Phillies Notebook: Cesar Hernandez starts again at second base for Phillies

NEW YORK - Cesar Hernandez started at second base last night for the fifth time in the last eight games. Chase Utley, who was out of the lineup in two of the previous three games, was also penciled into manager Ryne Sandberg's batting order.

But eventually Sandberg won't have the luxury of the designated hitter to balance playing the younger, developing infielder (Hernandez, a career .294 hitter in the minor leagues) while also not benching the franchise icon (Utley, the unofficial leader of the 2007-11 era).

"It's a challenge," Sandberg said yesterday afternoon at Yankee Stadium after writing Hernandez's name into the second spot on his lineup and Utley in the sixth spot. "It's a daily challenge. You know, from this point it's watching the games and making judgments on who should be out there, it becomes a tough thing, but also a challenging thing. Probably would fall under the category of what's best for both players . . . There's two sides of it that are important going forward, and that's the challenge."

The challenge comes with a price tag, too. The more Utley plays, the more likely he'll be back in a Phillies uniform next year and earning a decent chunk of the payroll, too.

Utley has a $15 million option in his contract for 2016 that kicks in if he reaches 500 plate appearances in 2015.

He entered yesterday just about halfway there: 244 plate appearances.

"I know that he has [that option], but I don't operate with that in mind," Sandberg said.

But what's most important to the organization? Does Sandberg get any directives from the front office?

"No," the manager said.

Perhaps it's something they should have a conversation about.

The 36-year-old Utley entered Yankee Stadium hitting a National League-low .182 after 64 games. His .539 OPS ranks 164 out of 165 qualifying big-league hitters; only Alexei Ramirez of the White Sox is worse (.535).

In his last 162 games, dating back to last June and not including last night, Utley is hitting .220 with a .620 OPS and 11 home runs in 574 at-bats.

"He's healthy," Sandberg said when asked if Utley reminded him of himself in his latter years of a Hall of Fame playing career. "That's a good thing for Chase. He's healthy, he wants to continue to play. To have him play well and play well for us, to play well to be moved, whatever it might be to see Cesar play, to see what he can do, to see if he's the guy going forward. That's the challenging part of it. There are two players and I'm looking for positives for two players."

Sandberg mentioned the possibility of Utley being moved, but he might be the most difficult player on the current roster to trade.

Utley turns 37 in December. His aforementioned offensive numbers aren't a selling point (and it's difficult to believe he can change that in the five weeks before the trade deadline).

Even if Utley did begin to play well and entice a contender - the Dodgers reportedly asked about him this winter - they'd be trading for him with the idea that he'd be playing regularly, and then they'd also be on the hook for the aforementioned $15 million option for 2016. Utley's contract also includes options for 2017 and 2018, too, which also kick in with 500 plate appearances in each preceding season. Utley is currently on pace for 557 plate appearances this season.

Sandberg was asked what he's seen lately from Utley, who entered last night hitting .091 (4-for-44, all singles) since June 5.

"With some added rest that I've given him, I see a hop in his step," Sandberg said. "He reports to me that he feels great. He feels strong. He feels healthy. There's no concerns about health with Chase. So it's more about just him just getting hot with the bat and getting hits and producing on a daily basis. The hard thing about that is the hole that he's in with almost 230, 240 at-bats. But then again, for him to play well, get hot for two weeks would be good for everybody."

The 25-year-old Hernandez, meanwhile, is 7-for-24 (.292) with two doubles since stepping into the lineup somewhat regularly last week in Baltimore. Hernandez is second on the team in walks (18), trailing only Utley (21), despite having 103 fewer plate appearances.

"He is a fastball hitter," Sandberg said of Hernandez. "When I've seen him, with several days in a row, he needs to adjust to breaking pitches and how they're pitching him. But I think he's done a better job with that this year after last year, some of the looks he got last year, I think that's resulted with some of the walks that he's drawn. He's had good quality at-bats, so maybe he's made strides there. So to see more of him and to see him with some games, that's the untold story. That's the question."

Adam Morgan will make his second big-league start on Saturday at Citizens Bank Park against the Nationals . . . Cole Hamels remains a go for tomorrow's matinee at Yankee Stadium. Hamels missed his scheduled start Friday with a mild hamstring strain but threw a side session Sunday and has been given the go-ahead to rejoin the rotation . . . Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira missed his second game in five days with a neck injury. Teixeira was third in the American League with 18 home runs.

Blog: ph.ly/HighCheese