Alec Bohm optioned to Triple A
Philadelphia Phillies fans came into the season with high expectations of young third baseman Alec Bohm after a brilliant rookie year in 2020. However, Bohm has so far failed to build on what he did last year and as a result was optioned to triple A by the club on Sunday.
“I think we just got to the point that we felt like this was the combination of the best thing for him and the best thing for us,” Phillies general manager Sam Fuld said of the move to send the 25-year-old back to the minor leagues, via the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Braves find themselves in second place in the National League East, battling for a playoff spot and believe that they would be better off without Bohm in the lineup. He has been a liability both offensively and defensively for his team and they cannot afford many more slip-ups if they’re to have any chance of securing a postseason berth.
With Bohm being optioned to triple A, the Phillies were able to activate first baseman Rhys Hoskins off of the injured list. The move paid off immediately with Hoskins hitting two home runs on Sunday afternoon to help his team defeat the San Diego Padres. It was his first appearance in a game since August 5th, when he suffered a groin strain.
Bohm being sent down means the Phillies will go with a combination of Ronald Torreyes and Brad Miller at third base to close out the campaign. It appears as though Bohm still remains the future third baseman for the franchise, but given the circumstances the team is currently in, they believe he would be better served by developing in the minor leagues.
“I think this is going to be a good thing for him,” Fuld said. “It’s a tough thing for him to internalize at this point, but a lot of good players have had this moment in their careers. There are Hall of Famers who were sent down. Some Philly greats who were sent down in their careers after spending some significant major-league time. The guy we just honored in Philly, Roy Halladay, is a great example.”
The Phillies selected Bohm with the third overall pick in the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft, after he had spent three years at Wichita State. He made his MLB debut on August 13th last year and immediately impressed.
“It’s difficult to say,” Fuld said when asked what happened to the power Bohm showed last season. “I think the success and the power go hand in hand. We saw some top-end power last year when he was squaring everything up. I think the power will definitely come. We feel really confident that that will happen. He’s displayed it in the minor leagues. He displayed it last year. He displayed it here at times. I think it comes along with just having success and being able to put the barrel on the ball. Like most players, I think he’s going to hit home runs when he’s not trying to hit home runs.”
It remains to be seen whether Bohm will be able to live up to the high expectations people have of him, but there is still plenty of time to before we will ever really know.
