Phillies 'hope for best' after García exits with shoulder injury from throw home

TORONTO -- Phillies outfielder Adolis García will need further evaluation after exiting Wednesday night’s 7-4 win over the Blue Jays in the bottom of the seventh inning with a pulled muscle in his right shoulder area.

Manager Don Mattingly admitted there was "a little bit" of concern regarding the injury to their star defender, a 2023 AL Gold Glove Award winner.

“They kind of know when they’ve done something," Mattingly said. "We’ll probably get some imaging [Thursday] and find out the true severity of it. Hope for the best.”

García bent over in pain after attempting to throw out George Springer on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Kazuma Okamoto at Rogers Centre.

Trainers went out to shallow right field to examine the outfielder, who continued gripping his right arm before he eventually exited the game. Steward Berroa replaced him on defense.

The Phillies' outfield depth took a hit earlier in the day, too, when it was announced Johan Rojas would undergo surgery for a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Rojas had been working out in an effort to return from an 80-game PED suspension that was handed out in March after he tested positive for Boldenone.

Losing García would be tough for the Phillies, who've benefited from his strong arm and speed in the field despite his slow start to the season at the plate. When they signed the 33-year-old to a one-year deal worth $10 milllion in December of last year, the Phils were encouraged by their defensive upgrade in right field and hopeful that García would rebound from a pair of down seasons on offense.

He's hitting just .195 with seven homers and 21 RBIs through 67 games. His 43 career assists in right field are tied for seventh among active players, though. Philadelphia entered play Wednesday with four outfielders on its active roster, and any extended absence would leave the club leaning heavily on Berroa, who was just recalled from Triple-A on May 30.

That, unfortunately, Mattingly said, is just the way things go.

“Everybody deals with stuff all the time, so someone is going to have to pick it up,” he said.