Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia Phillies Left With Few Options to Turn Season Around
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Nothing is guaranteed in sports.
After coming within two victories of a World Series title, the Philadelphia Phillies arrived at spring training with high hopes of another deep postseason run.
Right now, they’re just hoping to get back to .500 before even pondering the playoffs.
The Phillies began a series Thursday on the road against the Washington Nationals.
They entered the series at 25-31.
Last season, the Phillies began 22-29 and went 65-46 before escaping past the St. Louis Cardinals in the Wild Card round. The Phillies then defeated the Atlanta Braves in the National League Division Series and upended the San Diego Padres in the National League Championship Series.
The Houston Astros proved to be the better team in the World Series though the Phillies were a formidable opponent.
A litany of injuries at key positions and a lack of fundamental baseball has cost the Phillies through the first 56 games.
Rhys Hoskins is lost for the season with a torn ACL. Darick Hall is also sidelined. Andrew Painter, Jose Alvarado and Nick Nelson are all out. Ranger Suarez had been injured.
Trea Turner is struggling in the first season of an 11-year, $300 million deal. Kyle Schwarber began the night hitting .160.
Philadelphia is committing errors and mental mistakes far too often.
The recipe has been a rough start.
“I think if you’d look in the clubhouse you’d see the urgency,” Schwarber told reporters. “We’ve got to keep going. No one is feeling sorry for us.”
Nope.
Only the Phillies can turn this season around.
The popular rant on social media is to blame manager Rob Thomson. The players need to play better. Simple. This is a veteran team for the most part.
If they don’t succeed in this series against the Nationals, more questions will linger.
It's time to start a winning streak.
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