PHILADELPHIA — On the third day, with the Phillies still searching for their first win, Bryce Harper took a break.
According to manager Rob Thomson, Harper's day off was planned ahead of the season-opening series with Atlanta.
Due to back soreness in spring, Sunday seemed like a good day to give Harper a break, despite the team's recent losses. This decision was confirmed by Thomson's lineup card on Sunday morning and was unrelated to Harper's fall on Saturday.
Harper was in agreement with the plan, as confirmed by Thomson, who also mentioned Harper's unavailability for pinch-hitting on Sunday due to general soreness. Both Harper and the manager expect him to be back in the lineup on Monday for the series with Cincinnati.
“Going into spring training, obviously I didn’t get the reps I needed,” Harper said after a 5-4 Phillies win. “Playing nine the first two days, what happened yesterday I don’t think had any merit on today. Definitely looking forward to getting back in there tomorrow.”
Harper only had 12 games and 34 plate appearances in spring training, so Thomson didn't want to immediately put his healthy two-time MVP into everyday baseball.
There were several reasons for choosing Sunday as the rest day, including the upcoming off days in April, the challenge of facing Chris Sale, and the desire to give opportunities to other players like Cristian Pache and Whit Merrifield.
Thomson explained, “Trying to take care of them, one… And with the lefty matchup, get other guys in, just protect them.
Thomson stated that Harper left Saturday’s game early mainly because of the big lead by the Braves and only had a scraped finger.
Sale, who has a historically low .203 average against lefties, is the third consecutive left-handed starting pitcher the Phillies are facing, with Cincinnati’s Andrew Abbott following Max Fried and Sale.
The Phillies maintained a left-heavy lineup against Fried, with Pache starting in left field and Marsh taking a day off. Bryson Stott sat out for Merrifield at second base, and Alec Bohm filled in for Harper at first, with Edmundo Sosa at third.
Despite the predominantly lefty lineup, Kyle Schwarber led off the game with a home run against Sale. The Phillies managed to secure nine hits off lefties Sale and Aaron Bummer, with Schwarber and Merrifield each contributing two hits and Soso scoring a run.
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Orion Kerkering threw a scoreless inning at Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Saturday as part of his rehab assignment.
Thomson said, 'Very good.' The speed is good, just like last time. The slider has a really good shape to it.
Kerkering only faced six batters in two spring innings because he got a late start due to illness. It will take some time to build up the young righty. He's set to pitch again on Tuesday, either in Lehigh Valley or possibly Clearwater if it rains in the Northeast. The Phillies are aiming for a return date of April 9.
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On Sunday, Kerkering was added to the injured list alongside Luis Ortiz, who left Saturday's game in the sixth inning after stumbling while fielding a ground ball. Thomson didn't provide a prognosis, saying, 'We're going to take it slow. He's limping pretty good today.'
Nick Nelson was brought back. He had a 6.23 ERA in 8.2 spring innings. He appeared in a big league game last year, pitching 5.1 solid innings to win Game No. 162 in New York, after making 47 appearances in 2022.
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NOTES >> The Braves ended their first series in Philadelphia with 17 extra-base hits, including 12 doubles. The teams won't play again until July 5-7 in Atlanta. The Braves will visit Citizens Bank Park next on Aug. 29-Sept. 1. … With his steal of second in the three-run seventh inning, Trea Turner has now stolen 36 straight bases without being caught, the longest streak in the big leagues since Coco Crisp from 2011-12. … The Phillies will host Cincinnati on Monday. Cristopher Sanchez will pitch Game 1 against Abbott. Spencer Turnbull will make his Phillies debut on Tuesday against Graham Ashcraft.
