ST. LOUIS - Matt Stairs squatted a few feet from home plate for a better look. It was Friday afternoon at an extra session of batting practice on the field at Busch Stadium, and Michael Saunders was the hitting coach's focus.
Saunders, a $9 million acquisition last winter, was not in the Phillies lineup after starting the previous two games with seven hitless at-bats and three strikeouts. He entered the day tied with New York's Jose Reyes for the worst on-base percentage (.258) among qualified hitters in the National League.
The Phillies have three outfielders - Odubel Herrera, Aaron Altherr and Howie Kendrick - who supercede Saunders on the depth chart.