High Hopes: A Phillies Podcast - Final Out: Maybe the Phillies Aren't Good

Episode Date: May 24, 2023

Jack Fritz is at his wit's end following another lifeless performance from the Phillies. Presented by Miller Lite. 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

Welcome on in. It is the Final Out, sponsored by Regency Furniture. Affordable never looks so good. Jack Fritz hanging out with you, reacting to another Phillies loss. And usually I come on here after a tough loss. And again, this is Jack Fritz hanging out with you on the Final Out, 215-592-9494. If you're leaving the game, or if you're at home and just want to react and frankly vent. And I don't know where you're at as a Phillies fan,

but where I'm at is that usually I come on here after a tough loss where they play largely uninspiring baseball to an extent. They play largely uninspiring baseball to an extent. And I have more anger. And I'm more mad at them. And disappointed gets worked in there. But frankly, how I feel tonight, and I don't think it's a good spot to be in with this team,

is apathetic. Like, it's May. They are doing what they did last year. And for the first time, what usually happens a lot to me during a baseball season, is that apathy is set in. And I think how I feel tonight, and why I feel this way tonight is that

I thought for the most part they did fight hard tonight. I thought for the most part they did try to come back tonight. They just look like a bad baseball team. They just look like a bad baseball team. I said last night that I don't think they are a bad

baseball team. I think they're playing like a bad baseball team. Well, tonight they looked like a bad baseball team, and that's a bad spot to be in with this team because they shouldn't be. And Kobe did his job tonight, but obviously we can't bank on that happening every fifth day now. The lineup, like, they're a bottom 10 offense in baseball right now. Like, a bottom 10 offense with who they have in that lineup is embarrassing. I think they have two 800 OPS guys right now, and one of them is Cody Clemens.

Like, that's a massive problem. And, like like I just I don't know what they're good at they're not good at anything whether it's the lineup not producing at all and when you have a starting staff with it's pitching right now and you have a bullpen that you never really know what you're gonna get get, then you got to rely on the guys that have done this before. And almost none of, like, Castellanos has been good. Like, Harper, it feels like he's heating back up. But it's just like, there's too many guys here that aren't doing their jobs.

And when you have the bottom of a lineup of Clemens, Edmundo Sosa, and Dalton Guthrie, it's not good enough. Like tonight, and looking at this team, they're just not good enough. There's not enough, like, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I can't believe that we're doing this again. And what frustrates me is that they had a chance to capture the city. And they had a chance for baseball to be rejuvenated in Philadelphia.

The run in October and November was so special. Had everyone remembering how great the sport of baseball is. And they've essentially killed that goodwill in like 45 games. The tenants are already down to like 33,000 tonight. The city needed to pick me up after the Sixers thing. And they're just folding. They're just folding again. And tonight even had the look of, not that they didn't care,

tonight had the look of, like, we're starting to panic here a little bit. I appreciate Bryce trying to make something happen, but he stole a base with Kyle Schwarber up. And it's like, Kyle Schwarber is not going to hit a single there. Like, his only chance at this point is hitting a home run. It's not a good spot to be in. And if anyone knows me, listens to me, you know that I'm the most positive Phillies fan in the world.

I don't come on here looking for reasons to rip the Phillies. I don't do that. I love the Phillies. Like a family. Frankly, that's how I feel about the Phillies. I don't do that. I love the Phillies. Like a family. Frankly, that's how I feel about the Phillies. And I'm just crushed that I don't feel it

at all. I don't feel this run coming. And it feels like a season from hell, frankly. And it feels like every little thing that can go wrong is going to go wrong this year for them. Maybe it's just one of those years that you've got to chalk up.

You know, there was some bad luck tonight. I haven't seen in two nights more balls that have squeaked past the first base bag or the third baseline than the Diamondbacks have had. I mean, they had a ball bounce over Cody Clemens' head

that ended up being a triple. Meanwhile, Kyle Schwarber does a good job late in the game, hits a ball to center field that I thought was going to fall in and tie the game up, and their center fielder just comes in and makes a good play. So it's like they fought hard, I guess, but maybe they're just not good enough. And maybe that's the realization that I have to come to.

