The Philadelphia Phillies have done something in 2024 that they may have never done before. I won’t take the time to research it but thinking about when the last time the Phils won 23 games this early in the season, or how many times in the team’s history, only serves to take away from their accomplishments.
After all, Philadelphia was 8-8 after 16 games. The bats turned to rubber. Lack of offense meant a lack of run support for a pitching staff hailed as one of the best in Major League Baseball: Aaron Hola, Zach Wheeler, Ranger Suarez, Spencer Turnbull, and Tajuan Walker. Turnbull was a free-agent acquisition in the offseason. Walker came to the Phillies from the New York Mets following the 2022 season.
Perhaps the ONLY reason the NL East first-place Phillies are 23-11 this season (the best record in the majors) is because Philadelphia is hitting the cover off the ball. On Saturday, a game that probably shouldn’t have been played due to heavy rain, the Phillies led 9-0 after two innings and won 14-3.
The biggest boost comes from the long ball. The Phils have hit 41 home runs, which is fifth in the league. Baltimore leads the MLB with 52 dingers. Philadelphia’s .255 team batting average is fourth in the majors, and they’ve hit 41 doubles, six triples, and drawn 129 walks.
Not too shabby.
But will it continue? Already, the Phillies have lost a key component in their lineup. Second baseman Trea Turner was lost for 10 days due to a left hamstring injury. Hopefully, the injury bug stays away. Otherwise, the scenario will most likely change and the team’s fortunes could take a turn. Turner leads the team in hits with 47. He is second on the team in batting with a .343 average.
A 162-game season is an eternity. A bad game here and there is what ends up costing teams a shot at the postseason. It’s not the games a team loses at the later stages of the season (late September). It’s the ones that got away in April, May and June that hurt the most – especially games they should have won.
The Phillies struggled against teams with losing records last season but still managed to win 90 games and then reached the NL Championship Series. But, unlike the previous season when the Phillies shocked the National League and went to the World Series, the Arizona Diamondbacks stung Philadelphia in a seven-game NLCS.
Could this be the season the Phillies rise to the top and win the World Series? Yes.
If the lineup continues to hit consistently, if the starting pitching rotation continues to pitch like Cy Young candidates, if no one hits a long-term slump and brings the rest of the team down. Hopefully, a psychological pep talk like the one given to the New York Knights in the movie The Natural. “Losing is a disease as contagious as the bubonic plague, infecting one, and infecting all. Ah, but curable.”
Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos are both in offensive ruts. Schwarber, known for hitting Schwar-bombs (home runs), has struck out 49 times, by far the worst on the team. He’s averaging .212. Castellanos is batting .183.
As a team, the Phillies have struck out 288 times, more than double the times they’ve walked.
The impressive thing about this year’s team is their amazing knack for getting timely hits and clutch defense. Alec Bohm is a tremendous third baseman, who leads the team in batting with a .364 average.
Fans are still waiting for Bryce Harper to show some offense. The first baseman has a .234 average (25 hits in 107 at bats).
Still, it seems that someone steps up in crucial situations to deliver a game-changing hit or a highlight reel defensive play (usually Bohm).
And, let’s face it, the Phillies don’t have the luxury of resting on their early-season laurels. That’s because the Atlanta Braves are hot on their heels with 20 wins as of the writing of this column. Plus, the Braves have played three less games and are 1.5 games out of first place.
So, what is the win ceiling for the Phillies in 2024? If things remain as they are for the final 128 games (wow, that’s a lot), Rob Thomson’s team easily could win 100 games. The last time that happened was 2010 when the Phillies won 102 games.
You know what Yogi Berra said. “It ain’t over til it’s over.”
