High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - Final Out: 11-Straight On The Road?!

Episode Date: July 6, 2023

Jack Fritz reacts to the Phillies' 8-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, their 11th-straight victory on the road. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

So what's it like to buy your first cryptocurrency on Kraken? Well, let's say I'm at a food truck I've never tried before. Am I going to go all in on the loaded taco? No, sir. I'm keeping it simple. Starting small. That's trading on Kraken. Pick from over 190 assets and start with the 10 bucks in your pocket. Easy. Go to Kraken.com and see what crypto can be. Non-investment advice. Crypto trading involves risk of loss.

See Kraken.com slash legal slash ca dash pru dash disclaimer for info on Kraken's undertaking to register in Canada. All-star closer, Kenley Jansen, we have a question. What's the best podcast of all time? Baseball isn't boring, baby. I'm Rob Bradford, and every single day I'm sitting down with the biggest names to show you this great game is the greatest game. It's my podcast. It's my passion. It's a cause i

started more than two years ago and it's now the most prolific national daily baseball pod there is another fact so jump aboard the bib express follow and listen to baseball isn't boring presented by wasabi hot cloud storage on the free odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts Welcome on in, it is the final out Sponsored by Regency Furniture Affordable, never looks so good Jack Fritz hanging out with you on what was a beautiful night An absolutely beautiful night of baseball By the Phills, down in South Florida

They go down to Tampa Bay Beautiful night of baseball by the Phils down in South Florida. They go down to Tampa Bay, a place where, frankly, they've struggled the last couple years. Obviously, the Rays are really good, and the Phils' last couple years haven't been so good. But it was one of those series heading into it, of course, off the weekend. It's like, really, you lost two or three to the Nats. Friday was uninspiring.

Saturday was an offensive explosion. Sunday was like just more of an annoying kind of game. And then they go down to Tampa. Knowles is brilliant yesterday. They get some clutch hitting. But tonight, tonight to me was one of the best wins of the season. And frankly, my biggest takeaway of the game, which is always brought to you by Morgan and Morgan, is I have no idea what baseball team I just watched. Like, let me run through everything that just happened in this game. And again, 215-592-9494 for you to get in. But think of the things that we have complained about the most with this team,

whether it be this year, whether it be the last, I don't know, four years, whether it be during the stretch run of last year. And think about everything that you've been tweeting about, you've been talking to your friends about, and they pretty much did the opposite of tonight. And I like that on the anniversary of Seinfeld debuting, the Phils took out the Costanza and did the exact opposite of what they usually do. First off, the big one is 11 straight wins on the road, which is the first time it's happened since 1976. 11 straight wins on the road. This is a team that I've grown accustomed

to laying down on the road and then being great at home. Well, it's kind of flipped this year. They've gotten away from Citizens Bank Park. They've come together. 11 straight wins doesn't happen by accident. I think it shows a level of camaraderie, obviously. This is a team that I thought during the World Series run last year, we didn't know who they were, really.

For even the last couple years, they got in, they went on a run, and you started to see the personality show. Well, part of what makes good, talented teams great teams and more of a team rather than just a collection of players, to me, is being able to win on the road. And especially going down to a tough place like Tampa. I mean, the Rays had only lost two home series all year.

One of them just happened to the Phillies. You know, they go out to Oakland. They sweep them. Arizona, a place, another house of horrors. Chicago, another place where they've struggled the last couple years. And they're slowly starting to check off some of these demons that have haunted them

the last couple of years. So 11 straight road wins. Just shocking. 5 for 12 with the last couple of years. So 11 straight row wins. Just shocking. 5-for-12 with runners in scoring position. I mean, that seems impossible, but it is possible. I just want the Phillies to know that. Like, it's okay. You're allowed to get hits with runners in scoring position.

5-for-12 tonight. That's been something that's killed them all year. They had five two-out RBIs. Usually, when they get some runners on, there's two outs. I don't see them kind of come through and bring those runners home and extend innings and put pressure on pitchers. They did the opposite tonight. Five two-out RBIs.

They had two home runs. They've been doing better in the power department, I want to say, for the Cubs series. They thought they were really good with driving some balls out of the ballpark. And that's something that has to happen. I mean, Nick Castellanos, what he is starting to show at the plate, I believe he has eight home runs in his last 27 games, which is a really, really good sign.

