Flailing Phillies still able to put on The Alec Bohm Show
The stumbling Phillies still have Alec Bohm to keep an eye on as the season rushes to a conclusion.
As September dragged on for the Philadelphia Phillies, most of their fans likely wondered, “What next?” That is, beyond the final crash and burn, firing GM Matt Klentak, and rebuilding the bullpen. Only Alec Bohm and Bryce Harper seemed ready to play.
The morning of Sept. 18 the team had lost eight of their last 11, largely because of injuries to starters or everyday position players – Jean Segura became the latest after being hit by a pitch – and they were holding onto the eighth seed in the postseason standings by the fingernails of one hand.
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No one expected that grip to hold.
On Sept. 17 the Phillies had hit three first-inning homers in a row, Bryce Harper hit two overall, and they still lost. Maybe they should have made that call three days earlier to Peter Popoff for some of his miracle spring water.
Then, on the 18th, in a maddening change from the team’s regular September course for the past three years, the Phillies took two games from Toronto to move to 26-25. But their bullpen was still their bullpen. They had made a firm effort to blow a lead in the second game but failed.
In September, if the Phillies take two steps forward, three steps back are the regular expectation, but some fans crossed their fingers. The rest held this view: Except to formally get down on their pinstriped knees with a renewal contract for J.T. Realmuto, there seemed little reason not to mothball Phillies gear for the winter.
Well, maybe there was one reason, but one with only slightly better odds than the team holding onto a Wild Card.
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For the last nine games, Phillies fans would have Alec Bohm to watch make a run at the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
I see people already shaking their heads, and I don’t blame them.
As of Sept. 15, Sportsbettingdime.com had Bohm (+400) trailing Jake Cronenworth (-110) and Sixto Sanchez (+150) badly as a betting proposition to win the NL ROY, but as we’ll see, that may have been a flawed evaluation of these players. (Or maybe the exact day to have put a few bucks on Bohm.)
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Here’s why: Before play Sept. 18, the slash lines for Cronenworth and Bohm were .310/.369/.531 and .317/.368/.496, respectively. Cronenworth had played 11 more games than Bohm, 45 to 34, and statistics say he is the better fielder. Both infielders had four home runs. Sanchez had played in five games but had compiled impressive figures – a 3-1 record, 1.69 ERA, and 0.906 WHIP.
However, as Phillies broadcaster Tom McCarthy noted before the Phillies doubleheader against the Blue Buffaloes, for the month of September, Bohm was hitting .347.
On the 17th, for example, Bohm had homered and doubled. In the two games against Toronto, he was 3-for-6 and collected his 21st RBI, one more than Cronenworth after play on the 18th. Bohm’s average was .326. Cronenworth raised his BA to .311 in a Padres win.
I don’t know about you, but I’m not seeing huge differences between the guys SBD called numbers one and two and the guy they said is number three.
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Alec Bohm should catch Sanchez; he may not in fact catch Cronenworth. But he has this advantage over his team in their season-ending pushes: Bohm doesn’t have to depend on the Phillies bullpen.