Brandon Marsh Can Find His Groove Against the Houston Astros

After beginning his career in the AL West, Brandon Marsh knows a thing or two about how to hit Astros pitching.

Author:
Leo Morgenstern
Oct 27, 2022 4:01 PM EDT

In this story:

Brandon Marsh isn't having the best postseason. The Philadelphia Phillies outfielder is batting .154 with just four hits in 29 plate appearances. He was excellent in Game 4 of the NLDS, hitting a double and a three-run home run, but his bat went silent after that. In four NLCS starts, Marsh failed to reach base even once. He has still contributed to the postseason effort with strong defense in center field, but the Phillies could really use some pop out of his spot in the lineup.

The Astros' pitching staff is almost entirely right-handed, so Marsh is going to be in the lineup for nearly every World Series game. (Matt Vierling should only start against southpaw Framber Valdez.) If Philadelphia is going to pull off an underdog victory over Houston, they'll need all the offense they can get.

Thankfully, Marsh has been pretty excellent against Houston thus far in his career. And as a former Los Angeles Angel, he has played the Astros far more often than any of his Phillies teammates over the past two years. In 24 games, he has hit .315 with an .804 OPS. He has driven in seven runs and scored eight. The only team he has better numbers against (min. 30 PA) is Washington.

The last time Marsh faced the Astros was at the end of October, when the Phillies traveled to Houston to finish off the season. He had a walk, a single, and two doubles in ten plate appearances. Hopefully, he can recapture some of that magic in the World Series.

It must be said that Marsh's success against the Astros comes in a minuscule sample size. Any player can get hot for 24 games. Thus, there isn't a legitimate reason to believe Marsh will continue hitting the Astros better than most other teams. These numbers make for an interesting fun fact, not hard-hitting analysis.

Then again, perhaps facing a team he's hit so well in the past will help Marsh find the momentum he needs to get out of his funk. It's no sure thing, but it's a plausible hypothesis. It would certainly be nice for the Phillies to have their center fielder hitting again.