The Phillies solution to their DH vacancy is crushing baseballs in Lehigh Valley
The Phillies lost Bryce Harper for at least six weeks on Saturday night and the best replacement in the designated hitter spot is crushing baseballs in Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Darick Hall, 26, has been a star for the Iron Pigs in 2022, putting the league on notice with his power-bat at the 1st base position. Hall is slashing .270/.348/.544 in 71 games, with 19 HRs, 66 RBIs, 5 stolen bases, 18 doubles, and 74 hits. He ranks 5th in all of AAA in OPS with a .892 and leads the league with his 19 HRs.
Hall was drafted in the 14th round of the 2016 MLB Amateur Draft out of Dallas Baptist University in Dallas, Texas. He’s spent seven years in the minors, and broke into AAA last year. He’s posted a career line of .246/.342/.460 in AAA, with a .802 OPS in 192 games with Lehigh Valley.
The Phillies have many different ways to fill the DH spot, but if they wanted to go the younger route, Darick Hall is the perfect option. The 26-year old hits for great power, and plays a great first base. Hall has racked up a .998 fielding percentage in 185 games at 1st for LHV while suffering just 3 errors over that time. The Phils could explore a platoon situation with Rhys Hoskins and Darick Hall, where one would play first and the other would DH.
Mickey Moniak is back with the team, as well as the Phillies’ newest signing Oscar Mercado, but that doesn’t mean Dave Dombrowski’s eyes still aren’t open for a DH replacement. Neither Moniak nor Mercado have been great hitters in the MLB, which leads me to believe that Dombrowski still has something up his sleeve, whether that’s a minor-league promotion of Hall or another signing around the league.
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For the time being, Nick Castellanos seems to be the leading candidate to fill the DH spot, leaving a committee of Moniak, Herrera, Vierling, and Mercado to play center and right.
Don’t count out Hall, who has been turning heads down in Lehigh Valley. He is not currently on the 40-man roster, which means a spot would have to be cleared if they were to bring Hall to the majors.
Up Next for the Phillies
The Phillies kick off a 3-game set tonight with the Atlanta Braves back at Citizens Bank Park. Zack Wheeler gets the ball for the Phils, going up against Charlie Morton.
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Mandatory Credit: Cheryl Pursell