But it's just soul-crushing in a way to sit here and go through this again when it felt like last year baseball was on its way back. And that just stinks. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94. For me, apathy is set in. The getting mad. Like, I get mad sitting here watching the games, but it's just like I can't believe they're doing this again.

And, again, I thought they fought pretty hard tonight. Maybe they're just not good enough. Maybe they're just not good enough. And the final thing here before we go to the phones in my opening takes, is like, I know there's not a great option to bat number two right now,

but just please, for the love of everything, just drop Trey Turner. Just please just drop him. Bat him seventh. I don't care. I can't watch that guy bat two anymore. I cannot do it. And I'm starting to feel actually bad for him now.

It's like he has the boo birds raining down on him. He clearly is feeling the pressure. He said last night after the game he sucks. Like, give the guy a breather. Give the guy a break. Bat him seventh. Like, hope that once he goes down there, that jump starts him. But I can't continue to watch him with these feeble swings and chasing sliders

and not being able to make contact against fastballs. The guy's an over 300 hitter in his career against lefties. He's batting like 190 against them so far this year. It's just, I don't know. It's kind of a microcosm of this team,

frankly. The Diamondbacks, I think a lot of people headed into the series being like, oh, they're a bad team. The Phillies should be able to take care of business. They look like the better team. And that's a team that has a quarter of your payroll maybe. And a lot of it is taken up by Madison Baumgartner who they released.

It's just brutal. It's absolutely brutal. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94. Get in on the Phillies. How do you feel? You're leaving the game. You sat at home watching it, whatever. just i can't believe we're here again like this is supposed to be a fun summer this is supposed to be the summer of the reintroduction to the city uh to the to the great sport of baseball i think

it's the best sport on earth i i i it's it's so fun when when everything is going right and the team is playing well and you believe, but it's too much feebleness. And I just – they look like a bad baseball team. They really do. They look like a bad baseball team. Like they played decently well tonight, but it just wasn't good enough. Owen is in New Jersey. What's happening now hey i i'm with you man i'm a little bit down and just just bond it i mean i'm trying to grasp at some positives i mean i'm hoping the rotation does a little bit better with walker looking better the last like

three-ish starts and i'm hoping r Ranger comes back to form tomorrow. But, you know, obviously with Gallin on the mound, that may not matter. But I saw they put out news that Derek Hall is progressing in his recovery. Do you think if he comes back sometime soon that would help the lineup a bit? Yeah, and you're feeling just kind of bad there, Owen. And I appreciate the call. Derek Hall, I was thinking about that tonight. Like, Cody Clemens is playing first base right now. And, like, the thing is, Cody Clemens has been good.

Like, Cody Clemens isn't really the issue. It's just, like, you go top to bottom with the lineup, and you get down to Clemens, Sosa, and Guthrie, and it's like, this isn't what I signed up for. So yeah, maybe Derek Hall comes back. We'll see. The Harper thing at first base, it doesn't seem like it's going to happen this year. So Derek Hall might be their option, but I don't know. It's just, it's not, it's certainly not a great spot to be in and might be something that they're waiting at the trade deadline for, but who knows even how the trade deadline is going to play out right now. You know,

I mean, at this point they might even be sellers, which is awful, but whatever. That's where they are. 2-1-5-5-9-2-9592-9494 is how you get in reacting to another tough Phil's loss. On the other side, we'll get to your phone calls, but one amazing stat that I needed around Bayou that just is befuddling and why the

absence of one player makes me very, very concerned going forward. Who is it? I'll get to that and more of your calls coming up next. Welcome back. It is the final out. Sponsored by Regency Furniture. Affordable.

Never looks so good. Jack Fritz hanging out with you here on Sports Radio 94 WIP. 215-592-9494 is how you get in. Just trying to work our way through what is the current state of the Phillies, which is not a great spot to be in. I mean, they're pretty much on the same pace for where they were last year, which, again, isn't necessary. You don't have to be 22 and 29 in order to make the playoffs,

but maybe that's what they have to do. Again, it's just like I've said this I feel like every night now, where it's like, you know, maybe they fire the manager this year. I would be surprised. But I don't think that that card is going to be played by them again. And frankly, like, if it takes a firing of a manager every single year to give you the spark to go on a run, then you got bigger issues, frankly. Like, that's a problem.

