It feels like I say this before every recap, but it was another relatively disappointing series for the Philadelphia Phillies. They lost 2 out of 3, and one of the games their only runs were off a wild pitch early in the game. The flaws from this team are showing even more and more, and they are getting more predictable to see. We'll get into that and more in today's Phillies recap.
Rhys Hoskins Dilema
What an absolutely crazy ending to a game that the Phillies deserved to lose. After a demoralizing 8th inning, the Phillies found themselves in a 8-4 hole with 3 outs left. After a few hits, a RBI triple from Roman Quinn(what?), there were runners on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs with Rhys Hoskins at the plate. With many fans having left the building, Rhys crushed a ball to deep left and it was called a game tying 3 run HR. But after review, it was ruled that the homer did not clear the fence and Rhys would have to go to 2nd. Bryce Harper was not 100% and struck out, and the game was over. Now, I know many Phillies fans were outraged about this decision. But, after watching the replays, the umpires made the right call. It was so incredibly close, but the ball hit the top of the fence and did not clear the fence. It doesn't make any sense why they do not have a camera from the right field pole, but ether way the right call was made. I understand the frustration, but remember the Phillies did not deserve to win that game at all.
Andrew McCutchen
What is going on with McCutchen? The Phillies outfielder was not great last season, but was not this horrible ether. Added onto his hitting struggles, McCutchen has shockingly looked really awful in the field as well. He is making simple mistakes, like balls going right over his head or through his legs. I don't see how you can continue to play him in the field when he is not contributing at all on ether end of the game. The problem is, what other options do you really have? You could throw Matt Joyce there, who isn't batting much better if at all. Brad Miller might be able to do a job there, but he is not an everyday starter. Like I've said continually, the Phillies are going to need to look for options elsewhere as soon as possible. Continuing to throw these outfielders in the lineup next to Bryce Harper is not working and will not start working anytime soon.
Injuries
Seems like a theme with Philly Sports, huh? Not too far into the season, the Phillies lineup has experienced many blows due to injury. Jean Segura has been out for almost 2 weeks now, but has been overshadowed by the incredible play from Nick Maton. After being drilled by a 97 MPH fastball and missing a few games, Bryce Harper now has hand soreness and is already out for tonight's game vs. Milwaukee. JT Realmuto has had occasional injuries and missed a few games earlier this week. Didi Gregorius missed games after being hit the pitch after Harper was hit. This doesn't even include all the bullpen injuries, including Archie Bradley and Jose Alvarado(who is now suspended for two games). There is nothing the Phillies can really do about this, but it causes some ugly lineups like the one tonight.
Nick Maton?
It feels like just weeks ago, half the fanbase did not even know who Nick Maton was when he made his debut. I left out a section for him last time, but he will get his dues right now: the dude is straight raking. Maton is batting .348 with 16 hits, 1 RBI(misleading) and 5 XBH's. With all the questions about Segura, it has been great to not have to worry about the 2nd base position. I really hope they move him to center field when Segura comes back, which seems like it may be sooner than we thought. Let's hope this hot streak can continue in the weeks to come.
What's Next?
The Phillies will continue this homestand with a 4 game set against the red-hot Milwaukee Brewers. If you would like to read more about the series, check out the series preview from Samuel Goldberg posted earlier today.
PS- No I did not mention the umpires much in this article, but they were absolutely horrible this series.