A day after providing the bulk of their offense in an Opening Day loss to the Braves, Brandon Marsh was out of the Phillies' lineup Saturday in Game 2 of 162.
Whit Merrifield got the start in left field, batting eighth in his Phillies debut.
The Phillies face left-handed starters in three consecutive games: Max Fried, Chris Sale and the Reds' Andrew Abbott. Marsh will likely be out of Sunday's lineup against Sale as well but manager Rob Thomson plans to start him Monday in Cincinnati.
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Cristian Pache could be in line for a start on Sunday.
"That's the thing, we've got options now, especially with Whit, and Pache's swung the bat well against lefties," Thomson said.
"Whit's going to see some right-handers, too. Marsh will see some left-handers. We've got three in a row here so I don't want to keep Marsh out of the lineup too long. I would think he's going to play on Monday."
The Phillies signed Merrifield to provide insurance and a platoon advantage when needed in left field and at second base. The way the Braves specifically loaded up on lefties during the offseason made it even more necessary. Atlanta added Sale to its rotation and specialist Aaron Bummer to a bullpen that includes four southpaws.
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"It is (a challenge)," Thomson said, "but that's why you go out and get Whit. He helps with that. They've done a good job building up their bullpen."
The question is how often Marsh will sit. Every lefty? Just the tough ones? Not every lefty is as deceptive as Fried and Sale.
"I think the game will tell you when it's time and he just goes," Thomson said. "I still believe that at some point, I mean, he has improved against lefties. I think at some point, he's an everyday guy."
Thomson and Dave Dombrowski have said this about Marsh the last two seasons but their actions show they're not quite there with him yet. Marsh did show some improvement early last season against same-handed pitching, and overall he hit .229/.321/.396 with nine extra-base hits against lefties compared to .220 with four extra-base hits in nearly 100 more plate appearances the prior two years.
It is unclear whether Bryson Stott will be in the lineup Sunday against Sale but he figures to sit far less than Marsh. Stott actually has a higher OPS (.735) in his short career against lefties than he does vs. righties (.697). He hit .282 against them in 2023.
"Nope," Thomson said when asked if he felt Stott needed to sit against most lefties. "He's a guy. Is he going to play tomorrow against Sale? We'll see. It's early in the season."
Injury updates
• Taijuan Walker (shoulder) threw 25-to-30 pitches in a bullpen session Saturday and felt great afterward. He will likely throw another in the coming days.
"Probably build him up nice and slow," Thomson said. "Not a spring training type of build-up but we're going to take it easy and make sure he's right."
Spencer Turnbull will occupy the No. 5 spot in the rotation until Walker is ready. Turnbull will start Tuesday in Cincinnati in the fifth game of the season. He threw 52 pitches over three scoreless innings in his one and only spring start on March 23.
• Orion Kerkering is scheduled to pitch today and Tuesday with Triple A Lehigh Valley. He opened the season on the injured list, backdated to March 25, making him first eligible for activation on April 9.
Kerkering's injury designation was a right forearm strain, but he has maintained upper-90s velocity and doesn't seem to be affected by it. The primary reason he was held back was because he missed about three weeks of spring training with an illness.