Phillies' Justin Crawford: Scratched with sore knee
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Crawford was scratched from the lineup for Friday's game against Detroit due to left knee soreness, Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic reports.
The severity of Crawford's injury is unclear, but it will be enough to keep him out of Friday's series opener. Derek Hill will fill in as Philadelphia's center fielder and bat eighth.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Taking seat against lefty
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Royals.
As per usual, the left-handed-hitting Crawford will hit the bench while the Phillies face off against a lefty starter (Noah Cameron) in the series finale in Kansas City. Derek Hill will fill in for Crawford in center field and will bat ninth.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Tallies three RBI in three-hit game
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Crawford went 3-for-4 with a double, three RBI and one run scored in Tuesday's 8-0 win over the Pirates.
While Crawford isn't hitting for much power overall, he's still been swinging a fairly hot bat as of late. The rookie center fielder finished out the month of June having gone 23-for-75 (.307) with no home runs, four doubles, seven RBI and three stolen bases over 27 games. With Adolis Garcia (lat) and Johan Rojas (elbow) both done for the season, the left-handed-hitting Crawford is locked in as Philadelphia's primary center fielder.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Sitting with lefty on mound
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mets.
The Phillies will keep Crawford on the bench Sunday, shielding him from a lefty starter (David Peterson) for the second time in the series. The rookie outfielder is slashing just .143/.231/.143 in 39 plate appearances versus same-handed pitching this season.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Idle against lefty
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Brewers.
The left-handed hitter will hit the bench for the second day in a row while the Brewers send another southpaw to the hill in Kyle Harrison. Derek Hill will start in center field in place of Crawford.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Exiting starting nine Monday
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays.
The left-handed-hitting Crawford will hit the bench for the ninth time in the Phillies' last 10 matchups with left-handed starting pitchers. The Phillies will go with a starting outfield of Edmundo Sosa, Brandon Marsh and Adolis Garcia from left to right while southpaw Patrick Corbin toes the rubber for the Blue Jays.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Idle against southpaw
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
The Phillies are opting to give the Crawford the afternoon off against tough lefty Parker Messick. Brandon Marsh will slide over from his usual spot in left field to cover center in place of Crawford.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Idle for series finale
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Crawford is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Reds.
The left-handed-hitting Crawford will receive a breather while the Reds send southpaw Andrew Abbott to the bump for a day game after a night game. Brandon Marsh will slide over from his usual spot in left field to cover center field in place of Crawford, who is batting .245 with two home runs, five stolen bases, seven RBI and four runs through his first 18 games of May.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Sitting versus lefty
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Crawford is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Athletics.
The left-handed-swinging Crawford will get a day off as the Athletics send southpaw Jeffrey Springs to the bump. Brandon Marsh will shift over to center field, and Felix Reyes will get a start in left field for the Phillies.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Good to go Sunday
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Crawford (head) is starting in center field and batting ninth Sunday against the Marlins, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Crawford was scratched from the lineup Saturday due to a migraine but is ready to go for Sunday's series finale in Miami. The rookie outfielder is in the midst of a modest five-game hit streak, during which he is batting .350 (7-for-20) with a double, a triple, a steal, three RBI and one run.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Scratched from Saturday's lineup
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Crawford was scratched from the Phillies' lineup against the Marlins on Saturday due to a migraine, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Crawford was initially slated to start in center field Saturday, but the Phillies will instead go with Garrett Stubbs, Adolis Garcia and Felix Reyes from left to right. Crawford will aim to return for Sunday's matinee.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Sitting against southpaw again
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Crawford is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cubs.
It marks the third time over the Phillies' last four games versus left-handers that the lefty-swinging Crawford has been on the bench. He had been in the lineup for six of his team's first seven games against southpaws. Brandon Marsh will occupy center field Tuesday, while Felix Reyes gets the start in left field.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Knocks in game-winning run
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Crawford went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and a strikeout in Wednesday's win over the Nationals.
