Time for the Philadelphia Phillies to Pull the Plug on John Mayberry Jr.

After John Mayberry Jr. finished his 103rd game of the season going 0-for-5 against the St. Louis Cardinals, it’s time for Charlie Manuel to pull the plug on what has became a terrible experiment.

John Mayberry Jr. is not, and never will be, an everyday major league player. He is batting a measly .228 in 276 at-bats, with an even more pathetic 26 RBI. His OPS is .656, which is one of the worst lines in baseball for a player with over 250 at-bats.

John also provides no threat on the base paths and his defense has been anything but stellar, taking terrible, lazy routes and misjudging multiple balls he should have caught. 

Mayberry is thought to hit left-handed pitching well, but on the season he is hitting only .263. A mediocre average for a major league hitter. Those numbers look great compared to his splits against right-handed pitching, .209 with 51 strikeouts in only 153 at-bats. It can’t get much worse than that.

The more playing time John receives, the worse he plays. Pitchers have recognized his flaws and are exploiting them. The holes in his swing are far to great to give him an everyday job.

Phillies management need to recognize what they have in Mayberry, which is a fourth or fifth outfielder who only plays against left-handed pitching.

If Mayberry does not wish to accept the fifth outfield role, then the Phillies and John should part ways. There simply is no room on a $170 million roster for a starting outfielder with no upside. John will turn 29 in December and the clock is ticking on is time in Philadelphia.   

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