PHILADELPHIA – Joe Girardi spins even the worst losses to the Phillies. It’s the manager’s job to make things sound better than they are, even when the team is playing poorly.
But Girardi couldn’t hide his frustrations after Friday night’s 11-2 loss to the Rockies at Citizens Bank Park to fall 4 1/2 games behind the Braves (75-65) in the Eastern National League with 21 games to play. The Phillies (71-70) have lost four straight and six of the last eight. They are not hitting or throwing well. Maybe your irritation comes from that. Or maybe it’s something else. Maybe it’s the lack of urgency or the lack of hurry.
Or just a lack of something.
“I’m not going to get into that publicly,” Girardi said. “But we will take care of it.
“I am just not happy. I hate to lose. “
Phillies right-hander Bryce Harper said he understood why Girardi sounded as frustrated as he has been since he became manager in 2020.
“It’s definitely guaranteed,” Harper said. “We just beat the Colorado Rockies twice. We just really flew away. Definitely guaranteed with your way of feeling. The irritation is there. Shame is there too. It’s not good. It’s just not good the way we approach the game. It’s not good the way our bats go, our pitch, everything. It’s just not good. Not right now.
“We just have to be better. I have said it so many times. I’m sorry, I keep saying it, but that’s the simple truth. We need to be better. Our launch needs to be better. Our blow must be better. Playing every day has to be better. Guys playing every day. I think just being a team, being a whole, not worrying about individual numbers, not worrying about whether you’re a free agent or whether you’re in your first year of [arbitration] or second year of arb or anything like that. You can’t worry about any of these things. We have to worry about us as a team, in general. What can we do to improve the Phillies? ”
The Phillies have scored three or fewer runs in each of the team’s last six losses. Harper is doing his part. Almost alone he keeps the Phillies relevant as he relies on the award for the most valuable player in the National League. But last week, almost no one else hit.
Harper (1,215) Jean Segura (.889) and Brad Miller (.857) are the only three Phillies with more than 20 appearances in the last eight games and one .656 OPS or higher. Behind are Didi Gregorius (.655), Andrew McCutchen (.619), JT Realmuto (.483), Ronald Torreyes (.432) and Odúbel Herrera (.385). Gregorius scored a goal in the ninth to score the Phillies ’first run. He later put on the team’s league hat, which some considered a bad look, given the circumstances. Girardi said he didn’t care about that. He has other things to worry about.
But the same offense scored seven or more runs in seven consecutive games from Aug. 26 to Sept. 2.
What the hell happened since then?
“We have guys at the base and we may be trying to hit the ball over the fence a little too much, instead of trying to beat a guy,” Harper said. “We can’t keep leaving the boys.”
Rockies right-back Germán Márquez threw six goalless innings. He had an ERA of 7.77 in his previous five outings. Asked what made him so effective, Girardi said, “I’m not sure.” When asked if he was unhappy with his players’ gowns, the skipper said, “I’m unhappy with the way we play.”
He is not alone. Harper called an expletive after lining up on the left field in the third, stranding a runner in the second. He collided with the helmet after falling in the fifth, catching two more runners.
“I feel like I need to get the job done in this situation,” Harper said. “But in general, we just have to be better. I’ve said it several times in the last three, four, five weeks. We don’t have time to sit back and wait to see what happens. We have to win games. We have to beat the teams when they enter our stadium. We can’t be ashamed of how we did it tonight and at the end of the season “.
The Phillies have put themselves in the position of needing a 2007-style comeback to win the NL East. Keep in mind: if the Braves stumble upon a 10-12, they will have 85 wins. The Phillies should finish 14-7 to tie.
This season they have played no better than 13-8 in a 21-game stretch.
“We just have to be at an amazing distance when we get to Atlanta,” Harper said. “If we can do that, if we can be at an amazing distance when we get on this last road trip and take the path we’re playing right now, we’ll be fine getting in there. I’m not afraid.”