Former Angel Brandon Marsh 'Surprised' to be Traded, Enjoying Postseason Success
Brandon Marsh is getting set to play in his first career World Series. A few months ago, that didn't seem like a remote possibility.
In August, Marsh was traded by the Angels to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for top catching prospect Logan O'Hoppe. Marsh admitted to The Athletic that he was surprised by the trade, and still hasn't really taken it all in.
The fact that he's about to play in his first World Series game makes it that much crazier.
"Not a lot of much has sunk in, to be honest, just being over here,” Marsh told the Athletic. "It’s been going super, super fast. So after the year, I’ll kind of sit back, talk with some people, reflect on the good or bad times throughout the whole year."
As of now, there seems to be a lot more good than bad. Marsh was traded from an Angels team that was 43-59 and seemingly out of playoff position, to a Philadelphia team that was 55-47, and fighting for a Wild Card spot. The hitting coaches in Philly helped Marsh revamp his swing, and turned him into a starting center fielder on a playoff team. Little did Marsh know that his Philadelphia team would exceed all expectations, and find themselves in the World Series for the first time since 2009.
And Marsh, with his new swing, has had his fair share of big moments along the way, most notably this massive home run in their clinching Game 4 of the NLDS against the Braves.
The Phillies are taking on the Angels' division rival Houston Astros in the World Series, so if you didn't already have enough reason to root for the Phillies, Marsh and Noah Syndergaard, who was also traded by the Angels to the Phillies in a separate deadline deal, should give you even more.