Because, you know, you take the hitting this year from Castellanos, a 315-ish average. But, you know, you go from just being a singles hitter to truly being a real difference maker in the middle of the lineup by being able to drive the ball to the ballpark. And Castellanos, unbelievable. He's the all-star right now for the Phillies. Maybe someone else gets in, Tywon Walker.

I mean, what he's doing right now is certainly warranted. Ranger, even though a hiccup against the Nationals. Bryson Stott, I mean, we'll get into him in a little bit here. But either way, two home runs tonight. They had three doubles. They stole three bags. I mean, that's good old-fashioned baseball. They turned three double plays?

What? I never see the Phils turn double plays. And maybe because growing up I was spoiled by having Jimmy Rollins and Pedro Feliz and Chase Sutley, where I felt like, oh, these guys are obviously turning a double play here. Well, the last couple years have been the opposite of that. Tonight they turned three. That has to be a record for the last couple years.

Either way, that was an aberration. And Tywon Walker, you know, early was struggling. Now, Trey Turner didn't help him out early as well defensively, but regardless, he went seven innings. He struggled early. He battled his way through it. And credit to Rob Thompson. In the seventh inning, he could have pulled him,

but he's been doing this thing with the starters recently where he's given them shots to finish out innings and finish out outings and leave them on a really high note. He did it last night with Aaron Nola. That's fine. Aaron Nola earned that spot last night, and Tywon Walker, to me, earned that spot tonight. So Rob Thompson making that adjustment with his starters

has just been phenomenal. Again, what baseball team did I just watch? 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94. That is our biggest takeaway of the game, which is brought to you by Morgan & Morgan, America's largest law firm. Some other things that stuck out. And again, 215-592-9494 to react.

It's been shocking. The Phillies have just looked like the better team against a Rays squad that has the most wins in baseball and tied for the most wins. Now, the Braves will pass them tonight. The Braves, I believe, are the best team in baseball. But for a majority of the season, the Rays have been one of the best. Now, it's been bullpen games and whatnot.

But still, you don't just go down to Tampa and do what the Phils have done. I've seen good teams go down there and struggle the last couple of years. A lot of them in the AL East, whether it's the Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays. It feels like I watch them go down there and bang, that kind of Tampa Bay Ray magic takes over. Well, the Phils have gone down there for two straight games. They look like the better team. And you want to talk about a good sign?

It's a good sign that, again, a part of the 11 straight wins, that's good. Going to Chicago is good. But starting to stack up series wins against actually good teams. You know, they took 2-3 from the Dodgers. They took 3-4 from the Diamondbacks. The Cubs weren't a bad team when they played them. I believe they had won 11-15 heading into that series. And then going down to Tampa, and whatever happens tomorrow happens,

but they took a series. And, you know, when you talk about, oh, my God, all they do is beat up on bad teams, not really the case anymore so uh that's been something else that has been a big takeaway for me and my third and final takeaway is it's hard not to gush about the kid because he is I think the the highest compliment that you can pay to a baseball player is that that guy's a ball player. That guy is a straight-up ball player, and that is Bryson Stott. Is he going to be the highest-paid player on the team? No.

Is he going to be the best player on the team? Probably not. But that dude is a ball player. Four hits tonight. He could have had five, hit a ball to the wall in his fifth at-bat. In his second year, second full year in the big leagues, year two, he's batting.304 with a.340 on-base percentage

and a.429 slugging percentage. It feels like he comes through in clutch spots. If there's a runner on-base, runner in scoring position, two outs, whatever, I trust Bryson Stott in that situation. I believe he has the second most two-strike hits in baseball. That's incredibly impressive.

And I've started to dream on what the future of Bryson Stott can be. The fact that we're getting this in year two, where's he going to be in year four, five, six? getting this in year two where's he going to be in year four five six like are we going to consistently have a 300 average guy from second base and and if he hits 20 home runs great but more like a 15 home run guy that you trust in big spots I mean that's what Bryson Stott is and I see what Luis Iriz is doing down in Miami. I don't think he's going to hit 400. But, I mean, we're talking about a chance to compete for batting titles with Bryson Stott. Four hits tonight. Average over 300 again.

Consistency. A ton of two-strike hits. Clutch hits. It's what he is. And there's a part of me that, speaking of another young guy here, I love, and I think this is a good sign for the future of the Phillies and hopefully finding more homegrown talent. I like that the two guys, two of the guys that I trust the most in big spots in games are homegrown.

