First Gauge of How Committed Phillies Are to Their Left-Right Platoons

The Phillies faced two left-handed starting pitchers over the weekend, Jacob Latz on Saturday and Mackenzie Gore on Sunday. They didn't hit either one and now draw a third consecutive lefty starters on Monday in the Nationals' Foster Griffin.

Griffin has never made a major-league start and hasn't pitched in the bigs since 2022. He is not nearly the quality of Gore, but as Latz demonstrated on Saturday, it can be tough for hitters to square up a pitcher they don't have much of a book on.

Monday will be our first gauge of how committed the Phillies are to their platoons in left field and at second base. The expectation is that Brandon Marsh and Bryson Stott will start against all righties, while Edmundo Sosa and Otto Kemp start against most/all lefties.

Marsh, though, was one of the only Phillies hitters who had a productive weekend, going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles on Opening Day, hitting the game-tying two-run single in the ninth inning Saturday and walking in two plate appearances Sunday.

The reason why Marsh and Stott were in Saturday's lineup against the left-handed Latz was that manager Rob Thomson didn't want to sit them three or four consecutive days right at the start of the season. They were supposed to face right-hander Jacob deGrom on Saturday but the former Mets Cy Young award-winner was scratched with a stiff neck.

There will be other points this season when the Phils face three straight left-handed starters. Will the Phillies go the same route, starting Marsh and Stott against one of them to keep them fresher? It's worth tracking as the season wears on.

An issue with platoons is that, while they look logical on paper based on the way hitters handle opposite-handed pitching, they also prevent hitters from getting everyday at-bats and that can affect timing and rhythms. It can be an acquired skill, though at this point Marsh and Stott are used to it.

Marsh has hit .276 lifetime against righties with an .800 OPS and .211 with a .577 OPS vs. lefties. He's a far different offensive player against lefties, so it makes sense to accentuate his strengths and limit his weaknesses. Especially since Kemp has crushed lefties in his minor-league career.

Everyday ABs for Crawford

One player who won't be platooning is centerfielder Justin Crawford, who hit .376 against lefties last season at Triple-A. Crawford went 3-for-9 in the opening series against Texas with two line drive singles up the middle off veteran right-hander Nate Eovaldi and an infield single up the third-base line against they lefty Gore.

The Phillies did pinch-hit for Crawford in the ninth inning Sunday down 8-3, hitting Dylan Moore against lefty Robert Garcia down 8-3, but that might have been just as much about getting Moore an at-bat.

The Phillies might see only one more left-handed starter the rest of the week after Monday in Jose Quintana this weekend at Coors Field. They're otherwise slated to face right-hander Cade Cavalli on Wednesday, Michael Lorenzen on Friday and Tomoyuki Sugano on Sunday.