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The Philadelphia Phillies needed a reliable outfield bat to round out their offense. Rookie Weston Wilson might be just the guy for the job.
At risk of making too much out of a small sample, Wilson loudly made his case for more playing time on Thursday night, becoming the 10th Phillies player ever and the franchise’s first rookie to hit for the cycle.
He joins Wyatt Langford of the Texas Rangers as the second rookie to accomplish the feat this year.
It’s especially meaningful for Wilson, who spent seven seasons in the minor leagues, compiling nearly 3,000 plate appearances.
“I think it’s a testament to perseverance, staying with everything,” Wilson said, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. “It hasn’t been easy, but last year against them was my first game. To have that moment last year and this one, it’s really cool.”
Wilson got the start in left field Thursday with Brandon Marsh starting the game on the bench against a lefty pitcher.
“It’s honestly kind of a blur to me right now,” Wilson said. “I’m just trying to process everything.”
Weston Wilson: Anatomy of a Cycle
Wilson’s cycle was historic, though unconventional.
His fourth-inning triple came on a fly ball to right that caromed off the wall and bounded back toward the infield. Wilson explained, however, that the lights on the outfield scoreboard obstructed his view and he didn’t realize he had the opportunity to take third.
“That’s kind of why I had a trip up around second base and almost ate it a little bit,” Wilson explained.
He stumbled but made it to third to complete the hardest part of the cycle.
Later that inning, Wilson’s single was even weirder. It came on an infield pop-up that Nationals second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. let fall. By the time Garcia corralled the ball, Wilson was already crossing first base.
“Honestly, I don’t know how I hit it,” Wilson said. “It blew me up. I probably hit that ball 50 mph off the bat.”
Wilson actually over-sold the exit velocity. He hit the ball 43.1 mph.
Rob Thomson Needs to Juggle the Lineup
There’s no way around it: Marsh has taken a significant step back at the plate over the past couple months, especially from a 2023 season where he hit .277 with a 125 OPS+. With 12 hits in 74 at bats since the All-Star break, Marsh is down to .239 with a 99 OPS+ on the season. His strikeout rate in August has ballooned to 40%.
Compare that to April of this season, where he hit .276 with an .817 OPS.
“I’d like to get to April Marsh,” he told Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. “I like April Marsh. I just feel like a bad dude in April; I’ve got to get back to feeling like a bad, bad dude.”
With the Phillies up seven games in the National League East, manager Rob Thomson can exercise patience with Marsh. At the same time, Wilson is commanding more at bats and deadline acquisition Austin Hays is working his way back to the lineup. Thomson will soon have more options than he does playing time.
Hays, who started the year with the Orioles, last played August 7, but he doesn’t expect his hamstring injury to keep him out much longer.
“It’s not going to take a long time to build back up,” he said, per South Philly Review. “I’m expecting it to be a short time.”
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