And I just, I don't know where, I don't know who it's going to come from. Like, sometimes you bring up the young kids and you let them play. Like, last year, Mayton came up, Vierling was playing, Bone was playing. They developed the daycare or whatever. And I just don't know who that is this year. Like, Dalton Guthrie's a nice little spark plug um you know like stats at the top of the lineup now boom is is back to being and he had the the hit tonight which was good but it feels like he is he's getting more frustrated again

with himself marsh we'll see um but yeah it's just My hope is Is that Bryce gets on a tear here I thought tonight he had some Obviously very very good swings Was hitting the ball hard all over the place So maybe Bryce gets on a little bit of a run here And kind of drags his team for a little bit Because who in the lineup is hot right now

I mean like Stott's been pretty good Harper hopefully is heating up Castellanos has been pretty consistent Schwarber maybe some home runs are coming. I don't know. Someone's going to do it because it's just, it's a whole team right now. Let's get to the Mike's Amazing play of the game. Presented by Mike's Amazing, the official mayo, mustard,

and vegetable oil of the Phillies. It comes late in the game, courtesy of one Corbin Carroll. 2-0. Dominguez ready, the pitch. Swung on, lined into left. There's a base hit. Diamondbacks just like that are back in front. In to score is Gurriel.

Carroll at first with the RBI single. Walker stopped at second. And it's 4-3 Arizona. And why is that my play of the game? Obviously, it gave the Diamondbacks the lead. The Phillies couldn't come back and tie it up and win it. But also, it's another shutdown inning that they fail to execute on. Failure to execute.

If you're looking for the title of the 2023 Phillies yearbook, failure to execute should probably be the title of it at this point. And this stat from Anthony Sanfilippo from Crossing Broad is just crushing, and it's not something that good teams do. So that was the 35th time in May the Phillies have been in position to have a shutdown inning after scoring. 35th time they've been in that situation.

20 out of those 35 times they've allowed runs. 20 of 35 times they've allowed runs after they score runs. That is unacceptable. It's just part of the reason why they haven't been able to get on a roll. Why this feels worse than I think

a normal bad baseball team would feel is because they do get back in games and they do score runs and they do make it close and whatnot. But then when you have a chance to, to, to continue the momentum,

they just fall flat. That's, that's, that can't happen. That can't happen. It's bad baseball. But again, that's been the microcosm of this team.

2, 1, 5, 5, 9, 2, 94, 94. I, I'll get to some the microcosm of this team. 2-1-5, 5-9-2, 94-94. I'll get to some thoughts on the absence of one player that is making me concerned here in one second. But first, John is in Hazleton.

What's happening, John? How you doing, brother? I called in a couple weeks ago. I don't know if it was you or TK who was doing the postgame show. And, you know, I said they were a bad to mediocre team. I'm pretty sure I think it was TK. He kind of, like, hung up on they were a bad and mediocre team. I'm pretty sure I think it was TK. He kind of hung up on me. He wasn't hearing it.

But if you just watched, I've been following baseball for 40 years, you could just see it. They find different ways to lose. Look at tonight, perfect example. You come back, you tie the game, you get a struggling guy, come off the bench, he hits the single, they tie the game up, and here comes supposedly your second-best arm out of the bullpen. Boom, boom, boom.

Game over. It's just – it's all the time. And that thing you said, they never have shutdown innings. The base running, the defense. You know, you get this guy off the scrap heap to come in and give you five good innings tonight. And you're overpaid, overrated offense, can't muster more than three runs. It's disgusting already.

And Trey Turner, here's the thing. I'm going to ask you this, because I posted this on social media. Who's worse late in the game right now in a big situation? Trey Turner or Kyle Schwarber? Because we know if nobody's on base, Schwarber will hit a meaningless mammoth home run to cut it to two. You know what I mean? But anytime there's someone on base and he has a chance to really do something,

nothing. Yeah, and what stinks, John, is that he actually put the bat on the ball late and the center fielder for the diving catch made a good diving catch. Like, frankly, it's Trey Turner. Like, he had the RBI last night, which I was shocked. It's just so feeble right now. And it's shocking. This guy, listen, we all watch the World Baseball Classic.

