The Philadelphia Phillies placed right fielder Adolis García on the 60-day injured list with a tear of his right lattismus dorsi and called up outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. on Friday for what would be his major-league debut.García’s injury, suffered when throwing home during the seventh inning of Wednesday’s game in Toronto, strained the Phillies’ already tenuous outfield depth. Acquiring outfielder Derek Hill from the Chicago White Sox on Thursday somewhat bolstered the group, however. Hill, a right-handed hitter, could form a right-field platoon with Rincones, a left-handed hitter.The injury is a blow for García, who was finding his footing for the Phillies after a poor May. He hit .219/.242/.531 with a .774 OPS in nine games in June. It may not sound remarkable, but it was a step forward after slashing .125/.218/.182 with a .400 OPS in May.It was always a possibility Rincones, a powerful corner outfielder, could be part of a platoon in the majors this season. The 25-year-old injured his knee during the offseason and was not activated from his rehab assignment until May 26. Since then, he has gone 11-for-46 in 12 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Though Rincones may not get many at-bats versus southpaws as part of a platoon, he has seemingly improved at hitting left-handed pitching after batting .107 with a .322 OPS against them last year (56 at-bats). He’s hitting .200 with a .478 OPS against them in 15 at-bats this year — a small sample size, yes, but a marked improvement.Rincones may have one of the most interesting playing backgrounds in the Phillies’ organization. He graduated from Tampa’s Plant High School, a program that has produced players like Pete Alonso and Kyle Tucker, before playing baseball at St. Petersburg College and Florida Atlantic University. But he spent much of his childhood in Scotland, where his father worked on an oil rig. His main baseball experience was playing in a casual men’s league on weekends before moving to the U.S. at age 12.As a result, Rincones said, he had to work hard to catch up to other players in Tampa and at his high school. He was cut from his high school team twice. There has been a learning curve at times, Rincones said, while working hard but not overdoing it or hurting himself.Now, he faces a tough test, as he will likely debut against Milwaukee Brewers starter Jacob Misiorowski.Rincones is not viewed as a strong defensive outfielder, while Hill is a talented defender. It will be difficult for either to live up to García’s skill; for all of his struggles at the plate in May, his defense in right remained well above average. He ranks in the 91st percentile in Fielding Run Value, according to Statcast.Much was working for the Phillies’ outfield: Brandon Marsh is finally playing every day, and García was seemingly turning a corner. Now, they are forced to shake things up.
