The Phillies are 39-29 but have been awful in June. The outfield has been the story as of late.
The Phillies entered a three-game series against the Chicago Cubs having lost nine out of their last ten games. The offense struggled to muster extra base hits, the starting pitching staff wasn’t as dominant, and the bullpen kept giving up runs.
There is just one topic again this week but it’s about their biggest concern right now, the outfield.
The Phillies outfield ranks 26th in fWAR, 21st in wRC+, 24th in home runs, and 21st in isolated power (ISO). They do not play good defense and can’t hit enough to make up for it.
Max Kepler put together a more encouraging Cubs series with a home run and double in his two games but has a .676 OPS for the season. He has not adjusted well to left field and has seen a decline in arm strength.
One key concern for Kepler is that he’s seen a massive step back against breaking pitches. Even in an injury-riddled 2024, he hit .245 with a .418 slugging percentage against breaking balls but in 2025, that is down to .149 with a .254 slugging.
His batted ball distribution isn’t working either. He has hovered around roughly a 23-25% line drive rate over his big league career, including a 25.8% line drive rate last season. That is down to 19.6% this year. He has hit more ground balls, especially to the right side, but is hitting fewer fly balls to his pull side.
If Kepler can’t start looking like a solid platoon outfielder, he might be the easiest player to move on from in late-July when the Phillies look for outfield help.
Brandon Marsh had an awful April but has put together a solid May and June. Since May 1, he’s hitting .324 with a .858 OPS. However, there are still some question marks.
He has seen a massive spike in groundball rate, going from 38.2% in 2024 to 48.1% in 2025. He is hitting more pop-ups and is pulling the ball less than ever.
When you combine all of this with a .434 BABIP since May 1, it’s just hard to feel good about this Marsh stretch long term. The adjustments he’s making don’t seem promising.
Nick Castellanos has been easily their most productive hitter in the outfield but the defensive issues have looked worse. A .756 OPS might not be enough to overlook his defensive problems.
Johan Rojas put together an encouraging April with a better approach but has not sustained any progress. Since May 1, he’s hitting .158 with a .454 OPS. You could argue he should play more because of their defensive problems but his offense is so bad it’s hard to justify.
Finally, you have Weston Wilson, who missed almost all of April because of an injury he suffered in Spring Training. He has not played much but hasn’t done his job when given the opportunity.
Wilson is 5 for 29 against left-handed pitching and hasn’t recorded an extra base hit. Given that he has minor league options and hasn’t produced so far, they’re probably looking for a replacement whenever possible.
Before anyone brings up the idea of promoting Justin Crawford, read my breakdown of him and several other prospects from two weeks ago. It’s not a good idea to promote him right now.
There aren’t many other internal levers to pull after that. Gabriel Rincones Jr. might help the offense as a platoon outfielder but wouldn’t help their defense.
The outfield has become their biggest need at the trade deadline. Unless someone on the current roster steps up in a way we haven’t seen, they will likely need two starters to complement Castellanos most days.