Photo by Jeff Dean/Getty Images A humbling return to earth evens the series The streaks are no more. The Philadelphia Phillies’ pursuit of their eighth-straight win fell woefully short as they dropped game two of the four game stint against the Cincinnati Reds 8-1 on Tuesday night. Stellar defense that had been a pillar of their week-long string of victories was absent from the night’s proceedings. Early mistakes in the field doomed Cristopher Sanchez from the jump, as his 3.0 IP was the shortest outing of any Phillies’ starter so far this season. Reds’ starter, Andrew Abbott, was adequate but ..read more

Photo by Jeff Dean/Getty Images Can Cristopher continue coolness on the mound? The starting rotation has really been something. A strength of the team that we were aware of coming into the season, if possible, it’s been stronger than that. Tonight, Cristopher Sanchez is trying to continue the streak and continue what has been a remarkable resurgence. As Taijuan Walker, he of the $17 million a year contract, gets ready to return from the injured list, it’s Sanchez who has earned the right to keep his spot over Spencer Turnbull. Think about that for a bit. Think about where Sanchez was a few yea ..read more

Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports Another ace performance from Ranger as the wins keep coming After a textbook-definition “get-right” week in which they swept through perhaps the two worst teams in baseball, the Phillies looked to carry the momentum of a six-game winning streak into a matchup with a team much closer to their weight class. Three weeks to the day from the beginning of their last series against the Reds – the one that saw Cincinnati take two of three amidst the backdrop of never-ending rain, Bryce’s three-homer game, and an impossibly stupid rumor about a made-up wedding – the Phil ..read more

Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images No Harper, no problem Here are the lineups. For the Phillies: Back on the road#RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/yBnCfYo77O — Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 22, 2024 For the Reds: More Reds baseball coming your way Powered by @PNCBank pic.twitter.com/KZCMPjfYGl — Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) April 22, 2024 Let’s talk about it ..read more

Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports They went 6-0 last week against awful teams. It’s a lot of fun to watch. The last two weeks of Phillies baseball have been mostly fun. Most of the hitters are starting to come around and the starting pitching staff looks as good as ever. I wanted to hear some feedback two weeks ago for this piece but I didn’t hear anything. I will once again ask for any potential questions, comments, or whatever you want to see me talk about in two weeks. Johan Rojas’s very good two weeks I’ve written a lot of negative things about Rojas and my concerns about his offensive game. Just ..read more

Mick Abel continues to struggle. Lehigh Valley 7, Scranton/WB 1 (April 16) Scranton/WB 5, Lehigh Valley 4 (April 17) Scranton/WB 8, Lehigh Valley 4 (April 18) Lehigh Valley 9, Scranton/WB 3 (April 19) Scranton/WB 5, Lehigh Valley 2 (April 20) Lehigh Valley 7, Scranton/WB 4 (April 21) Taijuan Walker - 11 IP, 10 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 6 BB, 2 K, HBP (picked off, missed catch errors) Max Castillo - 5.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, WP, 6 GB, 4 FB Mick Abel - 5 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, HR, 5 GB, 1 FB Tyler Phillips - 6 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 2 WP, 9 GB, 3 FB Griff McGarry - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R ..read more

Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images The Phillies straight up beat their brains in. Following their four-game split against the Pittsburgh Pirates a week ago, the Phillies entered last week with an 8-8 record and fans were frustrated by their uneven start. The starting pitching, to that point, had carried the team, but the bullpen had been inconsistent and the bats were mostly quiet. So prior to the Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox coming to town for two separate three-game series, it was reasonable to wonder if the Phils would be able to take advantage. On the Hittin’ Season episode that ..read more

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports Trea Turner Propaganda. If you missed the first installment of The Good Phight’s Player of the Week, go look. Otherwise, the concept is pretty simple. We are highlighting some of the best players throughout the week of Phillies baseball. In the second Player of the Week award of 2024, we pick Alec Bohm’s left-side partner over at shortstop, Trea Turner. Weeks stats: .461/.481/.731, 1 HR, 4 RBI, much better defense at shortstop. Treacare moment pic.twitter.com/VPl39rvZBU — Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 21, 2024 Starting off the night with BACK-TO-BA ..read more

Photo by Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images The grudge match you’ve been waiting for Philadelphia and New York are always competing for supremacy with each other. While I think we can all come to the conclusion that Philadelphia is superior as a sports fan, sadly, there are others that may not feel the same. They harbor this ill gotten belief that New York City is the “place to be” and “a better city”, both of which are incorrect. There have been many instances where the two teams have created a rivalry between the lines that has at time gotten quite ugly, but there has always been enter ..read more

Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images On the road again... Alright, they took care of the business at hand. I wrote last week how taking at least five of the six games against two of the worst teams in baseball was a must, so seeing two sweeps was pleasant to see. Everything was working against Chicago... . . ...but boy are the White Sox bad. On to the links. Phillies news: Taijuan Walker is on track to start Friday after completing his last rehab start in Lehigh Valley. The starting pitchers on the staff are feeding off each other, an obvious byproduct of the success they’re having. MLB news ..read more