Jean Segura’s value to Phillies was evident upon his return to lineup

The underrated second baseman returned from a two-week absence with a strained right quadriceps. “I think we missed him a lot,” manager Joe Girardi said.

Phillies second baseman Jean Segura was batting .369 entering Saturday night's game in Atlanta.Read moreYONG KIM / Staff Photographer

by Scott Lauber

Published May 8, 2021, 7:36 p.m. ET

Given his choice, Jean Segura would have declined a two-game minor-league rehab assignment last week.

It’s nothing against the fine folks of Allentown. And who doesn’t enjoy the scenic drive up the Northeast Extension, or the pomp and pageantry of triple-A opening night? But Segura didn’t think it was necessary, even after missing two weeks with a strained right quadriceps.

Who could blame him? The Phillies second baseman was on a 15-for-37 (.405) tear and riding a 10-game hitting streak when he came up hobbling after running out a routine grounder in the third inning April 20 against the San Francisco Giants.

So, after resting his leg for a few days and jumping back into the batting cage before the end of his 10-day stint on the injured list, Segura could hardly wait to get back in the lineup and pick up where he left off.

“Jean thought he was ready to go after four or five days, right?” Phillies manager Joe Girardi said Saturday before Segura homered in the first inning against Braves starter Ian Anderson and one day after he returned to the lineup and went 4-for-5 with two RBIs in a 12-2 rout in Atlanta. “We just had to make sure. Because you don’t want a situation where a guy comes back for a day and retweaks it and then he’s out for a lot longer.”

Here’s the thing: The Phillies missed having Segura on the field as much as he missed being there. It’s not that Nick Maton didn’t play well in Segura’s stead. On the contrary, the 24-year-old rookie went 17-for-58 (.293) with five doubles and a .707 OPS and played well in the middle of the infield.

Segura, though, may be the most underrated player in the Phillies’ lineup. He’s easy to miss, particularly when Girardi hides him in the No. 7 spot in the order. He can also be quirky, such as when he rose from sliding into second base and doffed his helmet in recognition of his 200th career double earlier this season.

But Segura once led the National League in hits (203 for the Arizona Diamondbacks), batted over .300 three times (2016-18), and has been one of the hardest players in baseball to strike out over the last three years (14.2% rate, tied for 16th-lowest in the majors since 2019).

Segura, 31, is making $14.85 million this year and has one year at that salary remaining on his contract. The Phillies got calls from a few teams last winter about his availability in a trade. Given their shortcomings in the outfield and the back of the rotation, and with the emergence of Maton (and possibly Scott Kingery, if he’s able to fix his swing) as an internal second-base alternative, it may be worth considering in the offseason.

Then again, as one National League scout said recently, “Segura might be their best hitter.”

“I think we missed him a lot,” Girardi said. “Nick did a really good job. Nick hit almost .300 in his absence. But Jean’s an experienced player. The game’s not going to speed up. He drives in runs, he gets on base, he does a lot of different things. We definitely missed him.”

But not before Segura tested his quadriceps by playing two games for triple-A Lehigh Valley. He went 2-for-3 in the IronPigs’ season-opener Tuesday night, then went 1-for-1 and left Wednesday night’s game early after getting hit by a pitch.

After proving he was healthy, there was no use in Segura pressing his luck.

With Segura back in his familiar No. 7 spot Friday night, the Phillies KO’d Braves starter Charlie Morton with six runs in the first inning. Segura drove in two of them with a single.

“I was nervous in my first at-bat,” he said with a smile after his four-hit game. “But I’m happy to come back and be here with the boys.”

It marked the Phillies’ season-high fifth consecutive victory but their first win by more than a two-run margin since April 16. In 18 games with Segura this season, they have averaged 4.22 runs per game; in 15 games without him, they’ve averaged 4.06 runs per game. But he lengthens the lineup and makes the bottom half of the order more formidable.

“You’ve got me hitting seventh and Odúbel [Herrera] eighth,” Segura said. “It shows you how deep a top of the lineup we have.”

It’s deeper when Segura’s there.