And in him and Alec Boehm. I mean, Alec Boehm, batting seventh, he's been frustrating when it comes to driving the ball out of the ballpark or he goes into these slumps where he's just jamming the baseball into the ground. But the guy leads the team in RBIs, batting in the seventh spot. And Boehm, all of a sudden, he's up to.285 with a.332 on-base percentage and a.434 slugging percentage. These are good growth signs from two of

your you're got your young guys and i just like that our two young guys are some of the guys that you trust in big spots in ball games so a ton of good takeaways a beautiful baseball game a well played baseball game besides some hiccups early way, just a great night of baseball for the Phillies. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94 is how you get in. Let's sneak in Nick in Chester County. What's happening, Nick? What's up, Jack? What's going on, man? Well, I was watching this game tonight,

and I'm not sure if you would agree, but I'll just tell you, like, I haven't really had this thought all year, but I kind of think the Phillies are better than they were last year, which is something that I didn't really think I'd be saying at this point through the first two months of the season. But, like, I sort of just have more faith in this squad. And I guess it's because they've – go ahead.

Well, and I think obviously a part of that is that we did just see them in the World Series last year. Right, yeah. So, like, it's kind of easier to do that. Yeah. And, like, I'm not totally saying they're going to go back because, obviously, like, with the 08 to 11 teams, like, they got better record-wise and on paper every year, and they would lose earlier and earlier in the playoffs. But, like, I feel like with this year's team, it just feels like there's more um sort of just like a more threatening

offense i feel like top to bottom like last year i sort of felt like when schwarber didn't go it was hard it was hard for them to score runs obviously in the postseason that wasn't totally the way it played out but like when harper got hurt and through like the summer months last year and all that it just felt like they were super schwarber reliant and like with this team it kind of feels like schwarber's in the role that he should be in where it's like if he hits a home run, great. If he doesn't, like, we have plenty of other guys to get the job done. And it just kind of feels like one through nine.

There are more threatening offensive lineups than I feel like they were consistently last year. And, obviously, the pitching staff has, you know, been rolling. Obviously, Taiwan wasn't as good tonight, but still competed and gave you seven strong. So I'm feeling good about this bunch. Yeah, Nick, and I appreciate the call. I'll say this. I think they have a higher upside than last year for sure.

I trust the pieces in the bullpen more. I mean, the Gregory Soto addition. The fact that they got Gregory Soto for Matt Vierling and Nick Maton, I mean, that's a heist. It really is. And he was a guy that had command issues, someone that the Tigers, I feel like, didn't really trust. And Dave Nabrowski trusted in Caleb Cotham and that coaching staff to get the most out of him.

And he's been on a heck of a roll. So you have the bullpen, I think, has more upside. Obviously, what Craig Kimbrell's done. I mean, he hasn't blown a save, and it lets Alvarado be kind of the floating guy. We'll see with Sir Anthony. Hopefully, he's fine. a save, and it lets Alvarado be kind of the floating guy. We'll see with Sir Anthony. Hopefully he's fine, but the oblique thing is obviously an issue. You look at the offense,

and yeah, Schwarber is frustrating. He's batting in the 180s, but he's third in the league in home runs. He's up there and walks, and the fact of the matter is, is they win a ton of games with him in the leadoff spot. That's there. The offense and what they've done, you know,

in this last little run here, it's still really without Trey Turner. And he had that home run tonight, and that was great. But you hope that as the season goes along, you start seeing more and more of the real Trey Turner. The nice part is that Nick Castellanos has bounced back, and it's kind of the Turner that we got, you know, the Turner we're getting this year was the Cassianos of last year. But the Cassianos of this year, had they got last year,

there's probably a parade down Broad Street. That's how good Cassianos has been. So I don't know if I feel – we'd be lying to ourselves if we sat here on July 5th of last year and were like, yeah, they're going to go to the World Series. I think it's totally fair to feel better about this team than you did at this point last year. And it definitely doesn't hurt that we saw them go to the World Series.

2-1-5-5-9-2, 94-94. It's Jack Fritz hanging out here on the final. We'll get to all of your phone calls on the other side as we continue to react to what was a great, great win down at Tropicana Field. But also, one big reason to exhale and know it didn't happen at Tropicana Field tonight. What is it? I'll tell you that in addition to your phone calls coming up next.