We've watched him for the last decade. I can't believe we're here. But he is just, I don't know what else to say, John. And real quick, before you cut me, you know what the worst thing is? You were just saying it. Because I'm on all these Philly sites on social media. I'm already seeing everybody trying to dump their tickets. It's sad.

Yeah. Yeah. And I appreciate the call, John. And I don't blame people. I would love to – the way I usually try to find the positive in everything with them. I always have blinders on i have my my phillies red colored glasses and people accuse me of being like a blind homer to them i just i i can't do it there's there's there's what aspect of this team am i supposed to try to sell can

carry them for a little bit i don't know what i'm getting out of their one and two starters taiwan walker can be really good or out really good or not getting out of the first inning. Reiner Suarez, who knows? Hopefully he's working his way back and it is okay. The bullpen, it's like, okay, some good outings. It's like, okay, now I can trust Soto. I can trust Sir Anthony. I can trust Kimbrell.

Alvarado's down. I always trusted him. But who am I bringing to a game where it's like, they've got me tonight? I don't know if you can name one of them right now. And then the lineup. I know I've talked about Guthrie and Sosa and Clemens at the bottom. Whatever.

There's enough in that top of the lineup to where you can't have nights like this. And every aspect of this team is just not right now. And I can't sell you on this massive sign for hope when there's not one aspect of the team that's giving them that one redeeming quality right now. Speaking of things that could go from bad to worse, I thought it was interesting tonight in the 7th and

on deck in the 9th that Brandon Marsh was not available to pinch hit. Maybe they just want to sit him down for the game and just give him as much time off as he needs here a little bit to avoid an IL stint. But the fact that he wasn't even able to come up and be ready for pinch hitting appearances doesn't make me feel great. And kind of lends yourself to believe maybe there's a bigger issue here.

Again, hopefully it's in there tomorrow. But when you have D-backs, obviously Zach Gallin on the mound tomorrow, and then four in Atlanta, and then three against the Mets, I would like to have my starting center fielder be available for those games. And if not, it's going to be a lot of Dalton Guthrie, who, again, is a gamer, like plays hard. That's the book on him. I think he plays a good center field,

made the play early in the game yesterday, throwing a guy off the plate. But Dalton Guthrie having to play every day, that's just becoming overexposed and ultimately will not yield great results. I think he's a good bench player. I think he's some guy that can give you a spark, steal a bag, play good defense, play a ton of positions, but having to rely on him to play every day is eventually going to catch up to you and be a black hole in your lineup. So

hopefully Brandon Marsh is in there tomorrow. Hopefully last night, or hopefully tonight, they just wanted to give him the full night off because if this is going to be a bigger injury, then you're talking about another position in the lineup that is occupied by someone that should not be in that position. It's already happening at third base. Bowman should be at third base, and then Reese should have been at first base.

Now you're playing Sosa pretty much every day. If you want to play Bowman at third, you're playing Clemens every day. He's not an everyday player. And now if Brandon Marsh is banged up, then you're playing Dalton Guthrie every day, who is not an everyday player. So you'd have three not everyday players in your starting lineup for a team that has had World Series aspirations heading into the year.

Fun times. 215-592-9494 is how you get in. On the other side, we'll look ahead to tomorrow. Before handing things off to Jody Mack, it is the final out, sponsored by Regency Furniture. Affordable never looks so good. Jack Fritz hanging out with you. 215-592-9494 is how you get in.

We'll get to all of that coming up next. Welcome back. It is the final out. Sponsored by Regency Furniture. Affordable never looks so good. Jack Fritz hanging out with you. Final segment here before handing things off to Jody Mack. Let's get to the 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. I know it was a loss, but how about Dylan Covey? I keep wanting to call him Dylan Covey, frankly, because it's spelled just like Britton Covey.

