The Phillies have placed outfielder Brandon Marsh on the 10-day injured list with a bruised knee, per a team announcement. Replacing Marsh on the active roster is Weston Wilson, who has had his contract selected by the Phillies today. The club had an open spot on the 40-man roster, so no additional move was necessary to make room for Wilson. Marsh’s injury occurred last night when he crashed into the center field wall and had to be helped off the field. He underwent an MRI and x-rays after exiting last night’s game, both of which came back negative. Phillies manager Rob Thomson indicated to reporters, including The Athletic’s Matt Gelb, that Marsh would be out between two and three weeks with the injury.
The injury comes in the midst of an excellent season with the Phillies, as he’s broken out to slash .284/.369/.463 (124 wRC+) while playing strong defense in center field. While Marsh is on the shelf, Gelb indicates that Johan Rojas will step in as the club’s everyday center fielder. In 16 games with the Phillies this season, Rojas has slashed .300/.333/.375 (93 wRC+) with excellent defense. Also potentially in the center field mix while Marsh recovers is Cristian Pache, who has been on the shelf since mid-July after undergoing elbow surgery but is expected to return before Marsh, per Gelb. In 53 trips to the plate with the Phillies this season, Pache has slashed .327/.365/.592 (156 wRC+) while playing his typically excellent defense in center.
With Rojas currently taking the everyday center field job and Pache on the way as well, that presumably leaves Wilson to fill in elsewhere around the diamond. The 28-year-old Wilson was a 17th-round pick by the Brewers in the 2016 draft and joined the Phillies organization this past season. He’s slashed an impressive .260/.361/.524 in 426 trips to the plate at Triple-A this season while first base, third base, shortstop, and both outfield corners. With the big league club, he’ll likely mix in alongside Edmundo Sosa, Jake Cave, and Rodolfo Castro among the club’s big league bench options.
