Under the Radar: The Phillies Might Not Live Up to Expectations…and That’s Okay
As the days drag on and the sun gets hotter and hotter in the Delaware Valley, one thing persists: Phillies baseball.
Major League Baseball’s 162-game regular season schedule marches on without a care in the world about the weather, the monotony, or in this Sunday’s case, the quality of play.
The Phillies’ 7-6 comeback win over the New York Mets, putting them at three games over .500 and giving the Phils the series victory, could be attributed more to the Mets collectively choking on the increased humidity rather than the less-than-stellar play of the home team. In the bottom of the 6th inning, with the Phillies down 6-3 to the visiting Mets, it felt like the end was nigh.
The Phillies, who were playing their best baseball of the season just last week, were on the verge of giving up a second straight series to a division rival and losing any momentum they had left. Fans began to exit the stadium in droves–disgust hung thick in the afternoon air.
Suddenly, things started to change. Bryce Harper drew a walk. JT Realmuto singled to left. Bryson Stott drew a walk. Bases loaded. No outs. The scene on the field flickered like a mirage in the desert–at first, it didn’t seem real, but the longer you looked at it, the more real it became–run after run crossed the plate, each one more improbable than the next. The total damage? Four runs scored on three walks, two hit batters, one error, and just one hit across a 10-batter eighth inning.
Fluky? Yes.
Does it matter? Not one bit.
For a while, Sunday’s victory might not have been the prettiest of wins; it’s a game defined by what the Phillies did not do. The Phillies, unlike the Mets, didn’t underachieve. When the Mets coughed up a three-run lead, they didn’t play down to their competition. Instead, they put their foot on the gas and closed out the homestand with their heads held high.
At this point, you’ll take what you can get from this Phillies squad. The first three months of the season have been erratic, to say the least.
A four-game winning streak will quickly be followed by a losing streak of at equal length, with momentum being harder to catch than a mosquito in July. The flaws have been easier to point on than this team’s strengths: a lack of offensive production, a lack of depth in the starting rotation, a lack of depth in the bullpen, a lack of character, a lack of effort, the list goes on and on and on. That’s life with a $242 million payroll and a 2022 National League Champion ring. Perhaps the expectations for this team are higher than they can reach. The Phillies cannot control that.
What the Phillies can control–and have shown an ability to do so–is how they attack each game. Over the last few weeks, marked improvements have been made internally in the starting rotation–the Phillies now have a chance in seemingly every game they play. The bullpen, currently pockmarked with injuries, has been held up under closer Craig Kimbrel, who has not given up an earned run in his last seven appearances. Nick Castellanos is hitting .313 on the year. Trea Turner continues to trend in an upward direction, hitting .269 in June. Bryce Harper is on track to play first base after the All-Star Break.
All of this is to say that the Phillies might very well not live up to expectations. And that’s ok.
As we found out last year, they can still do plenty of damage while under the radar.
Photo: —
Discover more from Philadelphia Sports Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
