Inside The Phillies

Will Struggles of Phillies' Stars End After Their Jackie Robinson Day Performances?

After producing for the team on Tuesday, perhaps this is the moment that turns things around for the two struggling Philadelphia Phillies stars.
May 24, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Alec Bohm (28) celebrates with center fielder Brandon Marsh (16) after hitting a walk off RBI single in the tenth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park
May 24, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Alec Bohm (28) celebrates with center fielder Brandon Marsh (16) after hitting a walk off RBI single in the tenth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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The Philadelphia Phillies won on Jackie Robinson Day.

Needing a win after losing two straight and four out of their last five, the Phillies finally saw their offense come to life with six runs against the San Francisco Giants that was one less than they had scored over their last five contests combined.

It was important for them to get their bats going, and perhaps it was even more important for two of their struggling stars who contributed in a major way on Tuesday.

Both Alec Bohm and Brandon Marsh -- batting eighth and ninth in the order because of their issues at the plate -- had an RBI.

Marsh's came in the second inning on a sacrifice fly.

After J.T. Realmuto homered, Max Kepler hit a double right after that, putting a runner in scoring position with an opportunity for the Phillies to potentially have a big inning. That didn't quite happen, but when Kepler got to third with one out, Marsh was able to score him by hitting a deep fly ball to right field.

Bohm's came in a more high-leverage situation.

With the Giants coming back to take a 3-2 lead, Philadelphia put together some solid at-bats with back-to-back singles following Bryce Harper's leadoff fly out to put runners on first and second with one out.

Realmuto singled home Kyle Schwarber to tie things up, but after Kepler lined out, the ice-cold third baseman stepped up to the plate with a chance to give his team the lead once again.

He did just that with an RBI single, putting the Phillies ahead for the rest of the contest.

Those are the types of plays that can be confidence builders, something both Bohm and Marsh desperately need right now with the issues they are having in the batter's box.

The duo didn't have final stat lines to suggest a turnaround is coming -- Bohm finished 1-for-4 and Marsh 0-for-3 -- but sometimes all that is needed to get out of a slump is one moment.

Rob Thomson has talked about Marsh trying to do too much, and in the second inning, he simplified things and produced a run. Bohm, after hitting the ball hard all season, was finally able to come through in an important spot.

Is that enough to say they their slump is going to be over?

No, but it was a start.

Philadelphia needs this duo to perform if they are going to be true World Series contenders, and while it hasn't been a good start to the season for either of them, there is a long way to go this year before the calendar flips to October.

Maybe what they did on Tuesday is what will get them going in the right direction.

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Brad Wakai
BRAD WAKAI

Brad Wakai graduated from Penn State University with a degree in Journalism. While an undergrad, he did work at the student radio station covering different Penn State athletic programs like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and other sports. Brad currently is the Lead Contributor for Nittany Lions Wire of Gannett Media where he continues to cover Penn State athletics. He is also a contributor at FanSided, writing about the Philadelphia 76ers for The Sixers Sense. Brad is the host of the sports podcast I Said What I Said, discussing topics across the NFL, College Football, the NBA and other sports. You can follow him on Twitter: @bwakai