Odubel Herrera Respects Mike Schmidt, Calls Language Comments 'Disappointing'

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Odubel Herrera responded to controversial comments made by Baseball Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt on Tuesday.

Per CSN Philly's John Clark, Herrera said he respects Schmidt as a Major League Baseball great but disagrees with his comments, saying "it's disappointing."

During an interview with 94WIP SportsRadio in Philadelphia (via CBS Philly), Schmidt said he didn't think the Phillies could build a team around Herrera:

"First of all, it's a language barrier. 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.' Just can't be—because of the language barrier—that kind of a player."

Herrera was a budding star for the Phillies over the past two seasons. He hit .291/.353/.419 in 2015-16 and was named to the National League All-Star team last year.

Philadelphia rewarded Herrera with a five-year contract extension in December, assuming he could help the franchise return to prominence. Instead, the 25-year-old has struggled, with a .243/.283/.403 slash line in 53 games this season.

Schmidt is a Phillies legend. He played his entire 18-year career with the franchise, hitting 548 home runs and winning the World Series in 1980.