Brandon Marsh is nearly ready for a rehab assignment, Phillies say
The center fielder is recovering from a hamstring injury. Marsh ran the bases at 100% Tuesday in New York, manager Rob Thomson said.
NEW YORK — Brandon Marsh has been progressing well from his right hamstring strain and will likely begin a rehab assignment on Thursday, Phillies manager Rob Thomson said.
Marsh, who can be activated from the 10-day injured list on Sunday at the earliest, ran the bases Tuesday in New York.
“It was 100%,” Thomson said.
Marsh will have a “recovery day” on Wednesday before heading on assignment while the rest of the team is in Chicago to take on the Cubs.
After turning his knee awkwardly fielding a ball in the outfield last week, Marsh sat out the next three games and was officially placed on the injured list when he wasn’t improving.
The rehab assignment may have another benefit, giving Marsh a chance to reset in the minors after a very slow start to the season. The center fielder is hitless in April and has a .095 batting average. He has just one extra-base hit in 51 plate appearances, a home run on March 29 against the Nationals.
“The game is very tough,” Marsh said last week before his injury. “It’ll definitely knock you down and bring you back up when you least expect it. So, definitely added pressure, for sure, trying to do too much. Just got to do me, play my style of play, and play the role for this team that I need to.”
In the meantime, Johan Rojas has been getting more consistent opportunities in center field and at the plate. Rojas is hitting .324 in 34 at-bats in 2025. He has also stolen three bases.
» READ MORE: ‘Phillies Extra’ Q&A: Farm director Luke Murton on Crawford, Painter, a sleeper to watch, and more
Three of Rojas’ 11 total hits this season have been to the opposite field. Rojas, a right-handed batter, has been working on hitting to gaps on the second base side of the diamond this year.
The Phillies’ first round of batting practice is usually dedicated to hitting to the opposite field. But Rojas sticks with it in his sessions longer than most of his teammates.
“He’s been making contact, solid contact,” Thomson said. “He’s seeing pitches. He’s staying within the zone, and he’s using the field, and he’s attempting the bunt. So that’s his game. That’s what he’s got to do.”
Walker’s bullpen session
Taijuan Walker was removed from his last start Saturday after only four innings after feeling his shoulder stiffen up. He remains on track to make his next scheduled start Friday at Wrigley Field after throwing a bullpen session on Tuesday.
Thomson said Walker came out of it well and his velocity was back to normal. On Saturday, all of Walker’s pitches were slower than usual for him. His four-seam fastball averaged 90.4 mph, which was 2.0 mph slower than in his three previous starts.
Extra bases
Ranger Suárez (lower back stiffness) made a rehab start for triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday, while Weston Wilson (moderate oblique strain, left side) played left field. Suárez’s next start is planned for Sunday, when the Phillies hope to build him up to 85-90 pitches. … Phillies pitching prospect Griff McGarry was placed on the seven-day injured list with an undisclosed injury retroactive to Monday, the double-A Fightin’ Phils announced. McGarry, 25, has not yielded a run across 12 innings. He completed a “hidden no-hitter” by not allowing a hit through the first nine innings he pitched across three games. … Zack Wheeler (2-1, 3.73 ERA) is scheduled to start the Phillies’ series finale against the Mets’ David Peterson (1-1, 3.27) on Wednesday.