ARLINGTON -- Brandon Marsh teed off for one of the hardest-hit home runs of his career on Friday night.
But his 69.3 mph bloop double was the most notable of his four hits in the Phillies' 9-1 win over the Rangers at Globe Life Field. On a night when Trea Turner homered as part of a five-RBI effort and Kyle Schwarber smashed his 41st homer, Marsh may have stolen the show.
With manager Rob Thomson opting to stick with platoons in both left field and center field for one more night, Marsh got the start in center field against Texas right-hander Merrill Kelly. Marsh reached well across the plate to ground a leadoff double down the left-field line in the second inning, then ripped a laser homer off Kelly to lead off the fourth.
The solo shot was Marsh's second homer in as many games, and his fourth in his past eight. His latest blast left his bat at 109.3 mph, making it the second-hardest-hit home run of his career (109.8 mph vs. Yankees on April 4, 2023).
“He’s swinging the bat well; he has been for a while now,” Thomson said. “He’s got his average up and now we’re starting to see some power, and that’s good.”
So, when Marsh came to the plate in the fifth inning, Rangers manager Bruce Bochy brought in left-hander Robert Garcia instead of letting Marsh face Kelly for a third time.
The move made sense on the surface. For as well as Marsh has swung the bat over the past three months, almost all of his damage has come against right-handed pitchers.
Entering Friday, Marsh was hitting .302 with an .815 OPS in 74 games since coming off the IL on May 3. Even during that span, however, he was batting just .216 (8-for-37) with one extra-base hit and a .566 OPS against southpaws.
After getting ahead in the count, 2-0, Marsh appeared to get jammed by a 94.9 mph fastball that he fought off into right-center field. A hard-charging Adolis García laid out but couldn't hold onto the ball, as Marsh raced into second for his first extra-base hit off a southpaw since May 31.
Does Marsh take it personally when a team brings in a lefty specifically to face him?
“Maybe a little bit,” he said. “I do my best to try to treat it the same way, but yeah, them bringing in Garcia early like that was a little shock. ... But yeah, I do treat it as a little challenge.”
Asked if that made coming through with a double a little bit sweeter, Marsh smiled and said: “They're all sweet.”
Therein lies the question with Marsh.
Should he be starting every day -- even against left-handers -- because of the numbers he's putting up? Or has he been putting up those numbers because the Phillies have been mostly protecting him from left-handed pitching as part of a platoon?
“All around -- vs. lefties, vs. righties -- his at-bats have gotten a lot better,” Thomson said.
It's a question Thomson will answer in the coming days. Loyal to the two outfield platoons for the past week, Thomson already committed to starting right-handed-hitting Harrison Bader against right-hander Jacob deGrom on Saturday.
Max Kepler, who went 0-for-4 with a walk on Friday, has been starting in left field with Marsh in center against righties, but perhaps Marsh slides over to left with Bader starting in center?
Either way, things should clear up even more on Sunday, when the Rangers start left-hander Patrick Corbin. The past week has seen Weston Wilson start in left with Bader in center against southpaws, but maybe Thomson rolls with Marsh in left and Bader in center for both days this weekend to see how it plays out.
“I haven’t gotten there yet,” Thomson said when asked if Marsh would start alongside Bader on Saturday.
Defensively, it would make sense. For his career, Marsh has been far better in left (14 DRS) than center (-13 DRS). Bader, meanwhile, has 45 career DRS in center field.
Of course, it’s not really about defense. What it comes down to is whether the Phillies think they can get enough offensively out of Marsh, who has a .583 career OPS vs. lefties -- significantly lower than his .792 OPS vs. righties.
Marsh is now slashing .314/.371/.486 (.857 OPS) in 75 games since returning from that early-season right hamstring injury.
“It’s a good feeling; nothing better than a win, though,” Marsh said. “But yeah, it feels good to get a couple extra-base hits, and I hope there’s a lot more to come. Just keep my head down and keep working, and all that will play out itself.”