Fun-loving Gregorius set for serious stay in Philly
PHILADELPHIA >> Life is good for Didi Gregorius, which is the way he rolls, the way he thinks it should be for everyone.
“It’s just play the game. I’m out there to play the position, so for me it’s control what I can control,” Gregorius, the new Phillies shortstop, said Monday. “Have fun, play the game the right way and whatever happens in the future, happens in the future.
“You just go with it and see what’s going to happen.”
A lot has happened to Mariekson Julius Gregorius (or “Sir Didi” to his many Twitter followers) since the Amsterdam native by way of the Caribbean island of Curacao hit the major leagues eight seasons ago with Cincinnati. They had no room for him and traded him to Arizona, which two years later traded him to the Yankees, who molded him into a likely long-term successor to Derek Jeter.
Then something changed over time — it became clear that as engaging and talented as Gregorius is, his state of physical well-being was no longer considered certain.
Since his first season with the Diamondbacks in 2013, Gregorius, introduced along with fellow Phillies freeagent prize Zack Wheeler Monday at Citizens Bank Park, has averaged just 120 games per season.
He is coming off the worst statistical season of his fiveyear Yankees stay: Following Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow, the slick shortstop hit just .238 with a .718 OPS in only 82 games.
So durability concerns might have been a reason why the free agent who wanted to remain a Yankee ... couldn’t. That and the Yankees simply thought they had enough infielders in their midst to cut the wellliked Gregorius from the budget. All it took for Gregorius to reach that conclusion was one phone conversation with Yankees general manager Brian Cashman.
“Cashman made it loud and clear that Cole was their priority,” Gregorius said, a reference to former Houston ace Gerrit Cole, the top free agent on the market. “I think he only called once, and that was it. Nothing else happened. So for me it was just, ‘If that happens, then I have to look for a place to play.’ I was in contact with the Phillies and everything looked good and now I’m here.”
He is here to the tune of one year at $14 million, but with the thought that if he returns to the form he showed early on with the Yanks and Diamondbacks, he’d entertain signing a longer-term deal with this new team.
“If I get the offer, yes, I don’t see why not,” Gregorius said. “I’m not betting on myself. I got a one-year offer, and that’s what I got, that’s what I’m playing for. It’s not betting on myself, just play the game in the situation I’m in.”
He says he understands the situation the Yankees were in. Gregorius signed his contract on Dec. 10, the same day that the Yankees closed in on Cole with a nine-year, $324 million deal.
You know, just a little more than what Gregorius got.
“I didn’t have a really good year, so I’ll take it one year at a time and go from there,” Gregorius said. “We’ll see what happens in the next couple of years.”
He might be confident about his ability to return to top form at 29, though the questions about his health linger. The Tommy John surgery that clearly impacted his 2019 season came two years after a shoulder injury made him miss the first month in 2017.
“Everybody is saying that I wasn’t prepared to play when I came back,” Gregorius said of his start last season. “And I wasn’t at my best, but I went out there and pushed.”
Gregorius is in position to prove himself durable and still dynamic enough to be the Phillies’ everyday shortstop. He will be replacing Jean Segura, who like Gregorius is also 29, but rangewise might be better suited for either second base or third, with both Cesar Hernandez and Maikel Franco being forced to find work elsewhere. Scott Kingery is also in that mix at either position, so the Phillies could still mix and match to keep their infielders fresh.
Besides that, Gregorius listed new manager Joe Girardi as one of the reasons he wanted to sign here, Girardi having been Gregorius’
manager in New York for three seasons. He also talked of former teammates Andrew McCutchen and David Robertson, both of whom are coming off injury-ruined seasons after signing with the Phillies before last season.
“I didn’t have to talk to Didi; he knows how I feel about him,” Girardi said. “Matt (Klentak) probably kept me away from Didi so the price didn’t keep going up.”
Gregorius credits Girardi with providing him the support needed to win the hearts of Yankees fans still mourning Jeter’s retirement, and for the advice he needed to go from a sharp-fielding shortstop with limited offensive skills to a power-hitting shortstop with Gold Glove credentials. Gregorius found a power stroke in New York that moved him to hit 20 homers in 2016, then broke Jeter’s club record for most homers by a shortstop with 25 in 2017. The next year, he boosted that number to 27.
Even playing half a season in ‘19, the 16 homers and 61 RBIs he produced could have extrapolated to his best power season ever. Yet the Yankees decided to cut ties, and Gregorius didn’t waste time shopping around.
While a one-year deal might be appropriate for now, Gregorius has reason to believe this Philadelphia stop could lead to bigger and better things down the road.
“I’m always looking to do my best,” he said. “That’s (how) I was always taught to play the game. No matter what you go through, personal stuff, keep it off the field. Because when you’re here, it’s your job. Enjoy it. Have fun with other guys when you’re there.”