PHILADELPHIA — Phillies outfielder Max Kepler “banged up” his left shoulder in Friday’s win over the Braves, manager Rob Thomson said Saturday, leaving him available only in an emergency in that night’s game.
Playing left field on Friday, Kepler made a diving attempt as Nacho Alvarez Jr. popped a single into the grass. He finished out the rest of the game, moving over to right field for the final inning when Harrison Bader replaced Nick Castellanos to play center field in the ninth.
The left-handed-hitting Kepler almost certainly would have been on the bench against Atlanta lefty Chris Sale, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner, on Saturday anyway.