Platooning outfielders Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh each homer in Phillies' shutout win vs. Orioles

Scott Lauber, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Aug 5, 2025

Published in Baseball

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PHILADELPHIA — Never mind that the Phillies acquired only one hitter at the trade deadline. Or that Harrison Bader arrived with better numbers than every outfielder on the roster. Or that he hit his first Phillies homer earlier this week.

Max Kepler still started in left field Tuesday night.

Say this, then, for manager Rob Thomson: He keeps his word. He told Bader, Kepler, Brandon Marsh and Weston Wilson that he planned to platoon them in left and center field through the Phillies’ six-game homestand, and that’s exactly what he will do.

With a righty on the mound for the Baltimore Orioles, it was the lefty-hitting outfielders’ turn to play. That meant Marsh and embattled Kepler were in the lineup, with Wilson and Bader, in particular, on the bench.

And you’ll never guess who came up with the biggest hits in a 5-0 victory in jam-packed Citizens Bank Park.

Kepler, of all people, banged a two-run homer in the second inning, then doubled in the fourth. He entered with a .200 average and .645 OPS and possibly clinging to his spot on the roster. Then, he had his first game with multiple extra-base hits since March 31, the fourth game of the season.

There were other unlikely stars, too, in the Phillies’ third consecutive victory and fourth in five games:

— Marsh, heating up at the plate, preceded Kepler with an RBI double in the second inning before hitting a solo homer in the eighth.

— Taijuan Walker, making what could be his penultimate start in place of injured Aaron Nola, tossed six scoreless, walk-free innings. It was only the second time since 2023 that he lasted at least six innings and didn’t yield a run.

— Bryson Stott, mired in a slump for much of the season, blooped a single in the second inning, then tripled off the top of the right-field wall to drive in a run in the fourth.

But Kepler’s big game came amid unanswered questions about the composition of the Phillies’ outfield.

Bader hit lefties and righties well for the Twins before coming over at the deadline. He plays stellar defense in center field and left. Last year, when the Phillies acquired outfielder Austin Hays at the deadline, they intended to play him every day. It was reasonable to expect the same for Bader.

In time, maybe Bader will emerge as an everyday choice for Thomson. Or maybe the Phillies will finally call up outfield prospect Justin Crawford, who entered Tuesday night with a .325 average for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

But the Phillies seem inclined to give Kepler more chances.

Thomson suggested the other day Kepler is “swinging the bat a lot better,” an opinion shared by president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. But Kepler was only 8 for 53 with one homer in his last 19 games entering Tuesday night.

“He hasn’t had many numbers because he’s hitting the ball right at people,“ Thomson said. ”But he’s barreling up a lot of balls."

Kepler barreled a two-strike fastball from Orioles starter Dean Kremer and hit it out to right field in the second inning to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead.

In the fourth, Kepler lined a first-pitch curveball to right field and scored on Stott’s triple.