Hi Buddy!
Are we looking for some further sparks for the bench? Maybe, maybe not, but the Phillies made some roster moves today to shake up the bench a little bit.
Today the Phillies selected the contract of INF Buddy Kennedy from Lehigh Valley (AAA). To make room on the 26-man roster, INF/OF Weston Wilson was optioned to LHV following last night’s game. To make room on the 40-man roster, RHP Aaron Nola was transferred to the 60-day IL.
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) June 19, 2025
Aaron Nola wasn’t coming back any time soon, so his moving to the 60-day injured list makes some sense. It allows them to open up a roster spot, an idea that they used to bring back Buddy Kennedy from Lehigh Valley. Weston Wilson goes down in his stead.
Why they did this is interesting. Maybe they wanted Wilson to start getting some regular at bats and in order to facilitate that, they needed him to go to the minors. Does that mean Max Kepler starts seeing more time against left handed pitching now? After all, there is no true platoon with him unless you count Edmundo Sosa getting time or Otto Kemp learning another position on the fly.
Bringing back Kennedy could also mean that Bryson Stott is a bit more hurt than we know and they’re looking to preserve depth in case he needs a few days off here.
There’s also this.
Kennedy had recently exercised an upward mobility clause in his minor-league deal, making him available to 29 other teams. Phillies opt to promote and keep him. https://t.co/MeuQf0gMwm
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) June 19, 2025
Again, this team doesn’t have the greatest of depth in the infield spots, so preserving it by doing this makes some sense. We’ll see how much he actually plays though. Just more of the roster churn at the bottom part that we see these weeks before the All-Star break.