New Phillies Injury Updates on Aidan Miller, Brandon Marsh, Orion Kerkering

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Phillies top prospect Aidan Miller is making progress with his back soreness but is not yet ready to play in a spring training game and the Phillies haven't provided a date for his debut.

"Just treatments and he's starting to ramp up a little bit in the weight room," manager Rob Thomson said after Wednesday's exhibition win over the Tigers. "He's feeling a little bit better, we're just gonna be precautious with him and take our time."

Miller was one of the most intriguing Phillies to watch this spring because he's such an enormous piece of their future but not quite as big-league ready as the team's other two top prospects, right-hander Andrew Painter and centerfielder Justin Crawford. The 21-year-old Miller enters the season as the No. 14-ranked prospect in the sport by Baseball America and has drawn comparisons since his draft day in 2023 to Alex Bregman.

Last season, Miller hit .259 with a .382 on-base percentage and 52 stolen bases at Double A, then went 9-for-27 (.333) with nine walks and seven strikeouts at Triple A.

"Yeah, if Miller could get off his butt and get in the game, that would be nice," Bryce Harper joked during an in-game interview Sunday. "I'm just kidding, Aidan, I'm just kidding buddy. But I need him to get healthy because he can help us by the end, obviously."

Another prospect ailing

Miller and corner outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. are the two notable Phillies position players who have not yet appeared in a Grapefruit League game so far this spring.

Rincones, who may have otherwise had a good shot to make the team out of camp as a lefty bench bat with pop, has been dealing with soreness in both knees. Thomson has mentioned the midpoint of camp as the timeline for Rincones to see game action, which will hurt his chances to crack the Opening Day roster and help players like Bryan De La Cruz.

Brandon Marsh

Left fielder Brandon Marsh took two at-bats on Sunday but is now dealing with inflammation in his hand from a sliding drill Tuesday.

"We had some sliding practice yesterday and he jammed his hand into the ground," Thomson said. "There's nothing wrong with it, there's just some inflammation, some soreness. Whenever it's hands and feet, I worry about the swing and guys getting into bad habits. He probably won't play until after the day off (Monday), I would think."

That would mean at least four more games out of the lineup. Marsh did undergo imaging and checked out fine.

Orion Kerkering

Orion Kerkering, the third-most important right-hander in the Phillies' bullpen after Jhoan Duran and Brad Keller, has not pitched this spring because of a right hamstring strain.

He is feeling better, according to Thomson, but the manager only said "possibly" when asked if Kerkering could throw off a mound this weekend.

Zack Wheeler

Zack Wheeler's season debut will have to wait until late-April or some time in May as he ramps up from September surgery to correct venous thoracic outlet syndrome, which involved the removal of a rib.

The Phillies are happy with Wheeler's progress, which to this point has involved long-tossing but will soon advance to mound work.

"He'll be up on the mound soon," Thomson said. "He had flat-ground today out to 120 (feet). Yeah, he'll be off a mound soon."