In the bottom of the seventh of the Phillies’ 6-4 victory over the AL East-leading Baltimore Orioles, Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos was hit with a 95 mph sinker to extend the inning. The next batter Bryce Harper drove in the lead runner Kyle Schwarber from second to extend the Phillies’ lead to two. Both runs were scored with two outs as Edmundo Sosa drove Kyle Bradish’s last pitch of the night out of the ballpark to take the lead.
Castellanos was replaced by Johan Rojas in the next half inning. Jake Cave stayed in left, Rojas played center and Brandon Marsh moved from center to right field. Rob Thomson usually waits until the ninth inning to optimize the outfield defense, so there was some concern when Castellanos left the game after a hit-by-pitch.
The Phillies manager said in his postgame news conference that Castellanos’ calf tightened up as he ran the bases. Thomson isn’t concerned and says he expects Castellanos to be available Friday when the Phillies open up a series against the Pirates in Pittsburgh.
Losing Castellanos’ bat would be a huge blow to the lineup, but unlike just about every infield spot, the Phillies have quality depth behind both Castellanos and Schwarber to withstand an extended absence.
Rojas, who saves plenty of runs with his glove in center, is 6-for-18 in limited at-bats so far. The Phillies are happy to give him more at-bats, even against right-handed pitching. Brandon Marsh has quietly been one of the best hitters on the team this year and is heating up again, batting .314 with a .914 OPS since the All-Star break.
Jake Cave, who has been mashing in Triple A for months, had his best game of the year on Wednesday. He went 2-for-4 with a double and RBI and made a spectacular Aaron Rowand-esque catch at the wall in left field.
His persistence is finally paying off as he should get a good run on the big league roster as a corner outfielder and occasional first baseman.
“If I go down and I pout, that doesn’t help anybody,” Cave said. “It definitely doesn’t help me, it doesn’t help the team. You go out everyday. There’s people that would give anything to be in my position. Triple-A ballplayer still on the roster. I just kind of looked at it like that everyday. Good things happen and now I’m back so I couldn’t be happier.”
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