That is our Mike's Amazing Play of the Game presented by Mike's Amazing, the official mayo, mustard, and vegetable oil of the Phillies. And why is that our Mike amazing play of the game? Well, I think it's very simple because that was a 6-4 baseball game in Tampa Bay. There was two outs, runners on second and third, and the Phillies got a single. And they made it an 8-4 game. And again, like what team did I watch tonight? Listen, I'm not saying like this isn't to come on here and be like,

well, the Phillies are a bad team. They're not a bad team at all. The Phillies are a good team. But part of what makes a good team a great team is playing good, solid, fundamental baseball. And I just thought tonight was so funny from the standpoint of everything we've complained about besides Schwarber, because everyone loves to complain about Schwarber now.

They did the exact opposite of. Like, they did the exact opposite of. They did the exact opposite of what they usually do. And usually in a 6-4 game on the road, when they're not winning 11 straight and there's two outs, they simply don't get a hit in that situation. But they did. They got insurance runs. Crazy concept.

But either way, shout out to brandon marsh good stuff there um and again they had five two out rbis i feel like that never happens welcome on back it is the final out which is sponsored by regency furniture affordable never look so good jack fred's hanging out with you, reacting to a Phil's big 8-4 win down at Tropicana Field. So there is one big reason to exhale, and there was a lot of worry before the game. There was the report that Andrew Painter had some stiffness and he did not get on the mound yesterday, and panic in the streets. Andrew Painter is never going to pitch a game for the Phillies ever.

Well, he got on the mound today, was able to throw a bullpen. So we don't know the extent of the bullpen, but the fact that he was able to get back out there, get back on the horse, and not hopefully be a major setback, I think is a good sign. So we talk about the fifth starter spot. You know, are they going to go out there and address the trade that line? Frankly, I think that would be a mistake at this point.

You know, I think what Nola did yesterday hopefully is a sign of things to come. Just fastball both sides of the plate. They used the sinker more. Crazy, crazy concept there. Wheelers, Wheeler. Ranger, I feel like Sunday was more of a blip in the radar, more than a sign for concern. Tywin Walker, I thought was good tonight.

I thought early in the game he got bled to death a little bit. Trey Turner made the mistake early in the game, and then he settled in and looked more like the Tywin Walker that we had seen in June. And then the fifth starter spot, even if Andrew Pinder doesn't come back, and I'm not closing the book on that. I mean, Chris Sanchez, if he can just give you what he's giving you so far, and I'm sure he's going to take a little bit of a step back,

but just give him a good four or five. I mean, I'll die for six, but just go out there and be serviceable. And you don't have to go up and give up assets for a starter. I think this is good enough. And now Andrew Painter seems like not a huge setback, just a one-day setback, and was back on the mound today. So I think that is a really, really good sign and definitely an exhale moment after you hear stiffness in the elbow

as he's coming back from the arm injury. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94 is how you get in. Dave is in Maryland. What's happening, Dave? Hey, Jack. Great win. I mean, they did everything that in years past they don't do. When the Rays scored, they came back and scored right back at them.

I think several times tonight. They just got two out hits. They started some rallies with two outs. Castellanos with just a tank to center. I mean, it was just a great win. I mean, stuff that you don't talk about, like Jeff Hoffman coming in and getting an inning without having to warm up anybody behind him, that kind of stuff is big for tomorrow and big for this weekend.

The Marlins, I don't know if you saw how they won tonight. I did. The only way to take care of them is to take care of ourselves. They might have done us a favor tonight, putting a nail in St. Louis' coffin and giving us Goldsmith. Yeah, I mean, that'd be something. But yeah, Miami, just again, it feels like they just

keep skating by. They can't keep getting away with this. We'll see. No, they run differential negative, and they keep, you know, even after they won by 15 runs yesterday, stay negative. But, you know, like I said, three good starters this weekend against them. Take a series there, too, and, you know,

go into the break with at least four out of six. That would be great. Yeah, I appreciate the call, Dave. And I was actually going to bring it up next segment. I'm glad Dave did. One of the more unheralded things that happened tonight was Jeff Hoffman. You know, being able to come in. It's an 8-4 game.

