The Philadelphia Phillies went through a relatively quiet, boring month of spring training. It was a little too quiet. Now, just over a week before Opening Day, spring injuries are catching up with the defending NL East champions.
Luckily, it appears all the ailments that have befallen the Phillies over the last few days are minor and nothing to be seriously concerned about. Still, we need to keep tabs on where the injured Phillies stand with spring training wrapping up soon and roster decisions looming.
Phillies' injury update on Matt Strahm's shoulder sounds positive but still leaves a big question mark
The most worrying injury was left-handed reliever Matt Strahm, who the Phillies shut down with an impingement in his throwing shoulder. Strahm is going to be a big piece of the bullpen this season, so initial reports were obviously concerning, even if Strahm and the Phillies didn't sound worried.
After rest, Strahm is pain-free, and the bone bruise and inflammation aren't causing him any problems as he starts to ramp back up, according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. He threw at 75 feet on March 15, and 90 feet on Sunday. He might be ready for Opening Day, or he might not be. At least Strahm sounds confident where he's at right now in his progression.
“I’ll be ready,” Strahm said, per Zolecki. “But it’s up to them..."
Strahm only made two appearances before last pitching on March 5. He gave up six runs in 1 2/3 innings with three walks and three strikeouts.
Max Kepler, Brandon Marsh and Alec Bohm to resume playing soon ... very soon
Phillies fans faced a brief moment of panic on Sunday when, within the span of two innings, outfielders Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh left the game against the Baltimore Orioles with injuries. Kepler banged into the left field wall while making a catch and departed with a back contusion. Marsh banged his left knee on the outfield track, followed by an awkward landing on the same knee while making a sliding catch the following inning.
The Phillies certainly can't afford to lose one, let alone two outfielders, as outlined by Destiny Lugardo of Phillies Nation. But we can all relax, as Phillies manager Rob Thomson told reporters on Monday that both players would be returning to game action very soon.
How soon? Per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Scott Lauber, Marsh will play in Tuesday's road game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Kepler might play on Tuesday, but it isn't a sure thing at this time.
Kepler has impressed so far in a Phillies uniform, hitting .346 with a 1.238 OPS and three home runs in 26 at-bats. Marsh isn't having quite the same success, hitting .259 with a .740 OPS but is having good at-bats with nine walks to six strikeouts and a .444 on-base percentage.
Another minor injury to note, third baseman Alec Bohm is dealing with a bruised foot. It doesn't sound serious, as he's possible to return on Wednesday when the Phillies are back at home against the New York Yankees.
Johan Rojas is finally close to playing in the outfield
Center fielder Johan Rojas still hasn't played a spring training game in the outfield, but that should change soon, according to Thomson. The talented defender is still building up after coming to camp dealing with a jammed shoulder from winter ball. Rojas threw to the bases on Monday and will repeat the exercise on Wednesday, putting him in line to get into game action in center after that, per Zolecki.
As Zolecki notes, it sounds like the Phillies plan on adding Rojas to the Opening Day roster as the fourth outfielder, based on Thomson's comments.
Johan Rojas threw to bases today. He will again on Wednesday.
— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) March 17, 2025
He'll be ready to play CF after that, Rob Thomson said.
Thomson said there should be enough at-bats for Rojas early in the season, even with plans to play Marsh and Kepler almost every day, even vs. LHPs.
Rojas is having a fantastic spring at the plate, in extreme contrast to his struggles with the bat last spring. In 33 at-bats, he's slashing .303/.378/.515 with two home runs and seven RBI. He does have nine strikeouts to two walks, but the Phillies think he can get enough early-season at-bats despite Kepler and Marsh gobbling up the majority of playing time.