Kyle Schwarber to make season debut in left field on windy night
PHILADELPHIA — The left-field conditions on Wednesday night might feel familiar for Kyle Schwarber.
The former Cubs outfielder spent six seasons bracing the cold and wind at Wrigley Field. That could come in handy as he heads out for his first game of the season in the field while dealing with chilly temperatures and 25 mph gusts at Citizens Bank Park.
“He’s an experienced guy,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “He’s played in Chicago for a lot of years. He can handle it.”
Schwarber, the Phillies’ left fielder in his first season in Philadelphia in 2022, has been the club’s primary designated hitter since Bryce Harper moved to first base partway through 2023. Schwarber only appeared in five games on defense last year. But the slugger is playing left on Wednesday to allow catcher J.T. Realmuto to slide into the DH spot against left-hander Robbie Ray and the San Francisco Giants.
The veteran backstop Realmuto only has a .695 OPS so far this season, but he posted his best performance of the year in a win on Tuesday. He went 2-for-4 with his first home run.
Getting Realmuto, 34, some additional time off his feet will be a focus for the Phillies. They’ll get him a break from catching on Wednesday with a chance to build upon his most recent offensive showing.
“The other thing I want to help him with is maintaining rhythm at the plate,” Thomson said. “He feels like, when he takes a day off when he’s going good, it upsets his rhythm.”
In addition to having Schwarber play left field, the Phillies (10-7) will have some other changes to the lineup. Aside from Harper and Schwarber batting back-to-back in the two and three holes, the team will stack righties. Edmundo Sosa will play second base for Bryson Stott and hit seventh. Rafael Marchan is catching and hitting eighth, while Johan Rojas will play center and bat in the nine hole.
“I gave J.T. a half-day and put Marchan behind the plate, so we get more right-handed hitters against Ray,” Thomson said.
Ray has pitched well for the Giants with a 2.93 ERA in three starts this season. The Phillies will start Aaron Nola (5.51 ERA) after splitting the first two games of this four-game series with San Francisco.
Full Phillies lineup