Gabriel Rincones Jr. returned from a stint on the IL with knee inflammation and went on a minor league rehab assignment. He started with Clearwater and in his second game there, hit a home run. It would be 77 minor league at-bats and three major league at-bats until he would hit another, but he’ll remember it forever.
Facing Jacob Misiorowski in his first major league game, Rincones and everyone else on the Phillies struggled at the plate. Facing Ryan Gusto and the Marlins was a much easier task and Rincones used his first at-bat to check two things off of his big league to-do list. Gusto left an 82 mph sweeper up and in and Rincones deposited it just inside the right field foul pole to get his first MLB hit and just for good measure, make that hit a home run. The 385′ blast would have been a home run in every major league ballpark.
“I daydreamed about that, and tried to think about what it would feel like, what would I see, smell. And it’s very similar. I had a whole routine in my head with what I could possibly do, and thank God I was able to do that,” Rincones told reporters after Monday night’s game, which the Phillies won 7-0.
The next time he sees IronPigs teammate Felix Reyes, the two can discuss their first career home run as a big leaguer. Reyes checked that off of his list earlier in the season. Between the two though, Reyes still has some bragging rights since his came in his very first MLB at-bat, which was against Chris Sale. While Sale is not quite Misiorowski, he’s still an impressive pitcher to have your first home run against.
Rincones is the left-handed hitting part of a right field platoon with Derek Hill who the Phillies acquired last week from the Chicago White Sox. Rincones is susceptible to left-handed pitching and Hill struggles against right-handers, so the Phillies are hoping that the duo can put together strong stats.
Justin Crawford had three singles in the game with an RBI and a run scored. Edmundo Sosa and Brandon Marsh both had two hits. Marsh is now batting .324, good enough for third in the NL behind Otto Lopez of Miami (.339) and Jung Hoo Lee of San Francisco (.331).
Wheeler the dealer
Zack Wheeler (6-1, 2.01) didn’t have his best stuff against the Marlins, but he still pitched a great game. The right-hander pitched six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and three walks while striking out nine batters. Wheeler’s pitch count rose quickly, which limited him to just six innings as he reached 97 pitches and did not come out for the seventh.
Tim Mayza, Jonathan Bowlan, and Chase Shugart all threw a scoreless inning in relief.
An early exit for Turner
Trea Turner was hit by a pitch from right-hander William Klempner in the sixth inning. The pitch was a 97 mph four-seam fastball and got Turner in the wrist. He initially stayed in the game, but left in the eighth inning. Alec Bohm, who was not in the starting lineup, came in to play third and Sosa moved from third to short.
X-rays on the wrist came back negative and the injury is listed as a wrist contusion. Interim manager Don Mattingly said that Turner was very sore after the game and he would be re-evaluated Tuesday. Turner has struggled this season, but Mattingly has said that his plan is to stick with the veteran shortstop. He did not dismiss dropping him out of his second spot in the order at some point should the slump continue.
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