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5 Observations: Harper, Stott Spark Crazy Comeback Win, Sweep of Angels

June 6, 2022
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Who knows if the Phillies go anywhere this season, but if they do, you can bet your ass Sunday’s win will go down as the turning point.

Phillies 9, Angels 7.

You had to see it to believe it.

Phillies reliever Corey Knebel began the ninth inning by issuing a leadoff walk to the light-hitting Kurt Suzuki. Rhys Hoskins allowed the go-ahead run to score with an ill-timed misplay.

It appeared the Phillies would again follow their usual pain-inducing script.

You know it well by now — a series of defensive miscues and wasted early scoring opportunities eventually set the stage for a miserable loss, one that also usually overshadows an electrifying late-game homer.

Cue the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme song.

Except this time, the Phillies deviated from the script.

“It’s big to come back,” said Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson following the win. “We tie it, we give up a run in the ninth, but the energy level was so high in the dugout, guys were like ‘we can do this, we can do this, we can do this,’ and they did.”

After Bryce Harper provided the first show of heroics in the eighth inning with a monster game-tying grand slam, Bryson Stott made sure his teammate’s latest clutch hit didn’t come in vain by putting a memorable charge into a shot of his own in the ninth.

(By the way, get ready to see this homer on the team’s ticket commercials for as long as Stott wears a Phillies uniform.)

His walk-off three-run home run provided an emphatic exclamation point on what has to be the Phillies’ best regular season win in years.

An inning earlier, Harper stepped into the batter’s box with two down and his team facing a 6-2 deficit.

After working the count full against Angels reliever Raisel Iglesias, many of the 34,801 in attendance at Citizens Bark Park roared as they came to their feet.

It was a unique moment of fevered anticipation, one that hasn’t often been felt at the park in recent years. The importance of the moment wasn’t too big for Harper, who seized it by blasting a game-tying grand slam into the second deck.

While it wasn’t a game-winner, nor was it of the walk-off variety, like his grand slam against the Cubs back in 2019, this felt like his signature moment in a Phillies uniform.

Prior to his at-bat, the Phillies were 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position. They were on the verge of leaving 13 total runners on base. It looked like the latest example of the same old inconsistent Phillies offense flatlining after a couple big nights, and he didn’t let it happen.

Maybe some recency bias comes into play, but given the Phillies’ current situation, expectations, and desperate need to stack wins, it’s definitely on the short list.

First, the Radio Calls

You’re here because you love, like, or tolerate the Phillies. This was a fun win and a big one, too, so you should soak it in a little bit.

Tom McCarthy’s calls are embedded in the tweets above, so now let’s check out how Scott Franzke played it.

Predictably, he nails both calls. With Larry Andersen chucking in disbelief, there’s some serious 2008-2009 energy in play here.

First, Harper’s:

Now, Stott’s:

Bryson Stott Arrives

The start of Stott’s rookie season couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start. He began the recent Giants series 8-for-70 with just one extra-base hit. Hitting .114 with a .302 OPS, it appeared Stott was headed for a demotion upon the return of Didi Gregorius from a knee injury.

That’s not going to happen. Injuries have changed the roster dynamics, but so has his recent performance.

Over his last five games, Stott is 6-for-18 with three extra-base hits.

“It takes awhile sometimes for guys to get comfortable when they get here, and it looks like he’s getting comfortable, that’s for sure,” Thomson said of Stott.

Harper echoed that sentiment after the win.

It’s Go Time

It’s tough for a team with legitimate playoff aspirations to fall eight games under .500 and then climb back into contention, but the third wild card spot will undoubtedly help.

Still, the Phillies will need rip off a few sustained runs of winning baseball if they want to truly climb back into this thing.

Somehow, the Phillies overcame two circus-like losses and the firing of their manager at the start of this homestand to rip off four straight and finish it with a winning record. A great starting point, no doubt, but now they must hit the gas pedal as they arrive at a favorable turn of the schedule.

Dave Dombrowksi said Friday he still believes the Phillies are a playoff team. That’s all fine and well, but I suggest they set some short-term goals. The first should be sniffing a .500 record by July 4.

I know it doesn’t feel like I’m aiming for the stars here, but it’s actually an aggressive goal. At four games under .500, the Phillies have 23 games remaining prior to the holiday, meaning they will need to go 14-9 to eclipse .500.

