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The Philadelphia Phillies have made a name for themselves over the past few seasons by mashing the long ball. Home runs eluded them through the first two weeks of the 2024 season though, which prompted manager Rob Thomson to offer his solution on how to get more power out of his offense.
“Just keep running them out there because we’re gonna slug,” Thomson said, per Dave Uram. “And if you don’t think we’re gonna slug then you ain’t watching the games.”
Those comments came before the Phillies opened a four-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday. Philadelphia answered the call of its manager, slugging three home runs in a 5-1 win. All five runs were via home run and came from the unusual suspects in the Phillies lineup.
Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh and Bryson Stott drove the ball out of Citizens Bank Park on Thursday as the stars of the Phillies were held in check. The top three in Philadelphia’s order – Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner and Bryce Harper – went a combined 2-for-12 on Thursday.
Not only did the Phillies struggle to hit for power, but they failed to record an extra-base hit in consecutive games against the St. Louis Cardinals earlier this week. The streak reached 19 straight singles until Bohm’s fourth-inning home run on Thursday.
Philly’s “dogs” finally breaking out?
Phillies outfielder Brandon Marsh is always one to deliver a good quote. After Philadelphia’s mini slugfest on Thursday, he offered a few remarks that are sure to fire up the Philly faithful.
“We’ve got dudes and dogs on dogs that show up and show out every night,” Marsh said via Todd Zolecki. “Wherever Rob [Thomson] puts us, we’re trying to go. We’re ready to go.”
“The slug will come,” Marsh said. “With the lineup we have, it’s just a matter of time.”
Marsh surprisingly leads the Phillies in most offensive categories this season, including home runs after his fourth of the year on Thursday. His and other contributions from the bottom of the lineup will be key to Philadelphia’s success this season, especially when the top of the order struggles as it did on Thursday.
The Phillies lineup is among the best in all of baseball and has the numbers to back it up. They’ve finished in the top eight in runs, home runs and OPS each of the last two seasons, but every team is bound to go through slumps.
Philadelphia’s reliance on power was part of its downfall last season. Finding other ways to drive in runs is important, but the Phillies can ride their powerful lineup during its hot stretches of the year.
In fairness, the weather has not been kind to the Phillies. They’ve played in the rain more than any other MLB team this season. These games count the same as a pivotal three-game set in September though and Philadelphia doesn’t want to use the weather as an excuse for its slumping start.
Perhaps Thursday’s game was the start of a breakout for the Phillies offense. They’d be wise not to be too reliant on its slugging ability throughout the entire season though and now is the time to work on that.
More must-reads:
- Skubal, pitching staff have Tigers on playoff trajectory
- MLB rankings: The five most disappointing free-agent signings
- The 'Active MLB strikeout leaders' quiz
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