CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Phillies manager Joe Girardi considered the entirety of Odúbel Herrera's Thursday afternoon at BayCare Ballpark.

Did Herrera's home run that cleared the ballpark in right field in the second inning or his slide into the right-field wall to stop a ball in the first inning and his relay to the plate impress him the most in a 15-0 victory over the Yankees?

Neither, it turned out.

"How about his baserunning?" Girardi said. "That he didn't pass the guy in front of him on that ball that C.J. [Cotham] hit [to center field in the fourth inning]. Right? That's thinking. Home run is reaction. Put a swing on it. Getting to that ball [in right field] was an outstanding play. He hit the cutoff perfect. Just the perfect relay. But the baserunning instinct, not to put your head down, because you see it better than the guy at second base. Really good."

The Phillies' center-field competition is underway, and nobody is easing themselves into it. It is a four-player battle among Adam Haseley, Herrera, Scott Kingery and Roman Quinn. Girardi mentioned Mickey Moniak as a potential candidate, too. Moniak, who was ranked the club's No. 12 prospect last season, homered twice on Thursday. The 22-year-old is bigger and stronger, and he has impressed in camp, although he probably is a long shot because of the experience of the other four.

"They know what's at stake," Girardi said. "They understand, but we're going to watch the at-bats the whole spring. To me, as you move on, you'd expect that there timing is better. But they've all been pretty good so far."

Haseley hit the second pitch of the Phillies' Grapefruit League season on Sunday for an opposite-field home run against Detroit in Lakeland. He is 2-for-7 with one home run, one RBI, two walks and two strikeouts this spring. Kingery hit a solo home run in the first inning on Thursday. He is 2-for-9 with one home run, one RBI and three strikeouts. Quinn is 1-for-5 with one walk and four strikeouts. Moniak is 3-for-6 with a double, two home runs, two RBIs and two strikeouts.

Herrera is 3-for-6 with one home run, one RBI, one stolen base and one strikeout.

"I thought the coolest thing today was Odúbel sliding into the wall," Rhys Hoskins said. "Then we get the big out at home. It was a nice play. It's early in March. It's Spring Training. You can say all these things, but this guy is already sliding into the wall."

Herrera rejoined the Phillies after missing nearly the past two years following his May 2019 arrest on a charge of simple assault in Atlantic City, N.J. The charge was dismissed, but Major League Baseball suspended Herrera 85 games for violating the league's domestic abuse policy. Herrera is no longer on the 40-man roster, which gives him longer odds to make the team than Haseley, Kingery and Quinn. But then he also is the most accomplished player of the group.

Herrera addressed his teammates who made the trip with him to Dunedin before Tuesday’s game against the Blue Jays, drawing applause from some players. Then, before Thursday's game, he made a brief address to the entire team that was reportedly well received. Herrera has said he hopes to earn the trust back of his teammates and fans. It will take time.

"I think you get so many chances in this game and I think he recognizes this is really important," Girardi said.

Herrera is swinging the bat well. Besides the homer, he hit a 3-2 slider to left field in the fourth. Herrera spent much of the past two years hitting in Miami, hoping for another opportunity with the Phillies. His cousin Jhoendri Herrera pitched in the D-backs' system, and he threw to him on occasion, too.

"I just kept working," Herrera said. "I just kept practicing hitting."

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Herrera's recent work with Phillies hitting coach Joe Dillon seems to be helping. Dillon wants Herrera to slow down in the batter's box so he can better control his weight. If he can do that, he believes Herrera will be on time more and make better decisions.

"You're only as good as the pitches you swing at," Dillon said. "So when he's swinging at better pitches, he's going to make better contact and he's going to be a much more productive hitter. His bat path is really good. He's got a little unorthodox setup, which he simplified a little bit. He did that on his own. We haven't really talked about anything other than controlling his energy, controlling his weight and making better decisions."

Haseley, Kingery and Moniak have been working on getting their bat path more neutral through the zone. Haseley had been hitting down on the ball. Kingery and Moniak had been hitting up on the ball. The early returns are encouraging.

"It's going to be fun," Hoskins said. "Obviously, right now it's early. All these guys are playing well. You can kind of see the competition happening and unfolding right before us. It's great to see all of them playing well and looking like they're in a rhythm. It's only going to create more competition."