To do this, they first need to stay afloat in Milwaukee this week. The Phillies will play three games against the NL Central-leading Brewers, a good team, but one that has lost five of its last six games.

If the Phillies can manage to tread water in Wisconsin, they will then have an opportunity to make a move during a 13-game stretch against the Diamondbacks, Marlins, Nationals, and Rangers — four teams that hold a combined .439 winning percentage.

As we know, the Phillies can’t take any team for granted, especially after last season when they were simply brutal against a number of baseball’s worst teams.

Either way, if you’re watching this with a postseason run in mind, ripping off wins during favorable stretches will be necessary.

Right-Hand Man?

Surprisingly, Odúbel Herrera is hitting .364 (8-for-22) against left-handed pitching this season. A mark bolstered by a small sample size, sure, but it’s a decent mark no less.

Some expected regression came in the early going Sunday when he went 0-2, including an awkward whiff to finish off an ugly fourth-inning strikeout.

Since taking over Friday afternoon, Thomson has talked numerous times about the importance of the energy brought by young players like Nick Maton, Mickey Moniak, and Stott.

I can go for that, at least to an extent. Energy and vibes are great, but so is production. Thomson reiterated this same idea during his postgame press conference.

“It’s good to bring energy, but it’s also good to bring performance, too, and they’re doing that, so that’s huge,” he said.

With Jean Segura out 10-12 weeks, Maton on the injured list, and Johan Camargo exiting Sunday’s game with an apparent knee injury, Stott will absolutely remain on the field.

The center field picture is less clear.

We’ll see what happens between Moniak and Herrera. Either way, the current combination is an imperfect one.

The Phillies could use a right-handed platoon/bench option added to the mix, so it’s worth monitoring the progress of Matt Vierling.

He opened the season going 8-for-47 (.170 BA) in 23 games at the major league level and struggled at Lehigh Valley following his demotion, but June has brought different results.

In four games this month, Vierling is 8-for-16 with two doubles, a triple, and a homer.

Just something to keep an eye on.

J.T. Realmuto Continues Slow Climb Back

To date, 2022 hasn’t been J.T. Realmuto’s best season, but he’s rebounding after a rough start.

Despite an 0-for-5 day at the plate in the series finale with the Angels, he has lifted his OPS exactly 100 points from a brutal .613 on May 22 to a respectable .713.

He has also sharpened his defense lately. During the third inning, Realmuto threw out Tyler Wade to record his major league-leading 10th caught stealing.

His +3 defensive runs saved is good for second among qualified catchers and sixth among those who have caught at least 180 innings this season.

Is he currently the best catcher in baseball? That’s debatable, but he has quieted some mounting concerns about his game totally falling off a cliff.

It’s All Good, But It’s Not All Good

Consider this bonus content. For seven innings Sunday, it appeared the Phillies were going to lose. Naturally, I had some critiques, and this one still stands up.

Despite a rare series sweep, one inconvenient reality emerged Sunday. Thomson isn’t a cure-all for the Phillies’ flaws.

The Phillies’ poor defense wasn’t on display during the new manager’s first two games in which his team pounded the slumping Angels by a combined 17-2 margin, but it showed up at some unfortunate times during the series finale.

Here’s the Hoskins play referenced above. It wasn’t scored an error, but as the tweet suggests, he needs to make this play.

The Phillies also didn’t help struggling starting pitcher Kyle Gibson during the Angels’ five-run fourth inning outburst.

Down 2-0 with runners at the corners, Gibson induced a weak grounder to third baseman Alec Bohm, but Bohm briefly flinched as his eyes drifted to second base. His hesitation gave Angels right fielder Jo Adell enough time to beat the throw to first.

Three batters later, Hoskins made a high throw on an easy force play at second base.

With five across and only one out recorded, Gibson’s day was over.

In the eighth inning, a Stott error led to an Angels’ unearned run that extended the Phillies’ deficit.

The Phillies know they possess limited defensive range, but the coaching staff and players always talk about needing to focus on making the routine plays.

I agree.

If they want wins like the one they had Sunday to mean something come September, they need to start making such plays.

The post 5 Observations: Harper, Stott Spark Crazy Comeback Win, Sweep of Angels appeared first on Crossing Broad.

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