Obviously not a save situation, but still for a guy who's been as traditionally as inconsistent as Jeff Hoffman has been, that's a big spot for him at this point. I know he's erasing the twos, but that's not in more high leverage-ish spots like tonight. And the fact that they don't have to warm someone up. When you have Chris Sanchez on the mound tomorrow, it's not really a bullpen game. I mean, Chris Sanchez is the starter, but you never know.

He could be four innings. It could be three innings. In a perfect sense, it's five, six. But, you know, the fact that you didn't have to get Alvarado hot or Kimbrel hot and Jeff Hoffman could just come in and do a job, that's big. And especially heading into what could be a bullpen game could also be a rest

day, but not overworking these guys before you head down to Miami this weekend in a, in a big, big, big three game set heading into the all-star break. So Jeff Hoffman definitely, you know, be able to come in and do a job. And shout out to Rob Thompson for

trusting him. I think that's two spots tonight where Rob Thompson earned some brownie points. Trusting Tomlin Walker in the seventh to get out of that inning. Soto's a bit of a no-brainer. That's a big part of the Rays' order. You want one of your

high-leverage guys on that portion of the lineup to kind of shut that down and then didn't feel the need to go to one of his aces in the back of the bullpen and trusted Jeff Hoffman to go out there and get a job done. So I totally agree with Dave. I think that's a good, good thing by Rob Thompson tonight. Ron is in Monaco. Man, it's been a while, Ronnie.

How's it going, buddy? It's magic. How we doing? How we doing? How you feel about those fills? Well, I'm loving what I'm seeing right now. But I could tell you something you want to know. They're on

Barney Rubble out in left field. I mean, what are we not supposed to be? What? we not supposed to be? What? You're supposed to be worried about Schwarber? That guy, we can't get him off the field fast enough, and you know it. Okay.

I mean, what are you supposed to do about it right now? Well, believe me, they're doing everything they can. I agree with you. They're doing everything they can. They're just praying that, you know, I just hope that they don't rush Bryce in too soon because they need his bat in the lineup and they need him somewhere on the field. You know, this was – I'm going to tell you something. This is going to be one of the worst signings,

and the Phillies have made many. I'm 40 years older than you, dude. The worst signing in Philadelphia history. Phillies history. You see this kid, Scott? Who is the worst signing?

Barney Rubble out in left field. He's the worst signing in Phill field he's he's the worst signing in philly's history listen what are you talking about ron okay what what are you what are you talking about 46 home runs over yeah strikeouts i'm talking about 46 home runs big home runs in the playoffs being the tone setter you can't't hit your weight, your body weight. Listen. Ron, can I tell you a fact real quick? Can I tell you a fact before you keep going on?

I know your young kids' facts. Go ahead. Well, I would say this is more just obvious, but Austin Hayes leads the AL in batting average, right? He's batting over like 315 or whatever. Kyle Schwarber has more total bases than Austin Hayes.

So, listen, batting average is frustrating, but I will take top five in walks and third in home runs in the NL for sure. Tell me what he did in the first two months. He struggled in the first two months, but he still has ended up...

That's a third of the season. What are you even arguing about? What are you arguing about? first two months. He still has ended up as... That's a third of the season. Okay. What are you even arguing about? What are you arguing about? Did you watch from June on last year? Did you watch what happened when Bryce went down? Did you watch what happened in the postseason? Did you watch them since he's gotten back to the leadoff spot this year?

Okay, well, you want to play Russian roulette? Go ahead and do it. It's not Russian roulette. It's just winning baseball. It's winning Russian roulette. It's just winning baseball. It's winning baseball, Ron. No, it's not. He's a winner. He's not smoking mirrors.

He's been the biggest winner in baseball in the last seven years. How about that? No, he has not. Yes, he absolutely has. You don't even know where he came from. He came out of the Cubs. Indiana. He went to Indiana.

He was the, what, fourth pick in the draft. He was a catcher. They turned him into an outfielder. Do you know Kyle Schrober? Right. He went to Indiana. He was the, what, fourth pick in the draft. He was a catcher. They turned him into an outfielder. Do you know Kyle Schwarber? Right. He was hot. He was hot for the last quarter of their 2016. Well, he was, and he tore his ACL, and he came back in the World Series

and had hits in the World Series. Yeah, but the point is. Are we going to keep going here, or are you going to continue to be wrong, Ron? I just want to know, how long do you want to keep going on with this? No, no, no. I'm not wrong because – You're 100% wrong. You're 100% wrong.