But I think that with tonight's outing, this puts him ahead of Britton Covey as the best Covey slash Covey in Philadelphia. So good job by him tonight. And it's a shame that when you get that kind of an outing from an unknown that you can't capitalize and win it,

especially when you're facing Zach Gallen tomorrow. But, yeah, he was interesting enough. I mean, his fastball was up to 96, which I thought was good. Rob Thompson talked postgame. He got a lot of ugly swings on that slider up in the zone to righties. So maybe I can't sit here and sell you on the fact that he's going to be a hidden gem for this team, given his track record in Major League Baseball. But some things that I think he does have going for him is, A,

the Dodgers saw something in him when they signed him this offseason. So, you know, I kind of trust them when it comes to player evaluation and believing in a guy's stuff. So he only pitched, what, four innings for them. But still, you know need some innings, like quality innings from someone out of that fifth starter spot until hopefully McGarry's ready here and a couple more minor league starts before you bring him up. But either way, like, yeah, Dylan Covey

Covey got to earn himself another start tonight. Whether they do the opener thing like they did tonight with Matt Strom or they just let him start from the jump, he earned himself more innings. And they need someone to kind of step up and take down some innings because if not, then the bullpen we know is going to get more and more taxed

and ultimately lead to more runs. So very fun times. I'll get some good Bryce comments from after the game here in one second and look ahead to tomorrow. But first, Mark is in Collegeville. What's happening, Mark? What's up, Jack? What's going on? Leaving the game tonight

and one thing I can't I couldn't agree with you more because year after year I feel it's like the same thing with this team just watching mediocre baseball where it's like eh, they might be good but they're really not a good team.

And the other thing, where are we going with the bottom third of that lineup tonight? I mean, I understand you have injuries, but does Dalton Guthrie really scare you if you're the Diamondbacks? I mean, that's what we're running out there. And, frankly, if you're an opponent, why do you pitch to a Harper or a Cassianos when you got, you know, that three headed monster at the bottom of a lineup? Yeah,

I know. And it's just like, cause, cause on paper heading into the year before the Reese injury, it's like, wow, they are a deep lineup. That's going to be tough for a pitcher to navigate.

And the fact that we're sitting here on May 23rd, before you're about to go ahead for a pitcher to navigate. And the fact that we're sitting here on May 23rd, before you're about to go ahead into a Braves-Mets series with Clemens, Guthrie, and Sosa at the bottom of your lineup, it's like, this isn't what I signed up for. And also, like, that's just not good enough. But it's also not totally their fault. They're dealing with injuries. And it just continues to just feel like one of those kind of

cursed seasons for this team. Yeah, and then last night, disappointing from Wheeler. He's supposed to be your guy to kind of stop the bleeding a little bit, get a series win, and frankly lays an egg as your ace. And then you're down 0-1 early in a series. Yeah, and especially when you're facing a guy in Tommy Henry last night. That's a game you've got to win when Zach Wheeler's in the mound. So it's not complimentary baseball, no one picking each other up.

I don't know. But I will say Bryce Harper after the game, you know, I know it's just words. But you have to hope that at some point this thing starts clicking. And I think when Bryce is saying stuff like this after the game, hopefully it resonates with guys in that clubhouse. But he said, every guy's going to have to look in the mirror and understand what their job is, what their role is. We need to have urgency every day that we play. It doesn't matter if we're in first place, last place, or in the middle. I don't like the mindset of, oh, it's early, it's May,

you play this game with urgency. And that's what he showed tonight, and hopefully that's what his teammates start to show. And hopefully that's what, you know, they start to put on the field, the product they start to lay out there. Like, you know, given who's at the bottom of the lineup, given the struggles from the field, the product they start to lay out there. Like, you know, given who's the bottom of the lineup, given the struggles from the rotation, given the bullpen not being like knowing what you're getting when you're turning it over to these guys, you have to come out and do the little things right.

There can't be the lapses in the field that we saw last night. There can't be not getting shut down innings and keeping momentum on your side. And everyone has to raise their level of play just a little bit higher and know that you can just do this whole BS of it's early and we'll be fine and we'll turn this around. What if you don't? What if you don't? Obviously, they don't have a panic button they're going to press

and start freaking out. But someone do something. One of these starters, go out and throw seven shutty. It's just, I don't know what to say. I don't know what to say. Let's go to Jake in Collingswood. What's happening, Jake? Yeah, I have been following this team for so long.

