Phillies Offense Will Be Getting Reinforcement Soon

The Philadelphia Phillies offense will be receiving a reinforcement when Alec Bohm returns shortly. On August 10, Bohm started a minor league rehab assignment and will be off the injured list soon. Bohm has been on the injured list with a rib injury since July 19. Edmundo Sosa and Otto Kemp have filled in at third base while Bohm has been on the injured list. Weston Wilson has not appeared at third base since Bohm went on the injured list. Kemp and Wilson have also spent a noticeable amount of time in left field while Bohm has been absent the last few weeks. This is in part because of the Phillies left field platoon.

This season, Bohm has a .278/.324/.391 line with eight home runs and 42 RBI in 92 games. Bohm has a 98 wRC+ and a .314 BABIP this year. Overall, Bohm has a 0.35 BB/K rate this season. After a slow start, Bohm has rebounded. Since May 1, Bohm has a .304/.356/.446 line with eight home runs and 34 RBI in 64 games. Bohm has a 123 wRC+ and a .335 BABIP in that span. To add, Bohm has a 0.46 BB/K rate since May 1. The return of Bohm should provide a boost to the Phillies lineup. Additionally, this will give Phillies manager Rob Thomson more flexibility with the middle part of the batting order. There are many different ways Thomson can order the 4-6 spots in the lineup.

Phillies Offense Getting Reinforcement

Corresponding Roster Decision

One of Kemp or Wilson will be optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to make room on the 26-man roster for Bohm. Wilson was recalled when Bohm went on the injured list originally. Meanwhile, Kemp was called up a few months ago when Bryce Harper was on the injured list. This will be a tough decision as Wilson has a 1.159 OPS and a 220 wRC+ in seven games since being recalled. Meanwhile, Kemp has a .740 OPS and a 101 wRC+ in 16 games during that same period. Wilson will probably be optioned based on season-long numbers. Both of them have basically identical defensive versatility, so that is not much of a factor.

Importance Of Return Timing

Assuming Bohm returns before August 22, the Phillies’ option would be eligible to return when rosters expand on September 1. This gives the Phillies more flexibility with their decision. An unlikely option is that Max Kepler gets released when Bohm comes back. This would allow Kemp and Wilson to remain on the 26-man roster. If the Phillies go this route, it would clear the way for Justin Crawford to be called up when rosters expand to 28. Crawford staying in the minor leagues until August 15 or later would preserve his rookie eligibility for the 2026 season as well. This probably will not happen, but it is an interesting idea.

Lineup Adjustments

Recently, J.T. Realmuto has been batting cleanup for the Phillies. Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber and Harper are 1-2-3 in the Phillies batting order now. The Bryson Stott leadoff experiment was unsuccessful. Realmuto could very well remain in the cleanup spot when Bohm returns. In that spot, Realmuto has a .660 OPS and an 87 wRC+ in 12 games. For comparison, Bohm has a .512 OPS and a 42 wRC+ in 18 games batting cleanup. Unless Thomson decides to move Nick Castellanos back to cleanup, it will be Bohm or Realmuto. Regardless, Bohm should be a reinforcement for the Phillies offense heading into the stretch run.