It's no secret that the Philadelphia Phillies are targeting outfielders this offseason, and everything is reportedly on the table.
Bryce Harper moved back to right field last season, but will be back at first base next year. Justin Crawford struggled as a rookie, and Brandon Marsh was terrible in the second half after making the All-Star Game.
Marsh is reportedly available for trade, but his falloff in the second half was hard to believe. According to The Athletic's Matt Gelb, he had surgery on his left hand after the season, after playing with an injury for several months.
"There is another potential explanation for Marsh’s uneven performance in 2026," wrote Gelb. "After the season, he underwent surgery on his left hand, just above his wrist, according to a league source who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. Marsh played through the ailment for several months; it’s unclear whether the team’s medical personnel were aware."
Earlier this week, Dave Dombrowski said none of the team's "big guys" had any procedures to his knowledge. If Marsh was playing through an injury that required surgery, it could explain his second-half numbers.
Marsh slashed .184/.243/.259 in the second half after slashing .301/.339/.490 in the first half. Although trading him is on the table, the Phillies still think he can be a good player in their outfield. However, they know they need to explore upgrades.
“I still think he’s a solid big-league player,” Dombrowski said this week, per Gelb. “We do think that. He’s a good defensive outfielder in left field and right field. We have to straighten out the second half of the year. There’s really no rhyme or reason that he should play like that the second half of the year. He’s just too good a player to do it. We need to straighten that out.
“Sometimes guys get in a funk, and they just can’t get out of it. We still look at him as a nice, solid. … The one thing, and I said it before: Who knows? Maybe he surprises me. … But I don’t think you can go into the season and say he’s going to play 162 games. Because I think versus lefties, it’s hard to count on him being an offensive producer at this time.”