Phillies 2026 News and Discussion

[BaseballCat]

I don’t think they are unhappy with him. Started off hot, but cooled. Sat against a lefty. Marsh has sucked against lefties, but has been one of our best hitters this short season. I’m not going to read much into this yet. I hope they brush off this loss, but the bats need to get going

[zambonir]

I mean, not really unhappy, but three games is a bit soon to need a reset. The injury to DeGrom kind of put a bump in all their plans. But this highlights the flawed make-up of the bench and the loss of Rojas, even if he wasn't a sure thing. They need a RHB back-up CF, whether to face lefty starters or to give the manager more options against relievers. A bench with zero true OFs is also problem. Moore had the leverage of his opt-out but my guess is he gives way to De La Cruz or a waiver pick-up pretty quick. Or Kemp (who has options) does. Still doesn't fix the CF thing per se but it's something.

[BaseballCat]

Agreed, the bench is not ideal, but there are not a lot of great options. Let's hope they jell soon.

[LoneStarPhan]

Marsh is hot but it was this game that really helps him, getting 2 hits and a walk. Before tonight, both Marsh and Crawford had 3 hits in 9 at bats and one walk. Not like Marsh was hot and Crawford was not, although Marsh does have more power. I really hate starting this not playing against LH pitchers for Crawford this soon into the season. He needs to start regularly regardless of who is pitching for several weeks before messing with him. I hope this is only a day off, but I'm afraid the manager is going to mess up a good prospect. I have seen this too often.

But it is a long season and all regulars need occasional off days and the bench players do need some playing time. I remain optimistic in spite of the now 3 game losing streak after an opening day win.

[zambonir]

Crawford is a bit of a Catch-22. There are questions about him as a hitter. There are questions about him as a CF. But the only way to answer them are to play him. If the sole priority is winning games, you platoon him with a RHB CF and delay answering those questions. But this is the path they chose. It's too bad Bader priced himself out of being in a rotation, because that is probably who he is (he's hitting .100 so far for the 0-3 Giants). And it's too bad about Rojas as well.

[BaseballCat]

I think they will play Crawford more regardless of who is pitching, but we will see. He is not going to play as regular as the top 3, but he may get one day off per week. If it is more than that he may be better served at LV. I currently don't read a lot into him sitting today. It is good to see the game at all angles in the majors, that includes the bench. If he plays like he has, he will play.

[andyb]

They had 2 games in a row against lefties. They just are giving Crawford an occasional rest. Nothing more than that. They still consider Marsh a better overall hitter.

I am more worried about the heart of the lineup (Harper, Turner, Schwarber) than marginal lineup decisions at the back.

[zambonir]

Three games in a row, even, with the opener replacing DeGrom. But I don't think a 22 year-old needs a "rest" after three games. No, it's not a big deal in and of itself, but having Marsh be the only guy who can play CF if Crawford needs a day off still seems sub-optimal (especially when you add in Kemp's bumpy LF defense). And how does Moore even get into a game? Garcia days off I guess.

As far as the heart of the line-up, if Schwarber and Harper can't hit LHP as well as they have in the past, and you're playing Marsh, that's a problem too. Not actually worried, they aren't going to hit .150 (or worse) forever. Probably more worried that Bohm and Garcia won't do enough to balance out the line-up.

I also don't have a problem with building an offense around home runs, but then you need guys to actually hit home runs.

[andyb]

but having Marsh be the only guy who can play CF if Crawford needs a day off still seems sub-optimal (especially when you add in Kemp's bumpy LF defense). And how does Moore even get into a game? Garcia days off I guess.

Clearly Rojas would have had a better role as a 5th OF/pinch runner. Moore really only plays because of injury since Kemp has the same profile but hits better. And Sosa has a similar profile of right-handed infield role and does most things better. In the larger scheme Moore does not matter. Crawford will probably play most of the time against lefties. He just needs to prove he can hit better than Marsh against them.

