After all, the guys who fill the bench spots are only going to see time in a game when one of the regulars needs a day off or when a pinch hitter is needed in a key spot. It’s not an easy job to play sparingly, and yet when you are called upon to simply produce.
Dahl figures if he can show he can do that, it could make him stand out against the competition.
“It’s something I’ve always been good at in my career in the big leagues,” Dahl said. “I take it very seriously. I try to treat it like a regular season game and show that I can do it.”
Dahl has only been called upon to pinch hit 38 times in his career, but he’s been productive in those opportunities, slashing .273/.368/.515 for an .884 OPS.
So far this Spring he has appeared in nine of the Phillies’ 16 games. He started four and came in as a reserve in five. He’s had 23 plate appearances. He’s 5-21 (.238) with a walk, two homers and six RBIs, which is second most for the Phillies in Grapefruit League action.
However, in the games he has entered as a sub – which would be equivalent to pinch hitting, he’s hit two home runs and drove in another run – as he did Monday – with a sacrifice fly, scoring the only run in a 2-1 Phillies loss.
Dahl just missed hitting his third home run of the spring, which would have gotten everyone talking, as it would have been a walk-off dinger, but the sac fly was a job well done also.
Dahl, 29, is six days short of having accrued five full big league seasons, so he doesn’t have an opt out of the contract he signed with the Phillies, and he’s hoping to do enough to win the last bench job, but if not, he’s willing to go to Triple A to bide his time and come up to the majors if the Phillies need him.
“If you look at my Triple A numbers they’ve been good – especially against righties,” he said. “When you get the opportunity you got to make the most of it. Last year I ended up making the team (San Diego) out of camp but I got hurt right away and never had a chance to take that opportunity and run with it. I want to be with this team, whether it’s the start of the year, or during the season.”
Dahl’s chief competition this Spring is Jake Cave and, to a lesser extent, Cristian Pache.
Mostly because you split these guys into two buckets – Pache, like Johan Rojas, is an elite defensive outfielder, with good speed, but has never been a consistent right-handed hitter, while Dahl and Cave are more geared for the corners (although both have seen a little time in center this spring) who can provide a left-handed punch off the bench.
Cave has some additional versatility in the fact that he can play first base, but the Phillies aren’t in as dire a situation when it comes to first base as they were a season ago, with Bryce Harper slated to get the bulk of the work there during the season. When he needs an off day, Alec Bohm can slide over from third. Super Utility guy Whit Merrifield has also played some first base, and if they need a callup, Weston Wilson can fill that bill too.
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