Phillies Stock Report: The Bats are on a Different Plane

The Phillies were one out from a four-game sweep of the Dodgers on the road before it slipped through their fingers. Nevertheless, they finished what looked to be a dreaded road trip 5-2 and their offense came alive in its second half. Philadelphia scored 33 runs in four games against the Dodgers, which was more than the best rotation in the league had allowed at home prior to that point. Naturally, the Phillies were promptly shut out in their first game after returning home. 

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Bryce Harper

To say that Harper is on fire would be a massive understatement. The reigning MVP is hitting .516 over his last eight games with an other-worldly 1.652 OPS. He has four home runs and six doubles over that same span, putting him as the Major League leader in extra-base hits with 24. Harper was named the N.L. player of the week for the seventh time in his career and first time as a member of the Phillies. However, he has not played since Saturday due to soreness from an injection in his injured elbow. With the timeline for Harper to begin throwing again moving back to six weeks, it is looking increasingly likely he will be the permanent designated hitter for the rest of 2022.

Jean Segura

Segura had a fantastic road trip. He’s hitting .385 over the last seven games and .417 in the month of May. His play at second base has continued to stand out, as he’s already at 5 defensive runs saved above average. The second baseman is almost halfway to his HR total from all of last year, as he has 6 compared to 14 last season. Segura is at his best when he’s making contact and spraying the ball to all fields and that’s exactly what he’s done so far in the month of May.

Zach Eflin

Eflin returned from the COVID list and turned out a very good outing against the Padres on Tuesday. The righty went 6 innings while allowing one run on 5 hits with 5 strikeouts and no walks. His defense let him down routinely in this game, with an error from Bryson Stott allowing the only run charged against Eflin to score. Despite missing time, Eflin has the best WAR among Phillies starting pitchers at 1.0. His expected ERA of 2.30 and FIP of 2.58 are also the lowest among Phillies starters. 

Aaron Nola

Nola has been much closer to what’s expected of him as of late. In his last six starts, Nola owns a 2.87 ERA and a WHIP of just 0.98. He’s lasted at least six innings in four of those starts and pitched seven innings in three of them. However, the Phillies are 0-6 in those starts. Nola has been the victim of run support (3.88) and the Phillies bullpen blowing games when he leaves with a lead. 

The Phillies Offense (In L.A.)

33 runs. .300 average. 20 extra base hits. 8 home runs. Very good!

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The Phillies Offense (home vs. Padres)

0 runs. .156 average. 0 extra base hits. 0 home runs. Very not good!

J.T. Realmuto

Realmuto has largely flown under the radar this season with the acquisitions of Schwarber and Castellanos, but he’s been off to a disappointing start. On the season, Realmuto is hitting .237 with a paltry .641 OPS that includes a .339 slugging percentage. Those numbers are even worse in the month of May, as he’s hitting .186 with an OPS of .558. Realmuto has just 7 extra base hits on the season and just 7 RBIs despite hitting fifth for the majority of his games played so far and having a .273 average with RISP. The Phillies offense no longer requires Realmuto to be its second or even third best hitter, but it does require him to be better than he has been. 

Jeurys Familia

Familia has frankly been a disaster so far this season. He’s allowed 6 earned runs in 12.2 IP (4.36 ERA) and has a BB/9 of 4.26. In addition to the high number of walks, he has allowed large amounts of hard contact with a hard-hit rate among the worst in the league and an expected slugging percentage of .429. Familia has an opposing line of .286/.348/.619 in high leverage situations and an opposing OPS of 1.054 with runners on. In fact, Familia has allowed 9 runs in 10 appearances when he enters the game with a lead. 

Odubel Herrera

Herrera is hitting .188 with an OPS of .485 in five games since being given the majority of starts after Matt Vierling was sent to Triple A. He came up with the bases loaded against the Dodgers in a key spot in the game where the Phillies needed to add on. Herrera promptly swung at a pitch that went between his legs before hitting a weak ground ball to first for the final out of an inning. Roman Quinn hasn’t presented himself as an alternative, but Herrera’s non-existent approach and tendency to chase pitches way outside of the zone continue to kill the Phillies. 

Brad Hand

Hand’s ERA of 1.80 in 15 games is a little misleading. He’s allowed 6 of 14 inherited runners to score and has a walk percentage of 16.7%. In addition to his 8 walks in 10 innings, Hand has also hit three batters. Like Familia, Hand is allowing a large amount of baserunners and not finding ways to work himself out of those jams. Opponents have a .286/.485/.333 line against Hand with runners on base. All three of his hit batsmen have come when there were runners in scoring position.