Going for Three

 

When a team goes from a low wild card seed to an NLCS once, it's charming. Twice it's concerning. And now here we are, the Phillies in 2024. They...can't seriously be thinking of making as third NLCS, right? The Dodgers and Braves look insane. There's no way....right?

I think that's what the Phillies want you to think. Because of first round playoff byes, the big teams don't really win much anymore, save the Astros I suppose. Having a big regular season is no longer a guarantee of a championship, and as much as I loathe this development and wish it was different, the Phillies have, at the very least, figured out the way of hacking the system. They don't need to finish in first, as long as they get hot in September and ride the momentum as long as they can, they'll be fine. That's how people win rings now, September momentum. 

So when it came out recently that both Taijuan Walker and Orion Kerkering, two big parts of their 2023 playoff squad, would begin the year on the IL, it must not have been especially worrying. Will they be back in September? Most likely. So it's not a big deal. It also means that the Phillies will be going with an Opening Day rotation of Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Ranger Suarez, Cristopher Sanchez and Spencer Turnbull, and with Spencer Turnbull looking as good as he has this spring, that's not at all a downgrade for a fifth starting position. 

I also want to address the fact that recently, MLB's twitter account unveiled a list of the top bullpens in the major leagues, and right at the top, right at #1, the Philadelphia Phillies. This still feels odd to me. In the mid-2010s we were notorious for our terrible bullpens. In a lot of cases they cost us playoff spots. Years of people like Mark Leiter Jr. and Jeanmar Gomez and Hector Neris floundering in big moments, it was ghastly to sit through. And now the Phillies have a bullpen consisting of Jose Alvarado, Gregory Soto, Matt Strahm, Jeff Hoffman, Seranthony Dominguez, Connor Brogdon and Yunior Marte, to name...most of them. And that is just so much better. So I'm not even worried about losing Kerkering for a while. That's still a really sturdy bunch.

There are obviously still concerns about Bryce Harper's back, or Kyle Schwarber's average, but the versatility of this team still has me optimistic. Johan Rojas apparently bulked up during the offseason, so the goal is for him to not only excel as a defensive outfielder but give us contact numbers as well. I'd really like him to do well for us, he seems like a fun homegrown piece. Whit Merrifield is another fun piece for us because we can play him a number of places and he can still hit for average. Edmundo Sosa has also looked more well rounded this year, with some big power moments in camp. Just so many pieces of this team seem more intriguing this year, and could lead to a fun ride as they head to another playoff run [hopefully].

I want 2024 to be the season that establishes the Phillies as less of a fluke and more of a perennial great team. Hopefully they follow through with that.