In just a matter of days, things have gone from bad to worse for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Injuries and losses continue to mount, all the while the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets have increased their lead in the NL East. And, division aside, the Phillies currently sit fifth in the Wild Card standings.
After a brief revival from the offense, it has seemingly gone back in the tank. Heck, pitchers must be starting to feel like they need to hurl a perfect game to win—although that almost didn’t work for Roy Halladay.
When the team does manage to get a lead, the pitchers seem to squander it away. Although it would be premature to conclude, the back-end of the bullpen scenario is starting to evoke memories of 2009—which, if you were vacationing out the country last year, is not a good thing.
The prevailing sentiment amongst the Phillies organization is that there is no need to panic, but these are quickly becoming desperate times for them.
Over the past few days, the team learned that they would be without baseball’s best second baseman for a minimum of eight weeks. And, that only speaks to time off the field rather than a return to Chase Utley’s normal standard of play—which may not happen at all this season.
They also learned that their regular third baseman (and best option to replace Utley) will be out for at least another four weeks. It adds insult to injury that Placido Polanco is the one player who has hit consistently for them all year and currently sits second in the National League batting leaders.
Additionally, the news on the rehabilitation of its other injured players hasn’t been particularly encouraging, either.