No. All you guys in there – Guys what? Under 30. Under 30 or 30. Okay? Don't understand. Everybody says, okay, oh, Aaron Noah.

Oh, he's a great pitcher. Great pitcher. Is he really? Is he really? What have. Oh, he's a great pitcher. Great pitcher. Is he really? What have you heard me say is a great pitcher? It's the whole point of the whole thing. Okay? What the Phillies are trying to do is push something down

our throat that we know better than. Now, thank God. I can tell you this much. Thank God that Castellano is picking up the slack and i bet last year you said he was awful too i bet you said he was awful last year too let me ask you let me ask you a question because you're supposedly a baseball guy right well i know i'm a baseball guy who has been a bigger problem with the plate this year trey turner or kyle schwarber well you know what i here's what i'm going to say to Well, you know what?

Here's what I'm going to say to you. Right. You know the answer. You just don't want to tell me. I got you. Wait a minute. Let me answer the question, okay? Yes. Like a real man, okay?

First of all, who went out and paid $300 million for the guy? Not me. Okay, so you're not answering the question, right? No, I'm getting to the answer. But you need a little education here. Well, no, I've already dished answering the question, Ron. No, I'm getting to the answer. But you need a little education here. Oh, no, I've already dished out enough education, Ron. I'm just trying to get you to answer the question. Who has been a bigger problem at the plate this year, Schwaber or Turner?

Well, right now, you know what? Just say Turner. Just say Turner, Ron. Yes, you can. Yes, you can, Ron. He has nine home runs. He's batting 240. His OEP is 298.

Kyle Schwarber has more walks, more home runs, more total bases. Who has been a bigger problem at the plate, Turner or Schwarber? Who's killing you out in left field, dude? L, L, L, over. Ding, ding, ding. Ding, ding, ding. Win for Fritz. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94.

On the other side, we'll look ahead to tomorrow before handing things off to Tom Kelly. It's Jack Fritz here on the Final Out. Hey, fantasy football owners. The road to winning your fantasy football championship starts now. I'm Matt Harmon from Reception Perception. Join me and James Coe as we

take a deep dive into the position that's going to make or break your fantasy roster. Wide receivers. We analyze route running, target share, and all the metrics that matter, giving you the insights you need to draft the best wide receivers. As you prep for your draft, let us give you the coverage you need. Follow and listen to Reception Perception on the free Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts.

God, I love him. Bryson Stott, that is your player of the game. Brought to you by South Jersey Gas. Committed to providing safe, reliable, affordable natural gas. Make the switch at southjerseygas.com. Love my home. What a player. I feel like he is, like, obviously, if you are a middle-aged dad out there

or in your 60s, you won't get this reference, but I feel like everyone under 30 like he is your your your uncle's favorite player or like your dad's favorite player and you know you know they're thinking a lot of utley to bryson stott um but regardless the kid's just a ball player and the kid's a winner and it feels like big spots he comes through defense has been great. One thing I was thinking about tonight with Turner struggling again out at shortstop and made the play yesterday as a routine play,

I wonder if they'd ever consider swapping Turner and Stott and put Stott at shortstop, play Turner at second base, and maybe Turner just kind of has the yips right now, and they can just let him go play second take the pressure off him because I don't think anything affects Bryson's thought um I mean they dumped the whole dang uh a water cooler on him tonight so he had no problem he was unfazed the mic got messed up a little bit but regardless um the kid's just a winner he's great and plays really solid defense and it's hard not to gush about him.

And you think about all the years of, oh, are they ever going to have homegrown stars or homegrown players? I don't know if Bryce Estott's ever going to be a star. I think he's going to be maybe a multi-time all-star. People around the league won't appreciate what he does with the bat because it doesn't hit enough home runs and the slugging percentage won't be there and whatnot. But I think everyone here understands the kind of player that Bryce Estad is,

and he is my player of the game tonight. Welcome on back. It is the final out, sponsored by Regency Furniture. Affordable never looks so good. Let's go back to the phone lines here. Tom is in North Wales. What's happening, Tom? Jack, I always love hearing you talk, man, because you always share my perspective.

You do. Thanks, buddy. I appreciate you. I appreciate that. I appreciate you. I would not change. You don't make – listen, Trey was – he's going to be great. I agree with you.

