PHILADELPHIA (AP) 鈥� Newly acquired Phillies second baseman Luis Arraez is excited to be in Philadelphia and in a playoff race. He鈥檚 also grateful that two-time MVP Bryce Harper was willing to make a position switch.
鈥淚 was surprised, but I鈥檓 really excited to be here,鈥� Arraez said Tuesday ahead of his Phillies debut.
A three-time batting champion and four-time All-Star, Arraez was slotted into the cleanup spot behind Harper for Tuesday night’s game against Washington. He singled, doubled and drove in two runs to help the .
鈥淚 was excited, especially when fans gave me that ovation,鈥� Arraez said of his debut. 鈥淭hat was beautiful.鈥�
Arraez boosted his NL-best batting average to .325. Including his 105 games with the San Francisco Giants, he has just 21 strikeouts in 468 plate appearances this season.
鈥淚 love to put the ball in play,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 hate strikeouts.鈥�
Arraez鈥檚 acquisition for a pair of minor leaguers required Philadelphia to revamp its defensive lineup, most notably with Harper moving back to right field from first base. Harper last played the outfield on April 16, 2022, and moved to the infield after he suffered an elbow injury on a throw that led to Tommy John surgery. He consented to the switch to help the team, .
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a pro,鈥� Arraez said of Harper. 鈥淎 lot of respect from me.鈥�
Interim manager Don Mattingly said that while Harper will need to ramp up to full arm strength, there are no issues with his throwing.
鈥淣o restrictions on how he plays,鈥� Mattingly said.
Alec Bohm moved from third base to first, and Bryson Stott vacated second base for Arraez and shifted to third.
鈥淭here may be some bumps and bruises with this, but these guys are baseball players and they鈥檙e going to be fine,鈥� Mattingly said.
Mattingly considered batting Arraez in the leadoff spot but ultimately decided to put slugger Kyle Schwarber at the top of the lineup and Arraez in the cleanup role, which is not typical for a contact hitter. Arraez, who has four homers this season, said he doesn鈥檛 worry about where he bats in the order.
鈥淚 just want to go there and try to help the team,鈥� he said.
The Giants were 17 games under .500 entering Tuesday, while Philadelphia is in position for an NL wild card.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait,鈥� Arraez said.
But he won鈥檛 try to change his game, which is a throwback to a bygone era when there wasn鈥檛 such an emphasis on power.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not my game,鈥� Arraez said. 鈥淚f I change it, I鈥檒l be in my house watching the guys play baseball.鈥�
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