Monday, September 28

Welcome to the latest edition of the Phillies Beat newsletter. This version was written by Paul Casella, who has been based in Philadelphia since 2019 and covers the team alongside Todd Zolecki.

PHILADELPHIA -- The streak continued on Wednesday night.

No, not that streak ... the other one.

While Cristopher Sánchez saw his historic scoreless streak come to an end, the Phillies' offense continued a streak that's far less favorable. The Phils were held to fewer than five runs and fewer than 10 hits for the 13th straight game in their 3-2 victory.

That's tied for the third-longest such streak in franchise history -- and the longest since a 14-game stretch in 1972.

"Well, we've struggled offensively," president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. “We know we need to get better. We're all working toward that. But I think most important is we're winning games."

To his point, the Phillies are 23-10 since interim manager Don Mattingly took over five weeks ago. Only one team has a better record during that span (Brewers, 23-8).

“But I think there's definitely room for improvement in our offense,” Dombrowski added. “And I think everybody feels that way.”

So, where will those improvements come from?

In a perfect world, they may have come from top prospect Aidan Miller. Instead, the soon-to-be-22-year-old is set to undergo a procedure on Friday that the Phillies hope will fix the recurring back issue that has sidelined him since the early days of Spring Training.

In the absence of any obvious reinforcements, the Phillies are going to need those improvements to come from guys already on the roster not named Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Brandon Marsh.

So let's rank the other six regulars in order of which players the Phils most need to step up in the coming months.

Trea Turner
Season stats: .228/.277/.350 (.627 OPS)

The outlook: There’s no question that Turner is the player the Phillies most need to turn things around. The reigning NL batting champion has provided such little production atop the lineup that the club recently dropped him out of the leadoff spot in favor of Schwarber.

Turner responded to that move by homering in each of his first two games out of the No. 2 spot, but he's gone just 5-for-20 with five K's and zero extra-base hits in his five games since. For the Phillies to get where they want to go this season, they need Turner to start getting on base -- and to preferably do so out of the leadoff spot in front of Schwarber and Harper.

It’s no secret that Turner is frustrated. He’s said so himself a few times -- and it was apparent when he flung his bat and smashed his helmet following a seventh-inning flyout on Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium.

While Turner and the Phillies continue to search for answers, they are optimistic he will turn the corner soon.

Adolis García
Season stats: .195/.276/.302 (.578 OPS)

The outlook: García has been one of the least productive players offensively in Major League Baseball this season. Fortunately for the Phillies, he’s been arguably their best defensive player this season.

That’s significant for a team that has relied almost exclusively on winning close, low-scoring games over the past month. With runs so hard to come by offensively, any time García can potentially prevent one is vitally important.

Still, they need more from him offensively, and he knows it. That’s why he went to Citizens Bank Park on Monday’s off-day to take batting practice -- a rarity for big leaguers.

Alec Bohm
Season stats: .207/.266/.327 (.593 OPS)

The outlook: Bohm appeared to be coming out of his funk after Mattingly gave him that two-game reset in early May. The third baseman responded with a two-homer game in his first game back in the lineup. That was the start of an 11-game hitting streak during which he hit .405 with four homers and a 1.230 OPS.

Bohm, though, is just 6-for-40 (.150) with one extra-base hit in 11 games since.

Bryson Stott
Season stats: .215/.263/.377 (.640 OPS)

The outlook: Stott and Bohm have had eerily similar seasons. The only reason Stott is lower on this list is because it's more important for the Phillies to start getting some production from a right-handed hitter.

Starting at the same exact time that Bohm went on his run, Stott hit .302 with seven extra-base hits (including two homers) over 15 games in mid-May. He's just 2-for-28 (.071) in eight games since.

J.T. Realmuto
Season stats: .223/.297/.323 (.620 OPS)

The outlook: Yes, the Phillies want more offense out of Realmuto than the .620 OPS he’s provided after signing a three-year, $45 million deal this offseason. But the reality is you can’t put a value on what Realmuto brings to the pitching stuff. He also still has the best pop time among all catchers.

So while the Phillies could certainly benefit from an uptick in offense, the value Realmuto provides behind the plate helps offset some of that.

His clutch home run on Wednesday night was a step in the right direction.

Justin Crawford
Season stats: .230/.291/.333 (.624 OPS)

The outlook: At just 22 years old, Crawford was never expected to carry a big load offensively this season. Still, he got off to an encouraging start by slashing .276/.343/.409 through his first 40 games, but he's slashed just .106/.143/.128 (.271 OPS) in 15 games since. There were always going to be some growing pains.

This upcoming weekend will be a big one for giveaways and fan experiences at Citizens Bank Park, where the Phillies will host the White Sox for three games beginning on Friday.

Friday's series opener features a Miller Lite Phillies floppy hat giveaway for fans 21 and older. Then, on Saturday, the club will host its annual Coca-Cola Photo Day with fans on the field before the game.

And on Sunday, children 14 and under will receive the Jhoan Duran card show bobble giveaway shown above.

• Cristopher Sánchez's historic scoreless streak was finally snapped after 50 2/3 innings. It's the fifth longest in recorded history.

• Phillies top prospect Aidan Miller will undergo a procedure on Friday that the club hopes will fix the recurring back issue that has sidelined him since the early days of Spring Training. Here’s everything you need to know about his diagnosis and what comes next.

• Aaron Nola’s start on Tuesday night was his first since his wife, Hunter, gave birth to their second child. It was also the first time in his career he’s pitched on Lou Gehrig Day -- a cause that is deeply personal to Nola and his family. Here’s more on his special night.

To subscribe to Phillies Beat, visit this page and mark "Phillies Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the Phillies or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2026 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.