Our Harbinger of Doom

 

Statistically, Nick Castellanos's season may not be that impressive. He's only got a 0.3 WAR. To put that into perspective, Johan Rojas, who every Philly fan yells at for not being a great hitter yet, has a 0.8 WAR. Castellanos's defensive skills still aren't great, save for the occasional great catch, and his offensive ability is spotty at best.

But the intriguing thing about Castellanos is that he chooses the wildest moments to turn on. If Nick Castellanos hits a home run, odds are a national calamity has occurred. Ever since impeding on Thom Brenneman's apology, Casty has picked the most inopportune moments to go yard. 9/11? Home run. The queen's died? Home run. Mass casualty? Home run. And the times there isn't a tragedy attached to a Casty homer, he adds one, like the time he walked off for Cincinnati, and then we find out that it was because a fan behind home plate yelled 'pretend it's Manfred's face'. 

[By the way, every time I watch that clip, I laugh at the pause Jim Day gives, and the immediate frantic pivot away from it. Hysterical.]

Nick Castellanos has embraced his position as the harbinger of doom when it comes to hitting for power, and I think he's embraced the Philly fans as well. Because he knows he's not gonna be as accurate as someone like Bryce Harper, or even Kyle Schwarber, but he's gonna get it done in a pinch and it's gonna hit hard. Both Casty and his son have been practically canonized by the fans, and even if he pisses us off sometimes he still comes through when we truly need him. What's very funny, though, is that Castellanos has only had two seasons with an average below .250, and this is one of them. The other was the 2020 season. But even in a diminished season, Castellanos still has 84 RBIs and 22 homers. That's not bad. He's not chasing 40 like Schwarber, but he can still be relied upon. 

The Phillies are looking pretty good heading into a probable bye scenario. They still have issues with that fifth starter position, and hope that Kolby Allard will do the trick for the last week or so of the season. Ultimately, though, Wheeler, Nola, Sanchez and Suarez will be fine to coast off of during the postseason. Harper's getting his momentum back, Schwarber's still hot, Bohm's going for a 100 RBI year, Clemens and Wilson are excellent bench pieces, and Estevez works in the ninth. As a division leader, there's a chance this could all fall apart, but this team feels better built than its predecessors, and it truly could get something done this year.

Coming Tonight: Another member of the best bullpen in baseball, without a doubt.