MIAMI -- The Philadelphia Phillies put All-Star third baseman Alex Bohm on the 10-day injured list Friday because of a left hand strain.
Bohm hurt his hand while taking a swing in the Phillies' game against the Atlanta Braves on Aug. 29. He remained with the club, hoping for a quick recovery. But Bohm didn't heal sufficiently, forcing the Phillies to remove him from the active roster.
"It was up to them as long as they wanted to be without an extra man on the bench. I don't want to be hurting everybody not being able to play," Bohm said Friday. "We're light a man on the bench and God forbid something crazy happens and we're out of guys."
Bohm worked on defensive drills and took dry swings as recently as Thursday, when the Phillies began a four-game series in Miami against the Marlins. With Bohm unable to progress to hitting a baseball, it was a telling sign he couldn't remain with the club.
"It's pretty useless at that point until I can hit," Bohm said. "It kind of got to a point where I wasn't able to swing."
Bohm said he experienced similar discomfort in 2021 and he was forced to sit out 16 days. He compares the pain to having his hand struck by a hammer.
"We'll just do a lot of stuff to strengthen it and do what we can without pain," Bohm said. "Let it kind of rest and heal and be ready when it's ready."
Before his injury, the 28-year-old Bohm was having a breakout season helping the Phillies open an eight-game lead in the NL East entering Friday. Bohm is hitting .290 and his 89 RBIs tie him with teammate Kyle Schwarber for fifth in the National League. Bohm is tied with Boston's Jarren Duran for the major league lead with 44 doubles entering play Friday. Bohm was voted as the NL starting third baseman in this year's All-Star Game.
"We want to make sure we're taking our time and not rush him back," Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. "It just wasn't progressing as quickly as we thought. We'll do the right thing and make sure he's good to go."
The Phillies recalled infielder Buddy Kennedy from Triple-A Lehigh Valley for Bohm's spot on the roster. The move is retroactive to Tuesday.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.