I totally agree. I really feel that he – somebody asked me. I was having dinner and we're watching it. I think he really has felt as anybody, 300 million over 11 years or 10 years or whatever it is. I really believe that a person, like I'm talking about a person, not necessarily just a pro, feels it. And he feels pressure.

So you let him do what he's doing. You leave your strength at your strength. Stott is a stud. And I get, and by the way, I'm older than mid-30s. So I know what you're saying. But he's no, listen, he's no Chase Utley. No, no, no. You've got to go a long way.

Yeah. My only question I asked your producer, I said, listen, I don't want Schwarber out of the lineup. I want him first, and I want the same, and I want the attack. And, by the way, he is – he's the only guy that I believe, I don't know, that speaks up and has got a positive attitude. But he just, the pop-up in the second or third inning that he couldn't get to, listen, it's his hamstring, it's his knee, it's something.

But he's gutting it out, but he couldn't get to it. And his hamstring it's his knee it's something but he's gutting it out but he couldn't get to it and we gave that up that was an easy catch for somebody you know and it's not i'm not breaking his shoes i'm just saying what do you think we could do trade deadline to get him to the only way he can be dh as if our best well the only way they can get him to dh is if bryce can play fairspace it's it's pretty much as simple as the only way yep well because like because then you're you have to take bryce out of the h spot you know and they they can't do i know but you don't think Bryce could play. I'd rather him play in left field. Left field. Yeah, that's interesting, Tom. Because you know what?

Because you know what? It's not the ridiculous throw. You know what I mean? But, yeah, and I appreciate the call. I guess my thought is, like, so I think at first base, you'll have to throw from multiple different angles to to um you know get the job done at some points but at the same time like if if a ball's going into the corner and Bryce has to go down there and really ramp up and put everything into it

I just think that's a more strenuous throw and you look at first base like how often do you really see them i mean sure he needs to be able to make the throw from first to second that turned all plays like that's something that has to happen and and when i think he does eventually go over and play first base i would not be surprised if you see a lot of teams try to steal on him early and see and make him make that throw you never played the position before um so he's gonna have to show teams that he can make that throw and he has to stay healthy through that. So maybe that is ramping the arm up.

I just believe that putting him in the outfield fresh off Tommy John where he has to throw the ball I don't know, like 200 feet and try to get up to again, 98, 99 miles an hour on your elbow again that's a pretty big ask coming from a guy coming back from Tommy John.

You know, last – he just came back in record time. And to expect him to be back in the outfield making those kind of throws. Now, at the same time, like, gosh, Wilbur has like a lollipop for an arm. So, you know, it's not like he has to go out there and throw every ball 110%, but there are going to be times where he's going to have to ramp it up and his arm's going to have to hold up. So it's interesting. It's been talked about a lot. Respect to baseball people. I like say maybe Bryce in the outfield makes more sense because it might be less strenuous in the arm. I just think when you got to ramp it up, it's still a more, it's a tougher throw coming back

from Tommy John. But yeah, I mean, Schwarber and left's a problem. Like, um, and, and there's really no solution until Harper gets back and can play first base and see if that's serviceable. Um, the Schwarber at the plate thing, like, I just, I don't know. They win a lot of games with him at leadoff. Um, you look at the other teams that have tried to buy their way to a championship, because let's be honest, the Phillies are trying to buy their way to a championship. They've kind of fallen apart because I don't think they have the leadership intact. Kyle Schwarber is the leader of the Phillies. Bryce Harper is the best player.

They have better players than Kyle Schwarber. But I think he's the most important. He's the guy that does the postgame speeches. He's the guy that I think brings this team together. So you might be frustrated with the batting average. I get that. But the guy's not interested in hitting singles. Sometimes I wish he would.

Sometimes I wish he would. Just try to go the other way and get a little hit. He's trying to do damage. He's trying to hit home runs. They're like 25 games over 500 when they score first. It's their way to success. He likes hitting leadoff. He, you know, he has a chance to give you a 1-0 lead like that.

He gave the Phillies six 1-0 leads in June this year, you know, just leading off the game with a home run. You know, he does winning things. There has been moments this year where he hasn't come up big in a big spot, and that's been surprising to me because I feel like he generally does. I do think he's battling something with his legs that are causing him to look slower in left field. But I think he's a really, really important piece of this team, and I don't think that they would be as good as they are,

even though this year has been frustrating in the beginning. But really, the way they've turned this around, if it wasn't for Kyle Schwarber. So I just think it's such an overreaction, a lot of the stuff that goes on with Kyle Schwarber. 215-592-9494. Before we get to tomorrow and sneaking some more phone calls, coming up next Tuesday for the All-Star Game, come hang out with Seltzer and I.

