PHILADELPHIA — After an 11-0 win over the Nationals on Tuesday, the Phillies are a half a game out of a wild-card spot. Of course, there is plenty of baseball left — half an 162-game season left, to be exact — but it is still a remarkable feat, considering how bleak things looked just over a month ago. Joe Girardi had yet to be fired, the Phillies’ vaunted offense wasn’t slugging the way it was supposed to, and they’d just wrapped up a road trip in Atlanta and New York in which they’d gone 2-5.
Since that trip, they’ve gone 21-11. Rob Thomson is interim manager and seems to bring a more relaxed approach than Girardi did. Bryce Harper hasn’t played since June 25, when he was hit on the hand by a 97-mph Blake Snell fastball, but the Phillies somehow have scored 52 runs over eight Harper-less games. The bullpen, which once was a nightly adventure, has faced 135 batters and has only allowed 21 to reach base. The Phillies have lost two starters to the injured list — Ranger Suárez and Zach Eflin — and so far, have won all of the games that their fill-ins — Cristopher Sánchez and Bailey Falter — have started.
Over those first 81 games, the Phillies have lost 40% of their starting rotation, lost a manager, lost an MVP, lost their starting second baseman, and yet they keep finding ways to win. Part of that is because of an easier schedule in June, but part of it is because of a change in energy. This once was a team that looked lifeless. Now? They look like they want to be here.
