Phillies Are Relaxed, Confident and Deadly As Ever Heading into NLDS
Bryson Stott made real gains throughout the 2022 regular season, but when October arrived, the book on him was clear. He received fastball after fastball in his first postseason and Stott went 1-20 on them with no extra-base hits. He still made his mark with poised at-bats, quality defense at shortstop and a handful of electrifying doubles on the few breaking balls he did see. But as he tired in a hitless World Series performance, it was clear that he had more to give.
That’s how the Philadelphia Phillies felt about their postseason journey a year ago as a whole. They achieved incredible things and, for many, it was their first time realizing how special baseball can be when the stakes are at their highest. In the end, though, they came up short. There was unfinished business, and it was difficult not to think about that at any point throughout 2023, whether it was the lows of April or the consistent success of August.
Stott stepped to the plate behind another raucous sellout crowd signing his bubbly anthem but hungry for the kill. Lefty Andrew Nardi delivered a first-pitch fastball on the inner corner, the type of pitch last year’s Stott would’ve sprayed back into the netting. This time, he turned his hips and caught the ball on the barrel. His pace slowed as he watched the second postseason grand slam in Phillies history sail into the red night to drive home four runs and the dagger into the hearts of the Miami Marlins.
It’s the type of moment that has become familiar in Philadelphia over the last 12 months. The towels waved, the music blared, the home dugout came to life. But just because it’s common doesn’t mean it isn’t cherished.
Earlier in the day, Stott had received a text from Rhys Hoskins. The Phillies’ longest-tenured position player hit more home runs in Citizens Bank Park than anyone last October. Maybe that was on his mind, if only subliminally, as he neared the first base bag. Stott’s pace only picked up when he red his hands of his bat with an emphatic release. It was just like Hoskins’ signature moment that gave the Phillies and credibility they had been chasing for over a decade.
“I didn’t even really know I did the bat spike,” Stott said. “It just kind of got caught up in the moment, I guess.”
It was a moment of maximum energy, and yet it was also effortless, just like almost every aspect of the Phillies’ two-game sweep of the Marlins in the National Wild Card Series. They did exactly what they did as they blitzed through the National League side of last year’s postseason bracket — exposed the weaknesses of their opponents with relentless pressure, timely plays and, yes, emphatic home runs more than long enough to pimp.
The latter part may have felt like an outlier to Stott. But everything was once again familiar in the best way. Aaron Nola took the ball for Game 2 of the Wild Card Series once again and once again reached the seventh inning while yielding essentially nothing. He allowed just three hits and erased one with a double play and another with a crafty pick-off. Nola, who said he often felt he only had two pitches working in a given start in 2023, didn’t miss a beat with any of his five offerings, dotting the corners and keeping the ball on the ground.
It stood out even more because a talented, young Marlins southpaw once again shook in the presence of the Philadelphia crowd’s perpetual noise. It’s always been there. But in previous years, the screams went as much against the home team as it was in support of them. It was deserved and understandable. It could not seem farther away right now.
“It’s cool to pitch in the postseason over here,” Nola said. He smiled. Each of his last two starts had the chance to be the pending free agent’s last at home for the only team he’s ever known. “You don’t get it every other place like you do here. It’s already a packed house when I walk out there to go warm up in the bullpen. They kind of bring the energy and kind of bring it out in us a little bit more.”
After the game, Nola’s wife Hunter posted a picture of the two with a tiny jean jacket, announcing they will become parents for the first time. The Phillies drafted Nola the day after his 21st birthday knowing it would be years before he would even have a chance of pitching in anything like this. It took longer than expected, in part because of his shortcomings down the stretch. On Wednesday, he made his third postseason start of at least six innings with no more than one unearned run against. Only Steve Carlton and Cole Hamels have made more in red pinstripes.
The point of that isn’t to erase the downs. Rather, it shows Nola and his teammates’ triumph over them. There’s a chink in the armor of every Phillie, just like there is for every Major Leaguer. The Phillies came to understand last year that doesn’t matter. What does is being the last team standing. It was attainable in 2022. In 2023, it almost feels like an expectation.
The 104-win Braves juggernaut that awaits them in the NLDS will put that feeling to the test. They are a model franchise in every sense. Even John Middleton couldn’t help but marvel at them amidst the beer showers and thumping music in the Phillies’ clubhouse. The Phillies may dealt them a staggering punch last season. Yet they are the ultimate opposition in this era of Phillies baseball. And the enemy of any good story isn’t wiped out by the first blow. They reinforce and learn from their mistakes, returning stronger than ever for another heavy-weight bout.
But the Phillies showed over the last two days they haven’t been resting on their laurels. They seldom gave the scrappy Marlins anything to feel good about. Last year’s weaknesses are now this year’s signature swings. It’s more than enough evidence to believe that the latest set of early October memories won’t be the peak of the mountain, but the start of another something special.
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