Philadelphia Phillies DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Kansas City Royals right-hander Carlos Estevez tossed a scoreless ninth inning to preserve a 7-4 win over the Colorado Rockies in the first game of a Thursday doubleheader. Estevez did not allow a baserunner on the way to earning his sixth save in eight chances this season. The 32-year-old has been a reliable ninth-inning option in his first season with Kansas City, posting a 1-0 record, 3.00 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and 10 strikeouts over 12 innings of work.

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Brandon Marsh (hamstring) is starting his minor-league rehab assignment on Thursday with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Lochlahn March. Marsh is recovering from a strained right hamstring but could be activated from the 10-day injured list when he's eligible on Sunday as long as he doesn't suffer any setbacks in a few games at Lehigh Valley this weekend. When the 27-year-old outfielder rejoins the big-league roster, he'll be returning to a nightmarish .095/.220/.167 slash line after going 4-for-42 with a homer, five RBI, seven walks and 16 strikeouts in his first 17 games this year. It's still early, but this is about as bad of a starter as you can get. Before going on the IL, Marsh was hitless in his last 31 at-bats with two RBI, five walks and 11 strikeouts. If he continues to struggle when he's back, Marsh could see more time on the bench.

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler was tasked with taking the ball against his former team on Wednesday. Wheeler didn't make many mistakes outside of giving up a two-run home run to Brett Baty in the second inning. The right-hander tossed six innings, allowing five hits, two runs, and striking out nine batters along the way. Sadly for Wheeler, the Phillies offense didn't do much as they ended up dropping this game to the New York Mets. Wheeler will take a 3.62 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and his league-leading 50 strikeouts into his next start against the Washington Nationals.

Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson said that left-hander Cristopher Sanchez (forearm) is feeling good on Wednesday after being pulled from his start early on Tuesday against the division-rival New York Mets with left-forearm soreness. Sanchez wanted to play catch on Wednesday but wasn't allowed to do so. The Phillies have no plans to send him for an MRI exam, and the 28-year-old southpaw could just have his next scheduled start pushed back a few days. We should know more on his status after he plays catch on Friday. Sanchez's next scheduled start is for next Tuesday against the division-rival Washington Nationals, but that will probably be pushed back. He only made it two innings on Tuesday night and allowed two earned runs. Overall, Sanchez has been strong for fantasy managers in his first five starts, striking out 33 and walking eight in 26 1/3 innings.

Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott is out of the starting lineup for Wednesday's series finale against the division-rival New York Mets with a left-hander on the mound. Edmundo Sosa will take over at second base and will hit seventh against Mets lefty David Peterson. Stott is hitting a cool .301 (25-for-83) with two homers, 13 RBI and four stolen bases in 21 games so far in 2025, but he's gone just 4-for-21 with two walks and five strikeouts against left-handed pitching. Sosa may not have a ton of fantasy upside for DFS purposes in the seven-hole for the Phillies, but fantasy managers shouldn't completely ignore him. The 29-year-old infielder has gone 12-for-29 (.414) in the early going as a backup with eight RBI and four runs scored. In his two career at-bats against Peterson, he has a hit and one RBI.