Phillies: 5 candidates for the September expanded roster
With September less than a month away, here are five early candidates to fill one of the additional two roster spots on the Philadelphia Phillies.
September rosters will look a little different this year compared to the most recent 162-game season, when the Philadelphia Phillies finished fourth in the NL East, with a .500 record.
In 2019 and previous seasons, teams could use as many players as they wished from their 40-man roster at any given time during the month. Now, current active rosters will increase from 26 to 28 players in September, with teams still able to carry a taxi squad on road trips.
The additional two roster spots still provide an opportunity for more depth and more big-league experience for players who spent most of the year in the minor leagues.
The Phillies are in the midst of a close battle for the division title, which is their most likely route to making the postseason; they’ve actually never made a Wild Card berth. So, why not throw something different at the competition down the stretch?
Here are five early candidates, with limited-to-no time on the Phillies so far this season, who could occupy one of these roster spots at some point in September.
Rafael Marchan, Phillies catcher
Catching prospect Rafael Marchan has impressed at the plate through limited opportunities in the majors.
Marchan, who made his MLB debut on September 14, 2020, went 7-for-23 (.304 batting average), with a double and a walk, in 11 big-league games so far this season. He also appeared in three games for the Phillies last year, going 4-for-8, with a three-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays on September 18.
With a healthy J.T. Realmuto and Andrew Knapp, it could be hard to justify carrying an extra catcher on the active roster, though the two additional spots may help. Marchan also spent one inning at first base this season, so perhaps he could spend time there if needed.
Marchan hasn’t done as well offensively in the minor leagues but is currently ranked as the Phillies’ fifth-best prospect. He has a career .271/.332/.324 slash line, though much of that has come at lower levels. In 45 games between Double-A Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley this season, he is slashing .203/.284/.222 with a .506 OPS. He does not have a home run in the minors.
His quick success in the majors would be enough of a reason to give him a chance on the extended roster. It will also be interesting to see if he can keep up his recent hit streak, where he’s had at least one hit in 11 of his last 12 games with at-bats through August 8. He appeared in nine games at Triple-A, one at Double-A, and three with the Phillies during that stretch, going 12-for-51 (.235 batting average), with five RBI.
Cristopher Sánchez, Phillies LHP
Left-handed pitcher Cristopher Sánchez made his major league debut this season, where he struggled in five games with the Phillies. The southpaw, who is currently ranking as the franchise’s 22nd overall prospect, gave up eight runs (seven earned) off of 13 hits and five walks in 7 2/3 innings.
He looked good in his first appearance, giving up just one hit, while striking out two, in 1 1/3 innings against the Washington Nationals in early June. He returned to the majors for the last game before the All-Star break, giving up a run in three innings but picking up the win.
Sánchez then struggled in three games after the break, most recently in a re-match with the Nationals, where he gave up four runs while recording just one out, as a bullpen game starter. He was sent back to Triple-A after that, where he’s having a decent season.
Sánchez has a 4.04 ERA and 1.346 WHIP in 12 games (11 starts) for Lehigh Valley this year. He looked good in his most recent start, striking out six in four innings of one-hit baseball against the Buffalo Bisons, a team that scored four runs against him in late June.
The southpaw’s minor league numbers are more impressive considering he had just one game higher than the Advanced-A level entering this year and did not see any major league action last year when the minor league season was canceled. The expanded roster would be a good time to give him another chance on the Phillies.
David Paulino, Phillies RHP
Unlike the other players mentioned in this piece, right-handed pitcher David Paulino is not currently on the 40-man roster, though he does have previous MLB experience.
Paulino has a 4.35 ERA, 1.374 WHIP, and 58 strikeouts in 25 games (three starts) with Triple-A Lehigh Valley so far this season. His 51 2/3 innings pitched are his most in a single calendar year since 2016, when he pitched 97 innings between the Houston Astros and its minor league affiliates.
The Astros called up Paulino in spring 2017 to serve as a starter. His first extended major league experience didn’t go so well, giving up 21 runs in 29 innings before being suspended 80 games for a PED violation and having surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow that October.
Paulino was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays as part of the Roberto Osuna deal at the 2018 deadline, where he pitched better as a reliever during a September call-up. He gave up just two runs (one earned) in 6 2/3 innings, through seven games. He pitched to a 3.45 ERA in seven Triple-A starts in 2019 before being released by the Jays, signing as a free agent with the Phillies this past off-season.
Paulino’s past major league experience and decent minor league stats, despite pitching his most innings in years, makes him an intriguing option to give another chance in the majors. With expanded rosters, September would be a good time to promote him to the 40-man roster and give him an opportunity in a low-leverage situation.
Mickey Moniak, Phillies outfielder
Outfielder Mickey Moniak made his MLB debut with the Phillies in 2020 and has appeared in 12 games with the team this year. His three hits match his total from last season, though his batting average dropped from .214 to .115 due to how many more at-bats he’s had this year. However, he did hit his first career home run, a three-run shot against the San Francisco Giants on April 21.
While Moniak has been slow to come along in the majors, he’s been putting together a good season with Triple-A Lehigh Valley, leading the team in hits (66), triples (six), home runs (12 – tied with Ryan Cordell), and RBI (53), though he’s appeared in the second-most games, behind Darick Hall. He has a .257/.310/.490 slash line and .800 OPS in 69 games.
Moniak has proven himself to be an RBI machine at various levels, hitting 67 RBI in 119 games with Double-A Reading in 2019 and 55 RBI in 114 games with Advanced-A Clearwater in 2018. He has 34 home runs and 247 RBI in 471 minor league games overall.
Moniak has also been hitting better recently, with a .285 batting average, nine home runs, 35 RBI, and 13 extra-base hits between June 1 and July 24 at Triple-A. He then made a lone major league appearance before returning to Triple-A, where he’s cooled down a little, going 6-for-24 (.250 batting average), with four RBI, in seven games.
Three stints at the big-league level this season are an indicator that the Phillies want to give the former first-overall draft pick opportunities, so a spot on the extended roster would be a logical move.
Matt Vierling, Phillies outfielder
Outfielder Matt Vierling made a quick impression on Phillies fans when he made his major league debut on June 19 at the league-leading Giants. He hit a single in his first at-bat, pinch-hitting for Ranger Suárez in the sixth inning. Two batters later, Vierling stole second base, with Rhys Hoskins at the plate, before scoring on a double by Hoskins.
Vierling went 1-for-3 in his first career start the following day, going 3-for-7 overall in his first six games, split between two major league stints.
He’s moved quickly through the minor leagues, debuting in the Phillies farm system in 2018, playing in Advanced-A in 2019 and appearing in both Double-A and Triple-A this season, where he has a combined eight home runs, 35 RBI, and .279/.357/.446 slash line through 60 games.
What Vierling lacks in experience, he makes up for in adapting to a higher level of competition. That major league debut came after just three games at the Triple-A level, and he’s also shown improvement with more games.
Vierling started the Double-A season with three home runs, eight RBI, and a .326 batting average in his first 12 games, followed by the same number of home runs and RBI, but with a .364 average, in his next 12 games. He recorded seven RBI and a .194 batting average in his first 18 Triple-A games before recording two home runs, 12 RBI, and a .274 batting average in his next 18 games.
Expanded rosters provide a perfect opportunity for the Phillies to see if he can continue this trend with more games at the major league level.