One of the Philadelphia Phillies’ key trade deadline acquisitions is on the mend again. The Phillies announced outfielder Austin Hays was sent to the 10-day injured list Thursday due to a kidney infection. Outfielder Cal Stevenson was recalled from Triple-A to take Hays’ place on the active roster.
This is the second time Hays has hit the IL since being traded to Philadelphia by the Baltimore Orioles on July 26. He missed two weeks in August with a hamstring strain, appearing in nine games before being sidelined again.
In 19 games with the Phillies Hays has a .254 batting average with five doubles, one home run, seven runs scored and five RBIs. Overall this season he’s hitting .254 with an OPS below .700, though he’s poked 18 doubles in 82 games after averaging 35 over the last two seasons.
The Phillies were in the market for a new outfielder and landed on Hays after rumors swirled that they’d inquire about bigger names. Philadelphia has gotten little production from their center fielders this season. The group of four players has a collective .635 OPS this season, the fourth-worst in MLB among center fielders.
Hays primarily plays left field which allows the Phillies to platoon Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas in center. Neither has started three consecutive games in center for a week. Meanwhile, Nick Castellanos has started every game in right field.
Phillies outfield plan without Hays
Although they planned for him to be the everyday left fielder, the Phillies won’t be lost without Austin Hays in the lineup. Manager Rob Thomson has options in his outfield and with rosters expanded can mix and match depending on the opposing starting pitcher.
Brandon Marsh expects to get the bulk of the playing time in left, though the Phillies are still not pleased with his numbers against left-handed pitching. They’ll also still want him in center occasionally as Johan Rojas continues to struggle at the plate.
It doesn’t seem plausible for Philadelphia to put Kyle Schwarber in the outfield where he’s logged only 33 innings this year. However, he made a rare start in left field Wednesday for the first time since June.
They are not household names, but the Phils have two potential X-factors they can deploy in the outfield, Weston Wilson and Kody Clemens. Wilson is the more natural outfielder but Philadelphia has used him all over the diamond in a limited role. He’s seeing the ball well lately, posting a .424 average over his last 14 games. He recently hit for the cycle too.
Clemens doesn’t have much experience in the outfield but he too has contributed in a big way at the plate recently. The 28-year-old has five RBIs across his last three games, all Phillies wins.
The Phillies have afforded themselves room to work through a few injuries and maintain their lead in the NL East. Philadelphia’s magic number to clinch the division is 15 entering Friday’s action.
