If you haven’t yet heard, Roger Clemens’ son is playing a key role for the Phillies since Trea Turner was placed on the Injured List.
The son of the 11x All-Star and 7x Cy Young award winner is on a pretty nice heater right now and is making a name for himself separate from his father.
In 10 games this season with the Phillies, Kody Clemens is batting over .300, slugging .826 and has an OPS of 1.159 all while providing some flexibility all over the infield. Clemens’ highlight of the season and perhaps his career came last night when he hit a game-tying home run against the Nationals with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. The Phillies would go on to win the game in the 10th on a sacrifice fly by Bryce Harper, something that would’ve never happened if Clemens didn’t bat in the ninth.
The 28-year-old utility man came over in the Gregory Soto deal going into 2023 and has floated between Triple-A and the majors with the Tigers and now with the Phillies. Clemens came very close to making the Opening Day roster this year after a hot spring training but ultimately was sent down late in the Spring.
Clemens seems like he could be a nice spark off of the bench if a situation presents itself late in games and after Saturday night’s heroics is almost certainly gaining popularity among the fan base but Turner is not going to be out forever.
Clemens has a spot on the team right now because Edmundo Sosa has gotten the bulk of the time at shortstop after Turner went on the IL. The lefty is basically filling the utility infield spot that was Sosa’s.
It’s going to be interesting to see what the Phillies decide to do when Turner returns, but what Clemens is doing should absolutely not be overlooked.
Photo via AP Photo – Chris Szagola
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