Don't count Cody Asche out

Cody Asche has the kind of demeanor that suggests he will not settle for anything less than success. That might sound like sentimental gobbledygook, but consider his track record. A relatively anonymous fourth-round draft pick who spent his first year in the minors as a second baseman, Asche forced himself through the minor league system with his line-drive swing and tireless work ethic. There were questions about his defensive ability, but he has turned himself into a solid third baseman. There were questions about his power, but in 575 career big-league plate appearances, he now has 15 home runs. At 24 years old, Asche's .254/.312/.398 batting line is right around league average. And with less than a full major league season's worth of at-bats under his belt, it would be foolish to think that he is a finished product.

"There's still a lot there," Asche said, "still making those daily adjustments, just coming to the park and being who you are every day. I think that's the big challenge that you learn as you get comfortable in your surroundings and around your teammates, just to come to the park and be the same guy every day."

Friday night was Asche's third start in eight games. Much of the workload that he enjoyed during the first 4 months of the season has fallen to Maikel Franco, a situation manager Ryne Sandberg explained to him shortly after the Phillies called up their top prospect, and one that Asche says he understands. But for the organization to maximize its chances at competing in the future, it will need to find a way to get Asche regular at-bats next year, regardless of whether Franco is on the team. That's an easy thing to say on the night that a guy doubles and hits a walkoff home run, but it would have been true even if he had gone 0-for-4. During their heyday, the Phillies could not afford to give young, unproven players the length of leash that they often require. Now, it is a necessity.

How, exactly, they go about accomplishing that depends in large part on their decision-making at first base. Franco is regarded as a good defender at first, where he finished the game in place of Ryan Howard. Asche started his career at second base, and Sandberg has not ruled out experimenting with him there in the future. Whatever the case, the Phillies need to find out where both players fit into their long-term future.

"Well, I like both the guys right now," Sandberg said after Asche's two-run home run off Dan Jennings in the 10th inning lifted the Phillies to a 3-1 win over the Marlins. "One is righthanded. One is lefthanded. They're good young players. So going forward, seeing how things shake out, but to have both in the lineup at the same time, that'd be a good thing."

Asche has always been the kind of baseball player who works his way into recalibrating others' expectations for him. While he entered yesterday hitting .252 with a .311 on-base percentage and .387 slugging percentage, it is important to keep in mind that he has just 575 big-league plate appearances under his belt, and has the kind of attitude that suggests he will force himself to improve.

"I can still get better," Asche said. "I still have a month of development. I'm not going to just sit and pout. So, you just gotta roll with it."

At the very least, Asche has shown a toolset consistent with everyday major league production. He was one of the best-hitting third basemen in the majors when he suffered a hamstring strain that sidelined him for a month between late May and late June. But he entered yesterday having hit only .249/.292/.367 with 63 strikeouts in 255 plate appearances in 68 games since returning from the disabled list. In the process, his OPS had dropped from .771 on May 22 to .698 at the start of play Friday. Yet it would be foolish for the Phillies to write the 24-year-old off after only 575 major league plate appearances in which he has shown plenty of promise. A fourth-round pick out of the University of Nebraska in 2011, Asche logged only 1273 plate appearances in the minor leagues before earning a promotion to the big leagues last season. He has the gap power, the 15- to 20-home run potential, and the defensive ability. It is not unreasonable to think that, after a year of major league pitching, he can develop the kind of plate awareness and pitch recognition that goes hand in hand with consistency.

"I've seen a lot of improvement throughout this year," Sandberg said. "I would anticipate him continuing to improve. I think his overall game has improved during the season. Defensively, he's made some improvement, offensively. There's still some growth there as we go forward."

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