As Phillies Stay Afloat after First Few Series of Season, Some Phils Still Looking to Find Groove
Matt Slocum/AP Photo
It was a very interesting four-game series against the Giants. Some major flaws on the team were revealed in a pair of blowout losses, but in the end, the team managed an even split. Let’s take a look at what we saw.
Big Rebound Series for Alec Bohm
Alec Bohm has been under fire for his performance at the dish since just about Opening Day. With how terribly his season ended last year, there was a lot of pressure going into this season for Bohm, especially with Edmundo Sosa’s great performance and prospects rising up through the minor leagues.
Going into the series, Bohm was hitting an abysmal .150 at the plate and had been moved all the way down to the eighth spot in the Phillies batting order. Bohm was able to get one hit in each of the four games in the series and will ride the hitting streak into the team’s series against the Marlins. He got just his second double of the season in the first game of the series and got an RBI in games two and four.
There’s a lot of hope Bohm will be able to ride this momentum into the teams series against Miami, a team Alec has dominated in his career. He’s hitting a career .294 against the Marlins and they’re riding a three-game losing streak to go along with it.
Taijuan Walker is Back to Normal
The Taijuan Walker linsanity run is officially over. After 10.2 scoreless innings to start the season, Taijuan got shelled for six runs (four earned) in the second inning of the opening game of the series. It’s obviously more of what were used to from Taijaun, but hopefully he’ll be able to return to form in his next appearance.
The bullpen was also very shaky in this series. Joe Ross gave up four earned in the Phillies 11-4 loss on Wednesday. With the losses of Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez there has been an issue finding reliable arms. Jose Ruiz and Tanner Banks each gave up two earned runs in the first games and Jose Alvarado gave up one earned run twice.
Time to Make a Push
Despite the chaos of the series, the team still sits at a healthy 11-8. It’s too early to seriously be looking at the playoff standings, but the Phillies sit outside of the wildcard and are a game behind the Mets for the division as of today. It’s a very important next two series for the Phillies. They’ve got three games against the Marlins which should be at least two wins, and then a series against the division leading Mets. If the Phillies manage to take four or five of these next six games, they’ll find themselves back on track early in the year holding a division lead.
Use code PHILLYSPORTSREPORT for $20 off your first SeatGeek order
Click here to save 10% on any order at FOCO
