The Phillies announced this morning that they’ve placed outfielder Brandon Marsh on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain. Outfielder Cal Stevenson was recalled to the MLB roster in a corresponding move.

Marsh, 27, has struggled badly to open his fourth season as a Phillie. Once a consensus top-50 prospect in the sport, Marsh found himself limited to part-time duties when he arrived in the majors with the Angels due to a crowded outfield mix that included Taylor Ward, Jo Adell, Mike Trout, and Justin Upton at the time. That eventually led the Angels to be comfortable dealing Marsh to the Phillies in exchange for well-regarded catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe. It’s a deal that’s generally worked out for both sides, as O’Hoppe has blossomed into one of the top young catchers in the sport with Anaheim while Marsh has been able to fill a vacancy in the Phillies outfield over the years.

From the moment he first suited up for the Phillies, Marsh has been a quality player for the club. When the 2024 season wrapped up, Marsh carried a career .266/.346/.440 slash line (116 wRC+) in a Phillies uniform. That’s strong production for an offensively inclined center fielder, and when looking specifically at his work against right-handed pitching Marsh has posted an even more impressive .281/.362/.489 (128 wRC+) over the years. Marsh has always come with his flaws, however. Notably, he strikes out more than 30% of the time and has never been much of an effective option against fellow southpaws, with a 70 wRC+ against same-handed pitching as a Phillie entering this year.

Unfortunately, things have taken a nose dive in the early going this year. Marsh has slashed just .095/.220/.167 in his first 17 games (51 at-bats) this year while striking out at a 31.4% clip. While he’s maintained a strong 13.7% walk rate, Marsh’s high strikeout rate, lack of power production, and .115 BABIP have combined to make him one of the least productive regulars in baseball this year. Marsh hasn’t recorded a hit since March 30, and given that protracted slump it’s hardly a surprise that the Phillies took the opportunity to get Marsh a bit of a reset when he tweaked his leg in the outfield earlier this week. He hasn’t played since that incident occurred on April 16, and now will sit down for at least another week. Once Marsh’s hamstring is feeling up to snuff, the 27-year-old will have the opportunity to get some reps in against Triple-A pitching on a rehab assignment before returning to the majors and looking to get his season back on track.

While Marsh is out of the picture, everyday duties in center field will fall to Johan Rojas. The 24-year-old is off to a hot start in a part-time role this year, slashing .345/.406/.414 over his first 12 games. He hit quite well in a limited look during his debut year of 2023 but struggled when given an expanded role last year, hitting just .243/.379/.322 in 120 games. Marsh’s injury will provide Rojas with the opportunity to prove himself capable of performing as a regular in the outfield, though the lefty-swinging Stevenson was promoted to the majors as a potential backup option should it be necessary. The 28-year-old has just 47 games of big league experience under his belt between Oakland, San Francisco, and Philadelphia but posted league average numbers in a brief 18-game stint with the Phillies last year. Stevenson has struggled at Triple-A this season, however, with a .192/.328/.289 slash line that suggests he’ll most likely be limited to a pure depth role for the time being.