NL East preview: 3. Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies finally edged their way into the postseason, perfecting a magical postseason run that earned them their first World Series trip since 2009. Philly refuses to back down to its competitive divisional counterparts, making more big splashes in free agency this offseason.
The Phillies finally have a franchise shortstop in Trea Turner, a position they’ve been lacking offensive production from for years. Trea Turner, along with JT Realmuto and Kyle Schwarber, are the most productive bats in a lineup that will be without Bryce Harper to start the season. Recovering from Tommy John, the two-time MVP hopes to return to the lineup sometime in late June. The Phillies will be without Rhys Hoskins for the season, with Hoskins suffering a torn ACL on Thursday. Hoskins was an electric player to watch in the postseason, tallying six home runs during the Phillies October run, with seemingly every homer coming in a clutch moment. This means Darick Hall will likely start at first on Opening Day, who has looked tremendous so far this spring. Hall leads the club with five homers and a .319 average in 47 at-bats this spring. With Jean Segura and Nick Maton departing, it looks as if Bryson Stott will start at second base again this season. After gaining valuable postseason experience, the 25-year-old will look to take another big step this season. Nick Castellanos was very disappointing last season. After coming off a spectacular 2021 campaign, Castellanos posted a below average offensive slash (93 wRC+) and hit .185 in the playoffs. Luckily Philly has a deep lineup to account for struggles and injuries, with Josh Harrison, Edmundo Sosa and Didi Gregorious all strong options on the bench.
The one-two punch of Aaron Nola and Zach Wheeler proved to be a deadly combo in the postseason. Possibly the best one-two punch in the league, both are looking to put up Cy Young numbers once again in 2023. Ranger Suarez will start the season on the IL, which means Taijuan Walker will take on the number three spot in the rotation to start the year. Walker earned a four year, $72 million deal in the offseason, which is a bit much for a guy who didn’t crack the top three in the Mets starting rotation last season. Regardless, it’s better to address the need rather than ignoring it. Bailey Falter will slide into the four spot, coming off a respectable 3.86 ERA over 84 innings of work last season. With Suarez out for an unknown period, Philadelphia will likely use their deep bullpen every fifth day instead of using a traditional starter. If Ranger Suarez can come back healthy, the Phillies will boast an elite top three that can carry them deep into the postseason again. However, there’s work to be done with the bottom half of this rotation, with the loss of Zach Eflin clearly causing depth issues.
After having a miserable bullpen for years on end, it might just be the strongest facet of the Phillies roster this season. The acquisition of lefty reliever Gregory Soto now gives Philadelphia two awesome lefty relievers. Meanwhile, Andrew Bellatti, Craig Kimbrel and Seranthony Dominguez are great right-handed options, with Dominguez looking to maintain closing duties after a dominant postseason.
While some are surprised at this prediction and will argue that the Phillies made it to the World Series last season, we have to remember this team wasn’t spectacular in the regular season. In fact, if the extra Wild Card spot wasn’t added last year the Phillies would not have made the playoffs. One thing is for sure; this team can certainly make some noise in October. It’s a proven playoff team with power bats. The one-two punch of Nola-Wheeler is one of the best in the MLB, and the deeper bullpen makes them even more dangerous. Be wary of this club come October!