We're having a High Hopes watch party. By the way, if you don't listen to the High Hopes podcast, subscribe on wherever you get your podcasts. It's just Seltzer and I nerding out about baseball. We'll be out at Time Out on Pine in Huntington Valley from 7 to the end of the ball game,

end of the All-Star game, regardless. $3 Miller Lite bottle and draft specials, all of it presented by Miller Lite. You have a chance to win Phillies tickets, hang out with Seltzer and I and a bunch of other people. It's Miller time. Phillies fans celebrate responsibly. Tomorrow, Phillies obviously going for the sweep down in Tampa.

Chris Sanchez on the mound versus Sean Armstrong. So another bullpen game for the Rays. They've had a ton of injuries in their starting rotation, even for a team that has so much organizational depth when it comes to the pitching side, even they have struggled to stay healthy. So another

bullpen game for the Rays, which means the Phillies should go out there and take advantage of that. Chris Sanchez has been good, though. I'm excited to see him in a little revenge spot. Yes, he was acquired from the Rays for Curtis Meade, who turned into a top 50 prospect. We'll see what he does in the big leagues. But Sanchez has been good.

And one of the big adjustments they've done with him is they've said, hey, just throw the ball down the middle and let your stuff just play. Don't try to nibble the corners. You don't need to do that. Just go let your natural stuff kind of play. So, you know, we talked about it last segment. Thompson didn't have to use all of his best guys tonight out of the bullpen. And a lot of that goes to Tywon Walker for being able to battle his way through that.

But, you know, Jeff Hoffman in the ninth, being able to hold an 8-4 lead and not let anyone else get warmed up, that gives you a nice little healthy, good bullpen tomorrow down in Tampa. So, Chris Sanchez versus Sean Armstrong. Obviously, Marks and Race will lead you into it, and I will have you for final out. Let's sneak in Dustin in the Northeast. What's happening, Dustin? Yeah, how you doing?

Good, man. What's up? I just wanted to call, and I want to hear your thoughts on Schwarbert not sitting out a single game this season so far. I'm pretty sure he's played every single game and have not even taken one seat compared to everybody else on the team, at least sitting once. Well, do you think that's Schwarber's fault

or do you think that's the manager's fault? Exactly. I think that's Philly Rod's fault. I don't particularly like the way he manages games sometimes, but I don't understand why that would be even a thing to where he's sitting and playing in the outfield every game even after all his fielding mishaps. Yeah, I mean, I don't know. I think they like playing Schwarber.

You know, I mean, he's a guy that they like having his power in the lineup. When Bryce is not giving them much power, he's a guy that will go out there and at least give you that threat. So, yeah, he's definitely given rest days to, like, Stott against lefties and Marsh against lefties, even though they've been better against lefties than Schwarber. I don't know. He's their leader of the team, and they kind of ride with him.

And, you know, as he's been in the leadoff spot, they've turned the season around, and they got to Game 6 of the World Series with him in the leadoff spot, all while batting in the low 200s. It's a new era of baseball, but either way, always fun. Phil's win. One of the best wins of the season.

A complete game. A game that they did the exact opposite of what they usually do, regardless. It was going down to Tampa, taking at least the first two in a three-game set. Very shocked, frankly, especially off the weekend against the Nats, which I felt was more like a blip in the radar than a cause for concern. Either way, definitely did not anticipate going down and taking the first two in Tampa. So shout-out to the Phils.

Big win tonight. Tom Kelly's got you next. He'll take you through the rest of the night reacting to the Phils. Big win tonight. Tom Kelly's got you next. He'll take you through the rest of the night reacting to the game and all that fun stuff. Marks and Reese will have you for leading off tomorrow, and then I will have you for final out again, hopefully coming off a Phil sweep

as they go for 12 straight. 12 straight road wins, which is just a sentence I thought I'd never be able to say about the Phillies. Either way, that's going to do it for me. Dan Wilson produced this hour of the program. Tom Kelly's got you next here on Sports Radio 94 WIP.