Rejuvenated offense has sparked light at end of tunnel
PHILADELPHIA » It’s been a year of questions for Pete Mackanin, and a season of answers. Less than he would’ve preferred, perhaps, but more than he’s gleaned in his previous season and a half in charge.
Maybe it was the afterglow of the Rhys Hoskins tour de force Tuesday afternoon in his office before a rainout against Atlanta, but when Mackanin was pressed to identify some of the affirmations reaped from five months of 100-plus-loss-pace baseball, his gaze gravitated toward a laundry list of positional positives, starting with Hoskins.
As the rebuild meanders to what resembles a light at the end of a halfdecade-long tunnel, the brightest beams seem to be emanating from a lineup that comprises the most promise for the future.
“Yeah, the longer you see guys play, you then at some point, you have to make a decision,” was how Mackanin replied to the pitcher-vs.-hitter progress query. “And I think we’re closer to making decisions. That’s the best answer I can give you.”
In truth, the best answers Mackanin can provide for how the Phillies have improved this season center on the lineup, and they rolled off the tongue. Hoskins was the obvious inspiration. Cesar Hernandez is a bona fide leadoff hitter, in Mackanin’s estimation. Freddy Galvis’s bat is improving to complement a golden glove. Nick Williams is producing, as has a healthy Aaron Altherr, and a streaky Tommy Joseph. Mackanin has three viable options at the catching position. Even Pedro Florimon, the 30-year-old outfielder on his fourth bigleague team who is hitting .370 in seven starts and was slated to earn another nod Tuesday, garnered a vote of confidence as a bench depth piece for the future.
That’s not to mention that the last two firstround draft picks or the host of Triple-A talent (Dylan Cozens, J.P. Crawford and Scott Kingery are still on the waiting list) that could swell the ranks with September callups.
And the pitching positives from Mackanin? Well, Adam Morgan and Hoby Milner are getting outs.
Not that lefties who can reliably retire lefties isn’t a good thing, but those aren’t exactly cornerstone pieces. And while the staff has its anchor in Aaron Nola, the rest of the pieces haven’t fallen into place this season. Jerad Eickhoff, Tuesday’s scheduled starter, hasn’t advanced as hoped, though Mackanin emphasized that in his second season in the bigs, it’s too early to draw any drastic conclusions about Eickhoff. He wasn’t quite as vehement as general manager Matt Klentak in defending Vince Velasquez last week, but Eickhoff’s drop-off hasn’t been quite as stark as the frequently injured, hardthrowing Double-V.
The rest of the rotation has distinctly underwhelmed. Nick Pivetta has been hit-or-miss while showing occasional promise. Same for Ben Lively. Mark Leiter Jr. has impressed in limited engagements. Zach Eflin can’t keep the ball in the yard. Jake Thompson, who knows?
It would be fitting that the Phillies lineup is first to exit the doldrums, as it entered ahead of the staff. Even in the 102-win season of 2011 that constituted the dying days of a dynasty, cracks were first evident in an aging order that finished 13th in baseball in runs scored, the century-mark in victories topped only via the best staff in MLB. In the seasons since, the Phillies’ offense hasn’t finished better than 19th in runs scored, including 28th this season.
The offensive bump may be a short-term phenomenon (certainly Hoskins’ torching of the record books would have to be unsustainable). But the energy supplied by the callups has eased the Phillies through yet another season of limited success — one with a lot of lumps, in Mackanin’s verbiage.
“When I came up, you want to do so good and make such a good impression and things like that, but for me I just wanted to do whatever I can, play the game hard and just bring energy,” said Williams, who is batting .286 with eight homers and 30 RBIs in his two months in the bigs. “I feel like I’ve done that, and I feel like (Rhys is) bringing a ton of energy. What he’s doing is amazing right now, and it’s just sometimes you want to bring some life. I think it makes people excited about the future.”
Williams is one of those young players who isn’t trying to look too far ahead. He’s still in the honeymoon phase, and he understands that with the challenges that lie ahead, nothing is guaranteed. Mackanin, for instance, when specifically asked about the composition of his outfield next year, curtailed the certainties beyond Odubel Herrera in center.
But the group that is injecting life into an otherwise flatlined season has the benefit of prior knowledge; playing together through various minor league stops benefits them at the higher level.
“Especially when you play with somebody and you have that relationship, you just know the player,” Williams said. “You know each other’s games and especially to carry it over from there and to have success at the major league level, it’s good. Team chemistry as you move (up) levels, it helps a lot.”
It may yet help Mackanin, Klentak and company to arrive at conclusions sooner rather than latter, and winnow the valuable pieces from the detritus of a half-decade in the second division. Down the road, the glut of offensive options might help bolster the weaknesses on the staff.
Just look at how last weekend’s opponents, the Cubs, built a World Series champion on the foundation of homegrown bats.
For now, though, Mackanin would settle for exiting the season with more answers than questions.
“You look for positives,” he said. “You’re looking for signs that we can improve over the next year; who to eliminate, who to hang on to.”