First road trip of the season set to test Phillies
PHILADELPHIA » A month into the chaos that is the 2020 MLB season, it feels like the Phillies have had everything possible thrown at them.
But not among the laundry list of oddities in this COVID19-blighted season is maybe the most basic baseball-season fixture: A true road trip.
Sunday marked game 17 of the Phillies season. Sixteen have taken place within the confines of Citizens Bank Park. It’ll be 12 days and 10 games until the Phillies return home, a long trip by normal standards, exacerbated now by representing a sixth of their season and almost a quarter of their remaining games.
A change of scenery, though, is a challenge that manager Joe Girardi welcomes.
“I’m hoping going on the road might help us,” he said Thursday, before a three-game sweep of the Mets capped Sunday, 6-2. “We’ve been gone just one day in six weeks, maybe seven weeks. That just doesn’t happen. We haven’t even slept in another city in seven weeks. It’s great being at home, but it’s not what you expect in a baseball season.”
The Phillies will make up for lost road time quickly. After Monday’s off day, they play two in Boston, a double-dip Thursday in Buffalo against the Blue Jays, then three in Atlanta and three at reigning world champion Washington.
It’s shocking that they’ve gone this long without leaving home. What feels like months ago, the Phillies opened with a threegame set at home against the Marlins. That Sunday’s brush with COVID-19 wiped out the next week, including a trip to Yankee Stadium, a voyage to Miami and games against the Blue Jays (that would’ve been relocated to Philadelphia while Sahlen Field was spruced up for its call to the bigs). A game in New York Aug. 4 was rained out by Tropical Storm Isaias, made up in a doubleheader at CBP where the Phillies and Yankees split up batting last.
All told, as Girardi counted, the Phillies have ventured out just three times since baseball resumed in mid-July: For exhibition day trips to Washington and New York, and Aug. 3 game at Yankee Stadium. That’s no air travel and just one overnight stay for baseball players used to the unceasing rhythms of the season.
“We’ve seen other teams,” pitcher Zack Wheeler said. “We’ve been a part of it, kind of. Other teams were irresponsible. … It doesn’t just hurt you. It hurts your teammates, coaches, other players on other teams. We’re going to have to be vigilant and play it safe and don’t do anything dumb. Just stay at the hotel, go to the ballpark, play and do our job. It’s pretty simple.”
Road games in the era of coronavirus present unprecedented challenges. A positive test Saturday added the Cincinnati Reds to the list of teams, including the Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals, with interrupted seasons. Two Cleveland players, Mike Clevinger and Zach Plesac, were banished for violating protocols on the road.
But while others have tested the road waters, the Phillies, ensconced in the relative safety of home, have been able to learn what not to do.
“We’re all grown men,” Rhys Hoskins said Saturday. “I think we can make professional decisions. We’ve had a couple of conversations as a group about what is quote acceptable on the road and what’s not acceptable. The medical team has done a really good job of keeping us informed about what are smart decisions and what aren’t, what might put us at risk and in some jeopardy. …
“I feel like we’re ready to go on the road and stay safe.”