Bohm still unable to swing, could be out longer than 10 more days

Bohm still unable to swing, could be out longer than 10 more days originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

MIAMI – After dealing with a left hand strain since August 29, Alec Bohm is now able to perform all baseball-related activities except one.

“Swing,” the Phillies All-Star third baseman said glumly, standing in front of his locker at loanDepot Park before Friday night’s game against the Marlins. “That’s it. Obviously, they can’t DH for me in the field. So it’s pretty useless until I can hit.”

With that in mind, the team reluctantly announced that Bohm, who has had a breakout season, has been placed on the 10-day injured list backdated to September 3. Infielder Buddy Kennedy has been recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take his spot on the roster.

“We’re a little light on the bench, so we wanted to make sure we’re taking our time and not rushing him back,” manager Rob Thomson said. “It wasn’t progressing as quickly as we thought. So we’re doing the right thing and making sure he’s good to go.”

Bohm went into play Friday night tied with Kyle Schwarber for the team lead in RBI (89), ranked second to Trea Turner in batting average (.290) and third behind Schwarber and Bryce Harper in OPS (.805). He was also tied for the MLB lead with 44 doubles. But he understands the logic behind the move.

“(It feels) like someone’s got a hammer and with each swing they hit my hand with it,” he said. “Nobody wants to be not able to play. It was up to them as long as they wanted to be without an extra man on the bench. Obviously, I don’t want to be hurting everybody by not being able to play and now we’re a man light on the bench in case, God forbid, something crazy happens and we’re out of guys.”

For the time being, Kody Clemens is expected to get most of the starts at third against right-handed pitchers in a platoon with Edmundo Sosa playing against left-handers. Thomson hinted, however, that Sosa could be in the lineup Saturday against right-hander Darren McCaughan because the pitcher’s left-right splits are fairly even.

Kennedy, a graduate of Millville (NJ) High School, batted .295 with a .910 OPS for the IronPigs after being acquired from the Tigers on June 7. He was called up for two days in late August but did not appear in a game.

Bohm is eligible to be activated when the Phillies open a weekend series against the Mets next Friday at Citizens Bank Park, but it remains an open question whether or not he’ll be ready then even though a battery of tests have revealed no structural damage.

“Last time when I did this in ’21 it took about 16 days to play again,” Bohm said. “So once we got to the point where I still wasn’t able to swing, we just kind of figured it’s going to be around that same time. So no harm, no foul. Try to be back for the Mets series.”

And in the meantime? “Just doing a lot of stuff to strengthen it and do what we can. Kind of do what we can without pain and let it rest and heal and be ready when it’s ready,” he added. “At the end of the day, I want to get healthy for the home stretch.”

Thomson, while hoping to have Bohm as soon as possible, is also realistic. “(It’s been long enough) that there are some progressions we’ve got to work through,” the manager said. “First, he’ll have to swing the bat pain-free. Then he’s got to do cage work and BP. And then velocity and curveballs. I don’t even know about a rehab assignment. So hopefully it’s 10 days but it’s probably going to be longer than that.”