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The Philadelphia Phillies have acquired outfielder Brandon Marsh from the Los Angeles Angels for catching prospect Logan O’Hoppe, the team announced Tuesday.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan and The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal first reported the news.
Marsh should help address the Phillies’ need for defensive upgrades in the outfield.
The Phillies have utilized Kyle Schwarber in left field and Nick Castellanos in right field, and given that neither is a plus defender, adding an upgrade defensively in center field made sense for the team.
Even when Bryce Harper returns from his broken left thumb, potentially in late August, Schwarber and Castellanos will need to man the corner spots, as Harper tore the right ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and likely won’t throw this season. That will leave him as the team’s designated hitter upon his return.
The Phillies have clearly prioritized defense ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline, also acquiring shortstop Edmundo Sosa from the St. Louis Cardinals over the weekend. He’ll serve as a utility infielder for the Phillies, with Jean Segura returning from a broken right index finger this week.
Marsh, 24, will offer better defense in center field but has struggled from the plate in his two MLB seasons, hitting .239 with 10 homers, 56 RBI, 61 runs and a .653 OPS in 163 career games. He’s shown more pop this season, with eight homers, though his calling card has been on defense.
Baseball Reference @baseball_ref
The <a href=”https://twitter.com/Phillies?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@Phillies</a> are reportedly acquiring outfielder Brandon Marsh from the Angels.<br><br>Philadelphia looks to improve their defense with Marsh, who ranked second on the Angels in defensive WAR (0.6). <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/RingTheBell?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#RingTheBell</a> <a href=”https://t.co/3y3tWbc8TM”>pic.twitter.com/3y3tWbc8TM</a>
The Phillies also took a stab at upgrading the bullpen, acquiring David Robertson from the Chicago Cubs for pitching prospect Ben Brown, per multiple reports.
Robertson—who was signed by the Phillies in 2019 but appeared in just seven games for the organization before needing Tommy John surgery that cost him almost two years of action—has been resurgent this season, notching 14 saves with a 2.23 ERA and 1.04 WHIP.
So the Phillies have stayed busy ahead of the deadline, even if they haven’t been players for the top names on the market, at least to this point.
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