Major League Baseball is navigating an offseason where the best two-way player of all-time, Shohei Ohtani, hit the open market and got the largest contract in North American sports history.
Every team, including the Philadelphia Phillies, would have loved to have the superstar if they could financially afford it.
His slugging power at the plate combined with his Cy Young-winning stuff on the mound was the perfect storm for receiving that deal.
It’s also no surprise the conversation around other potential two-way players has increased now that Ohtani has proven it can be done at the MLB level.
Former Phillies pitcher, Michael Lorenzen, also spent time in the outfield when he was with the Cincinnati Reds during his first seven seasons of his career. He got 133 at-bats while there and posted a career slash line of .233/.282/.429 with seven home runs and 24 RBI.
His last swing in a Major League game was in 2021 with the Reds. After he signed a deal with the Los Angeles Angels, they did not allow him to resume the limited two-way role he had in Cincinnati.
The Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia operated in the same way as the Angels did, viewing his pitching prowess as too valuable to let him take at-bats. But, Lorenzen was viewed as positional player potential if it wasn’t for his pitching ability due to his fielding and hitting.
He still hasn’t shut down the possibility that he could become a two-way player again, even if his past three teams haven’t allowed it. “I would love to do it,” he told Tim Kelly of Phillies Nation.
However, Lorenzen also knows that he’s a pitcher now and has shifted his focus to that, no matter how much he would like to hit in the bigs again.
“But I would much rather be a starting pitcher than be a bullpen guy and get a few at-bats,” he said. Lorenzen’s desire to be a starter is likely why a reunion with the Phillies won’t happen this offseason.
They have their starting five on paper right now and the right-hander was moved into their bullpen late last season as well.
