Phillies' 2023 GDT #35: 05/07/23 Red Sox(21-14) @ Phillies(15-19) - 1:35pm

[BelmontShore]

Let Strahm pitch the 9th - no Kimbrel

In.

[Christopher]

Maybe I was the key today, not being available to pollute the GDT.
That was certainly a must-win and they got it.
TIme to start winning some games against good teams now.

[Christopher]

Here's the thing: And it's a lot like last year in this new reality. It's going to take A LOT for the Phillies to fall out of contention for the #3 wild card. Nobody's going to run away with all three wild cards. More teams in content means fewer sellers at deadline. Means more teams going for it --- especially seeing what the Phillies did with that #3 wild card last year.

It's going to be a slog. When the Phillies struggle, they'll fall 4-5 games behind for that third wild card. When they're streaky and hot, they'll be right there for it. We're going to be incredibly frustrated by this team, but baseball's new rules means they're realistically never out of it.

Currently 16-19 and 2.5 games out of the final wild card. If we assume the Pirates & Diamondbacks come back to Earth and that the Cardinals are DOA, then it's probably Padres, Cubs, Mets, Phillies, Marlins for 3 spots. Except for the Padres, nobody on that list in a world-beater.

[Skyjack]

Players are dropping like flies throughout the league. What organizations have in their systems is really going to matter. Come late July/August through September look for players coming up from AA ball to make contributions to the degree of success for the season. Abel, McGarry, Muzzioti, Rojas and hopefully Painter are going to have an impact.

[Christopher]

Abel is pitching well at Reading (2.53 ERA, WHIP under 1.00) after a slow start, but it's Double-A.

McGarry just pitched his first inning of the year on a rehab assignment.

Muzziotti and Rojas look OK, but it's hard to see them being significant factors and they certainly couldn't replace the numbers of a Marsh or Castellanos.

The Phillies still expect Painter to pitch in the major leagues this year, according to the Inquirer, but he's currently still in Florida playing catch on flat ground. Sure, he could be a huge boost in August/September, but there are tons of IFs there.