There was some measure of concern for the Philadelphia Phillies when they announced that Brandon Marsh had undergone surgery on his knee at the beginning of the offseason.
Based on how the outfield looked with Kyle Schwarber in left to start last year, they wanted to avoid that at all costs.
Even if Marsh had to miss some time during the early part of this season, they likely wouldn't turn to Schwarber after signing Whit Merrifield and still keeping Jake Cave and Cristian Pache on the roster.
But, there's no doubt that having the youngster operate in left field, paired with Johan Rojas in center, completely changed the Phillies' defense in 2023.
Philadelphia expected Marsh to be available for Opening Day and it looks like he's nearing his return to the field in continued preparation that he'll be ready for the opener against the Atlanta Braves.
Corey Seidman of NBC Philadelphia reports that they could try and get Marsh into a Spring Training game as early as the middle of this week. Manager Rob Thomson told Seidman that the outfielder has taken 29 total bullpen at-bats so far and will be the designated hitter in a player development intrasquad game.
The next steps before the 26-year-old can return to left field is running the bases and sliding in a live game setting.
They're hoping that his knee continues to progress sp they can move him along in the rehab process in order for him to have plenty of ramp up time before the season starts.
Marsh will be an important piece for Philadelphia.
He's coming off his best offensive year, posting an OPS+ of 127 with career highs in home runs (12) and RBI (60).
Getting him back healthy will be huge for this team who has avoided major injuries so far in camp.
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