 60-day injured list. To make room for Segura on the roster, Didi Gregorius was released.

Gregorius is the third veteran the Phillies have cut in as many days following the trade deadline. The Phillies will pay him around $5 million to not play.

“We have a long history, going back to the Yankees,” interim manager Rob Thomson said. “A lot of really good times. A lot of playoff games. Ups and downs. I have a lot of respect for him. He’s been a really good player for a long time. Unfortunately, at his point, with [Segura] coming back, Stott is going to be our shortstop. With [Edmundo] Sosa and [Yairo] Muñoz, we have a lot of versatility there. Didi was really the odd man out.

“That doesn’t mean he’s a bad player. He’s played very well at shortstop. He just didn’t hit the way that he normally hits. It’s a difficult decision, but I think the right decision.”

President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said on WIP that the Phillies preferred to have the right-handed hitting Sosa as the backup to Bryson Stott, who now moves from second to short with Segura back.

“Having two left-handed shortstops was not our preference, if we could avoid that and Sosa is an outstanding defensive shortstop,” Dombrowski said. “In fact, he’s our best defensive shortstop that we have at this point. The fit was much better, with moving Stott to short to have Sosa as the backup.”

Gregorius, 32, slashed .210/.263/.304 in his third season with Philadelphia. Lingering knee issues affected his ability to pull the ball and hit for power. He looked better as a defender at shortstop this season, but the lack of offensive production was not enough to justify a spot on the roster for Gregorius.

The transaction was announced as part of a series of roster moves. Center fielder Brandon Marsh and right-handed pitcher Noah Syndergaard, the starting pitcher for Thursday’s game, reported and are now active. Kyle Gibson was also reinstated from the bereavement list. He is scheduled to start Friday against the Nationals.

Harper on deadline

Harper addressed reporters after getting the pins removed from his thumb on Monday. He once again declined to offer a definitive timeline for his return, but he did provide his stamp of approval on the front office’s deadline moves.

“I thought it was great,” Harper said. “People don’t like the way Dave works because he works under the radar a little bit. He’s always been that way and I kind of like that because no one knows what we’re going to do. But seeing what he could do, he added what we needed. He added a starting pitcher that we needed, a center fielder and a bullpen guy.”

He praised the acquisition of former teammate David Robertson.

“He brought in [Robertson] who is kind of on a revenge tour for us because he threw for us and got hurt. It is what it is. It was just something that happened in baseball. Then he had a great first half for the Cubs and was the guy who was available for us. I am really excited to have him back, the kind of person he is. He can throw late in games and he has been there before. And anybody in that bullpen can throw in any big spot, any big situation. So I think he’s that same guy. He’s going to go out there and get outs for us in any spot he can and get very big outs. So that’s huge.”

He’s particularly bullish on the Marsh acquisition.

“I don’t think people realize how good he was or is at the same time in the outfield,” Harper said. “He had great form in the minor leagues and once he gets to playing every single day whenever he is called upon, I think he’s going to be very good for us.”

Harper, who has a .699 OPS against Syndergaard in his career, is happy to have him in red pinstripes.

“I am excited to have him on our side for the first time and I know he’s excited to be back in that postseason thing that we are trying to get, that we are trying to go after,” Harper said. “So he is going to throw some competitive innings for us starting tonight. So I am excited for him and we’re excited to see him on our side and he’s got that fight. He’s got that attitude that you want on the mound. It’s good to have him.”

Vierling’s role moving forward

Marsh’s addition means Matt Vierling’s role will be reduced. He’s made 20 starts in center field dating back to June, but the majority of the reps will now go to the 24-year-old Marsh, who the Phillies tout as a plus defender.

Thomson says Vierling will move around the diamond.

“We like [Matt] a lot. He’s a good player,” Thomson said. “He’s going to get time in center field, he’s going to get time at the corner. Get maybe a little bit of infield time. He’s going to continue to play.”

Here are the lineups for Thursday’s series opener against the Washington Nationals.

Nationals