PHILADELPHIA — Mike Schmidt, Hall of Fame third baseman for the Philadelphia Phillies, is being criticized on social media for the comments he made this morning about current Phillies centerfielder Odubel Herrera.
Speaking during an interview on 94.1 WIP, Schmidt said the native Venezuelan outfielder is not the type of player you can build a team around, citing the fact that Herrera does not speak English as his first language.
“First of all, it’s a language barrier,” said Schmidt in the interview. “Because of that, I think he can’t be a guy that would sort of sit in a circle with four, five American players and talk about the game, or try and learn about the game or discuss the inner workings of the game, or come over to a guy and say, ‘Man, you gotta run that ball out.’ ”
Schmidt later repeated that Herrera, who uses a interpreter at times for on-camera interviews, “just can’t be — because of the language barrier — that kind of player.”
Fans and sportswriters were quick to criticize Schmidt on Twitter. Here are some examples:
Not everyone was critical of Schmidt.
Source of the account of Mike Schmidt’s interview: Philly.com
