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Hitters fail again as Reds rip the Phillies, 5-2

Odubel Herrera and Maikel Franco continue struggle at the plate as slumps deepen.

The Phillies lineup was posted Friday afternoon, and there was Odubel Herrera's name - in black capital letters - listed at the top.

If there was ever a time to bench Herrera, it would have been for Friday night's 5-2 loss to Cincinnati. He looked lost a day earlier, striking out in each of his five at-bats. Perhaps he needed a break. He instead batted leadoff, finishing 1 for 4. The Phillies are determined that Herrera will find the fix to his slump on the field and not on the bench.

"I'm not going to sit him," manager Pete Mackanin said. "He needs to battle his way out."

Herrera grounded out on three pitches in the first inning, lined out in the third, grounded out in the sixth, and doubled in the ninth off a journeyman reliever as the Phillies trailed by five runs.

The double snapped an 0-for-11 skid and was just Herrera's 19th hit this month in 97 at-bats. He is batting .227 this season with a .275 on-base percentage.

The Phillies mustered just one hit - a first-inning single by Andres Blanco - before the Herrera's double with one out in the ninth.

"It was good to see Herrera hit that double," Mackanin said. "He got robbed on that line drive to left field, so that was good to see. Hopefully, he'll snap out of it a little bit. You always want to be aggressive, but in our case the only way is to fight out of it and be more aggressive."

Herrera can not shoulder all the blame for Friday's shortcomings. Tommy Joseph grounded into double plays to end the first and seventh innings. Aaron Altherr struck out twice. Maikel Franco went 0 for 4. The Phillies were silenced by Tim Adelman, who entered the game with a 6.19 ERA yet allowed just one hit in eight innings. The loss - the team's 21st in their last 26 games - ended with Mackanin holding his second team meeting in a week. Frustration is evident.

"He just wants to see us play with a little more fire and a little more energy," Altherr said. "You know, it's something we've got to do. Today wasn't too great. But hopefully we can right the ship and start winning some games again."

"There's a pretty good understanding that we need to get going in here, and that was really it," Joseph said. "I think the rest is pretty self explanatory and what he had to say is between us."

Aaron Nola, in his second start since returning from the disabled list, allowed five runs in six innings. Nola gave up a pair of homers, struck out five and walked two.

Herrera's double was followed by a walk by Blanco. Altherr then doubled in Herrera. Joseph reached on a throwing error as the Phillies suddenly built a rally. Michael Saunders then grounded into a fielder's choice, erasing Joseph but scoring Blanco. The rally ended with Franco striking out.

He is 3 for his last 20 and perhaps even more lost than Herrera.

Most alarming for Herrera is his plate discipline. Herrera said on Thursday that he felt he was making good swings but "just missing the pitches." According to FanGraphs, Herrera is swinging at 43 percent of pitches that are outside the strike zone, a nine percent increase from last year. He is making contact with 61 percent of those pitches, a six percent decrease from last year. His overall contact rate is down six percent, and he's swinging at seven percent more pitches. Last season's approach is gone.

"I think he's at the point where he's grinding. And sometimes when you grind there's that feeling where you get lost," Mackanin said. "I've been in situations as a hitter where I've gone up to the plate saying, 'I don't care where it is, I am going up there and just hack.' . . . That could be what he was doing."

It was just a season ago that Herrera was an all-star. He has been the team's best player for both of his first two seasons. FanGraphs, using advanced defensive metrics, ranks Herrera as baseball's most valuable defensive player. His defense is what is keeping Herrera in the lineup. And it is also what seems to eliminate the option of demoting him to the minors.

The Phillies signed him to a contract extension, believing they were securing one of baseball's elite talents. And they are determined for him to battle his way out and prove it.

mbreen@phillynews.com