And for me, the Phillies are normally a very slow starting team. You know what I mean? They usually stumble very early. But what got me really peeved was just the stupid mistakes and just the complete kind of lack of focus, you know, whether it's base running, a whole bunch of issues like that. They made valid points about the fact that both Wheeler and Aaron Nola both pitched pretty deep into,, like obviously not pretty deep,

but all the way to the last game of the World Series. So you can expect them to maybe, you know, be a little slow in coming around. But some of the other players, like you said, the injuries have been just catastrophic for this team. They really have been. But, you know, just when you think maybe you're going to be okay with the Reese Hoskins injury, what happens and Hall goes down. It's just, you know, it's just one thing after another thing

after another thing. And the points that you've made that these guys, yeah, they're nice to have on the bench for a little bit of depth to maybe get up there and maybe play a little half inning of some defense or this or that or steal a bag for you or something along those lines. But to be putting them out there, writing in the starting lineup, no, not very good. And I got one question for you.

Yeah. When did the no-doubles defense fall out of favor? I watched the game. What was it? Yesterday's game, where it's like a ball is hit, down, third baseline, boom, right down there into the corner, doubles. Tonight's game, even. You know, Alec is off the line.

You know what I mean? Used to be late in the game like that. The guys were guarding the line and everything like that, trying to prevent a double. And, you know, who knows? Maybe if defensive alignment and positioning is a little bit better on that, maybe he dives and he comes up with that ball. You never can tell.

But it just seems, from watching baseball all my life, it puzzles me where certain things have just gone, and then you notice it when it really starts hurting you like that. Yeah, and I appreciate the call, Jake, and it's been a lot of little things with this team so far. And the no doubles thing is interesting. Jake points that out. You know, my first thought that pops into my head is that I know you can't

shift anymore, but they still are placing these guys where percentage-wise they think gives you the best chance to make a play, and maybe they had him off the best chance to make a play. And maybe they had him off the line because he's not someone that pulls the ball like that usually. And he snuck it down the line. I think it's a mistake. I think late in the game you should always be protecting the line so that a situation like that doesn't happen. But that's just not the modern game. But there's been too many mentally lapsed moments the last couple games,

and really the Giants series I thought really stuck out, where it's like, what are you guys doing? I had like eight written down in a three-game series, which is just befuddling. But it's how this team has been. They've just been playing bad baseball. Uh, tomorrow doesn't get any easier. Ranger Suarez in the mound versus Zach Gallen. Uh, if I know the fills, like I traditionally know the fills,

this is a game that they win because the city's down on them. They're like, Oh, no way. They hit Zach Gallen. And then they come out and win. I, it's, it's just kind of how baseball works. We'll see. But that's my general feel tomorrow. Either way, Zach Allen's been the best pitcher in the NL this year. So they have their work cut out for him. He's an Eagles fan. He's from here.

I'm sure he's going to have a little bit of extra juice behind him. And tomorrow's a big start for Ranger. You know, they need him to round back into form here and start giving them more quality outings. And I can excuse away the first couple starts, but Ranger's got to get back into form here and start giving them more quality outings. And I can excuse away the first couple of starts, but Rangers got to get back to being Ranger. And hopefully he can, he can start that tomorrow.

Um, you know, he's one of those guys that it feels like teams are trying to get into the strike zone now because he usually lives on the edges and, um, you know, hopefully he's continues to make adjustments. I thought his curve ball has been bad.

The first two starts, hopefully tomorrow develops more of a feel for it. But either way, it's time for Ranger to round into form a little bit and go out there and give them some quality innings. And hopefully the bats can show up and do enough to beat Zach Gallen before. Four in Atlanta. Four in Atlanta after this. So, tough stretch for the Phillies.

Hopefully they can right the ship. But the way they're playing right now, the way that the players in the lineup are playing, the way that they're pitching, it's tough to see this big run coming for this team. But hopefully I'm wrong. That's going to do it for me. Jody Mack has you next here on WIP. Tucker Bagley produced the final out, as always. Enjoy the rest of your night, and let's get a win tomorrow.

Jody Mack's got you next here on WIP.