Looks like the Phillies outfield logjam is coming to a head and the decision to "demote" top-prospect Domonic Brown is inevitable.
Shane Victorino went 3/5 with a triple, homerun and three RBI last night in Triple-A Lehigh Valley and will play his last rehab game tonight. Raul Ibanez is riding an 18-game hitting streak, raising his OPS a whopping 81 points in that brief time-span. Despite a mid-season slump, Jayson Werth has been the Phillies best hitter this season with a .302/.395/.528 slash-line. That leaves Brown as the odd-man out. And as much as I hate to see Philly’s young phenom take a step beck, potentially damaging his confidence, the best course of action is to demote Brown to Lehigh Valley until big-league rosters expand from 25 to 40 on September 1.
Sending Brown back to Triple-A for next 17 days just makes too much sense. Greg Dobbs is more valuable than Brown as a utility bench player because he can play both first base and third base. With Ryan Howard out, keeping Dobbs is a must. And despite all his hype and ability, Brown needs more polish and the only way to do that is by playing every day. He won’t get that opportunity when Victorino returns tomorrow.
Brown is a bit of a contradiction at this point. He’s hitting just .237/.238/.368, but the five-tool talent is apparent. He’s made some spectacular plays in right field, including a breathtaking throw to nail Marlins’ first-baseman Gabby Sanchez at home plate. On the other hand, he’s made several poor reads in right and could use some seasoning at that position after playing center field most of his career. Brown makes it a point to work the count in every at-bat and his blistering buggy-whip swing allows him to wait until the very last second before pulling the trigger. On the other hand, he has just one walk and 13 strikeouts in 42 big-league plate appearances.
It’s evident that Brown will be a MLB superstar. It’s just as evident that he needs a bit more seasoning and his ascension to All-Star status will take a little time. Remember, San Francisco’s Buster Posey hit .118 in his brief MLB promotion last year. This year he’s hitting .335 and is the cleanup hitter on a playoff-caliber team. Brown will be a great Philly in the very near future - just probably not this season. In the meantime, the Phillies will have to make due with All-Star outfielders Ibanez, Victorino and Werth. Not a bad problem to have.