Rob's worst managerial moment of the year was NOT changing the lineup against the replacement starter. I guess the Phillies thought he'd only go once around the lineup but he was stretched out to compete for their 5th starter job. So we started 5 lefty bats against a LHP. Dumb and dumber right there. I think we also got complacent on Schwarber and Harper hitting lefties as good as righties where there is probably a short term small sample in place. We still should not rest either against lefties regularly, but we also should expect some platoon differential.

Starting Marchan last night was a bit weird but I assume they just want JT with Painter and even with Sanchez (where that start would have been logical for Marchan as the day game after a night game).

Bats need to wake up tonight. LH reliever opener plus Zack Littell who has only had a couple weeks of Spring Training.

[zambonir]

I would settle for Gavin Floyd. 15.9 WAR in his five peak years is not far off from Ranger. He just didn't have it at all in his 30s. But it's still a lot harder to be Gavin Floyd than Mark Appel or Vince Velasquez.

(Yeah, it's Marcus Hayes)

If Andrew Painter is the next Cole Hamels, Phillies will be overjoyed | Marcus...

[zambonir]

Crawford will probably play most of the time against lefties. He just needs to prove he can hit better than Marsh against them.

I don't know that he can. Heck, I don't know if Rojas can! But in theory either of them give you better CF defense.

I understand why you don't change the line-up two hours before when you've already told guys they were going to play the night before (and they've prepared accordingly). But when there's a good reason like that, you do it. And if they didn't understand how long the opener could go that's an own goal.

[andyb]

And if they didn't understand how long the opener could go that's an own goal.

Tonight the opener is a 1-inning reliever so the situation is different. We also need Turner and Bohm to have good first inning at bats. When we see all these lefties it is on those guys to perform much more than the platoon guys like Kemp and Sosa.

[jimbomill]

Three games in a row, even, with the opener replacing DeGrom. But I don't think a 22 year-old needs a "rest" after three games.

To me, Harper seems to be the one needing a rest against lefties.

[andyb]

To me, Harper seems to be the one needing a rest against lefties.

I have wondered if the WBC messes up hitters more than pitchers because in the first round the hitters are often facing pitchers with no shot at MLB. Dante Nori had great stats but he hit 2 HRs off of Brazilian pitchers I believe that would not be in the lowest rung of the minors (think 85 mph fastballs).

Turner had a bad start last year after a hot WBC as I recall. Harper is also a routine guy and the WBC disrupts that.

[Callison]

Should you watch today's game or go for some dental surgery? Think carefully!

[zambonir]

Wasn't last year per se, but Turner's WBC slump was the same one where the fans began cheering him right? (They even made that movie about it).

I worry more about Harper overall. Think Chase Utley - still a really good player putting up 3 or 4 WAR at 34 and 35, but he had to do a lot just to be pain-free and mobile. With Chase it was legs, with Bryce it's his back (but obviously has had wrist and elbow issues too). And more of Chase's WAR came from defense.

[Philsmania]

Yes, in the 2023 WBC, people were calling Turner "Captain America" with all the towering majestic homers he launched. Then he endured a slump which lasted beyond the ASB. As was the case with guys who go cold after winning the HR Derby, there were some who wondered if the success in the tournament led to some bad habits although, in reality, he's always had a looping swing. That slump led to "The Ovation".

[Philsmania]

Should you watch today's game or go for some dental surgery? Think carefully!

Painter's ML debut is something worth watching. We hope.

[zambonir]

My dentist isn't open after 6pm

[flyers19rw]

This start of the season is not really a sample size. It’s a carry over from last season through spring training. There is something off with the roster and its management. My feeling is there is a sense of entitlement among some players based upon past performances which they are unfortunately unable to replicate any longer.
A shake up is long overdue. I don’t believe that Thomson is capable of doing what needs to be done to motivate the players. It would be difficult for Dombrowski to move around some of the players but it might have to happen. All that I know is that John Middleton isn’t getting proper return on his investment.