Insider Claims Phillies' Core Has 'Peaked' Amid Brutal Start

(Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images)

I think it's fair to say now that the Philadelphia Phillies have somewhat peaked. There was already an argument for that over the past couple of years. However, the Phillies were still in a World Series recently and, honestly, should have made it back the following year.

The Phillies have somewhat fallen on their face when it matters most, and as things currently stand at 8-14 and 2-8 over their last 10, it's the same exact situation. This will eventually have to be figured out, but it doesn't sound like Rob Thomson will be the guy to do it.

Unfortunately for Thomson, because this current group is now believed to have peaked, he'll probably be the odd man out.

“That’s not a good sign for Thomson, who replaced Girardi in early June 2022 when the team was in the same type of malaise. The core of that club remains, from Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto to Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler. But they’re all four years older now, and after repeated disappointment in the postseason, the underlying fear is that this group has already peaked.

“If that indeed proves the case, Dombrowski would be more to blame than Thomson. The Phillies’ pitching should be fine, particularly after Wheeler returns from thoracic outlet decompression surgery, possibly next weekend. The staff entered Sunday ranked second in walk rate and third in strikeout rate, and it ranked 27th in ERA in part due to poor luck. The .357 batting average on balls in play by the Phillies’ opponents was the highest in the league by 32 percentage points,” Ken Rosenthal wrote.