Crawford has hit safely in four of his first five games of the season, including each of the last three, but he delivered his first extra-base hit Wednesday. Aside from extending his on-base streak to five games and collecting a season-high three hits, Crawford also knocked in the game-winning run with a single to right field, allowing Brandon Marsh to cross home plate and complete the Phillies' comeback. This was Crawford's first RBI of the season.
Crawford is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Nationals.
The left-handed-hitting Crawford was in the lineup for each of the previous two games versus lefties but will begin Monday's series opener on the bench in what appears to be simply a routine day off. Brandon Marsh will shift over to center field and Otto Kemp will play left field Monday.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Opening season in majors
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The Phillies informed Crawford on Saturday that he will be on the team's Opening Day roster, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN.com reports.
Crawford has slashed .277/.320/.383 with two RBI, 10 runs scored and three stolen bases through 50 plate appearances in the Grapefruit League -- good enough for the Phillies to feel comfortable naming him as their primary center fielder. The 22-year-old has demonstrated an excellent ability to make contact during his time in the minors and boasts exceptional speed, having swiped 46 bags at Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2025. However, he may face competition for playing time once Johan Rojas returns from his 80-game suspension in late June.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Looking like primary center fielder
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Crawford went 1-for-4 with an RBI, two runs scored and one stolen base in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees.
After being invited to Phillies camp for spring training, the 22-year-old outfielder has responded by batting .250 (9-for-36) with two RBI, two doubles, seven runs scored and two steals over 12 Grapefruit League outings. Crawford, one of Philadelphia's top prospects, appears poised for an Opening Day roster spot and is likely to see plenty of action in center field in 2026, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. It's also worth noting that Johan Rojas is facing a potential 80-game suspension at the onset of the regular season due to a positive drug test. Last year for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, Crawford hit .334 with 34 extra-base hits, 47 RBI, 88 runs scored and 46 stolen bases across 440 at-bats.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Invited to spring training
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The Phillies have extended Crawford an invitation to big-league camp during spring training.
The decision comes as no surprise, as Crawford -- while not yet on the 40-man roster -- is expected to open the 2026 season as the Phillies' primary center fielder. He slashed .334/.411/.452 with seven home runs and 46 stolen bases at Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2025 and is heading into his age-22 season.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: In line to start in center field
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Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Tuesday that the team plans to have Brandon Marsh, Crawford and Adolis Garcia as its primary outfielders in 2026, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.
The Phillies officially announced the Garcia signing Tuesday, and Dombrowski intimated that another notable addition to the club's outfield is unlikely. Crawford will still have to show in spring training that he's ready to take over as the Phillies' primary center fielder, but the team is positioning him to be the guy at that position. There are questions about Crawford's defense in center field, but his bat looks ready after he slashed .334/.411/.452 with seven home runs and 46 stolen bases at Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2025 as a 21-year-old.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Expected to make Opening Day roster
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Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski indicated Tuesday that Crawford has a strong chance to open the season in the majors, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.
The Phillies lost Max Kepler and Harrison Bader to free agency and are expected to trade or release Nick Castellanos, which would leave Brandon Marsh as the team's only returning outfielder. Even if they sign an outfielder in free agency, that would still leave a spot open for Crawford. The 21-year-old makes good contact, striking out 18.0 percent of the time in 112 Triple-A games last season en route to a .334 batting average, and he's stolen 40-plus bags for three straight years. He pounds the ball into the ground, however, and has topped out at nine home runs in a season.
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Phillies' Justin Crawford: Dealing with quad injury
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Crawford hasn't played for Triple-A Lehigh Valley since June 5 due to a quad injury, Corey Nidoh of Philly Sports Network reports.
He reportedly participated in pregame activities Tuesday but has missed six games in a row with the injury without having been placed on the 7-day injured list. Crawford, 21, is one of the youngest players at Triple-A and is slashing .349/.416/.448 with one home run and 23 steals in 52 games. He could produce a high average and a plethora of steals if given a shot in the big leagues later this summer, but his extreme groundball (63.6 GB%) and opposite-field (43.8 Oppo%) tendencies will prevent him from hitting for notable power.
