PHILADELPHIA — For much of the season, the Phillies’ outfield has consisted of a pair of platoons.
Now, it’s more of a full-fledged rotation.
Call it what you want, but it seems the mixing and matching at all three outfield positions will continue for the time being — and why not? It’s working.
The latest mix — Brandon Marsh in left field, Harrison Bader in center and Max Kepler in right — played a pivotal role behind a stellar Jesús Luzardo as the Phillies finished off a sweep of the Mariners with an 11-2 victory on Wednesday at Citizens Bank Park.
Starting over Nick Castellanos in right field for the second time in five games, Kepler had a three-hit day, including a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning that left his bat at 108.2 mph. It was his hardest-hit home run since May 9, 2024.
But hitting the ball hard is nothing new for Kepler of late.
Since the start of August, 18 of the 33 balls put in play by Kepler have had an exit velocity of at least 95 mph. His hard-hit rate of 54.5% during that span is second on the team, trailing only Kyle Schwarber.
Meanwhile, Bader reached base three times and scored a pair of runs. Marsh added a hit of his own and worked a leadoff walk in the seventh that triggered a four-run rally, turning a one-run game into a 7-2 lead.
Overall, the trio of outfielders went 6-for-13 (.462) with a walk, a hit-by-pitch, five runs scored and an RBI. The Phillies are 13-6 since acquiring Bader at the Trade Deadline.
