Phillies Mid-Season Review: Where They Stand Compared to 2015
A lot has happened since the mid-season of 2015. Pete MacKanin was scrambling to take over after Ryne Sandberg walked out the door in June, John Middleton stepped up in the ownership group, Andy MacPhail was named President, Matt Klentak was named General Manager, and key members of the franchise’s most historic era were traded away.
Of the 50 players that donned the Phillies pinstripes in 2015, only 14 remain on the 25-man roster at this years’ break.
That is a lot of turnaround for an organization to handle in a very short amount of time. Somehow, the franchise has handled it better than anyone could have imagined, and the future of Phillies baseball is once again bright.
Here’s is our mid-season review/comparison to the Phillies organization.
Next: The Record
The Record
The Phillies got off to an unexpectedly hot rate to start the 2016 season, finishing 10 games over .500 after the month of May. While the losses eventually caught-up to them in a dismal 9-19 month of June, fans got a glimpse of the future, and its potential.
More from That Balls Outta Here
- 11 Free-agent deals the Philadelphia Phillies wish fell through
- Phillies-Mets owners’ rivalry grows after shocking Carlos Correa deal
- Could Rich Hill become ‘Jamie Moyer 2.0’ in Phillies rotation?
- Does Bailey Falter have a future in Phillies’ rotation?
- Prospect Andrew Baker could help Phillies bullpen in 2023
Heading into the All-Star break, the Phillies are 42-48. While not an overwhelmingly impressive record, it’s much improved compared to 2015’s mid-point. Entering the All-Star break, the Phillies were a pathetic 29-62. With little light at the end of the tunnel, and a manager jumping ship, no one could have imagined the 13 win differential over the course of just one season.
Looking even deeper into the numbers, the Phillies lost 27 one-run games in 2015. They have already WON 20 in 2016. While they aren’t expected to maintain that style of winning, the effectiveness of their pitching in high-pressure situations stands out.
The club won just 26 games on the road last season. They’ve won 21 already in 2016. In 2015, they won less than 40% of their inter-divisional games. So far this season, they’ve won 54% percent of those games.
Next: Pitching Stats
Pitching Stats
No member of the 2015 Philadelphia Phillies pitching staff won more than six games. Not Cole Hamels, not Aaron Nola, and not even Aaron Harang. In fact, those three pitchers, and closer Ken Giles, lead the team with six wins apiece.
Flip to 2016, and we have a much different story. Vince Velasquez leads the clubhouse with eight wins, while Jared Eickhoff and Jeremy Hellickson each have five.
Hamels and Harang lead the team with 13 quality starts last season. Jared Eickhoff already has 11, while Hellickson and Nola each have 10.
In 2016, the Phillies have two complete games, thanks to Velasquez and Zach Eflin. Last season, the Phillies only had one complete game; Cole Hamels’ no-hitter in his final appearance with the team.
Out in the bullpen, Jonathan Papelbon and Ken Giles (both of whom were traded) earned 30 saves combined. Jeanmar Gomez has already accumulated 24 at the mid-season mark. While he may not be part of the teams’ long-term plans, it’s another interesting change the organization has seen.
So many numbers can be thrown out with dramatically different outcomes. The club threw 14 different starters out to the mound last year, and have only used seven. Even more shocking, only 2 of the 14 starters from last season are currently on the major league roster, Nola and Eickhoff.
The team has seemed to have found its’ core of the future, with guys such as Jake Thompson, Ben Lively, Mark Appel, and Franklyn Kilome among others looking to reach the big leagues.
Next: The Offense
The Offense
Offensively, the Phillies are just as handicapped as they were in 2015. They were extremely lucky thanks to their pitching keeping them in the plethora of one-run games.
There is, however, some bright spots to compare. Last season, the Phillies offense hit just 130 home runs. Giancarlo Stanton hit nearly half of that in one night at the Home Run Derby. Thus far, the 2016 team has 89 home runs. While still among the basement-dwellers of the National League, they are on-pace to surpass their previous seasons total.
Ryan Howard led the 2015 squad with 23 home runs. Maikel Franco has already accumulated 18, three more than Howard at the mid-point last season.
Only four Phillies have hit double-digit home runs in 2016: Franco, Howard, Odubel Herrera, and Tommy Joseph. The 2015 club had five players reach that “milestone” all season: Howard, Franco, Jeff Francoeur, Cody Asche, and Darin Ruf.
Odubel Herrera leads the team in walks this year with 44. That’s four more than 2015’s leader Ceasar Hernandez in all of 2015.
While the numbers are not much improved, they are showing signs of future upward trends. The new faces in the clubhouse and in the minor league system will certainly determine that outcome.
Next: Farm System
Farm System
As much as we hate to admit it, Ruben Amaro Jr. left the team with an abundance of young talent after his purging of the system. The Cole Hamels trade netted the Phillies three of their top six prospects (Thompson, Jorge Alfaro, and Nick Williams), and many of his other low-key moves have paid dividends.
Jared Eickhoff (Hamels trade) and Zach Eflin (Rollins trade) are both members of the Phillies starting rotation this season, and may be keys to the future. Lame-duck Jonathan Papelbon was flipped for their Nick Pivetta, who currently ranks as their 18th best prospect.
Ben Revere was sent to Toronto for two young pitchers (Jimmy Cordero and Alberto Tirado) who each rank within the clubs’ top 20 prospects.
Darnell Sweeney, the teams’ #23 prospect, was acquired for Chase Utley. Marlon Byrd got the Phillies Ben Lively, who is pitching very well in the minors, and is undervalued as being ranked the #30 prospect in the system.
Throw in the additions made by Klentak (Mark Appel, Velasquez, Thomas Eshelman) and the farm system is dramatically improved over the course of 11 months. It’s improved so much, they went from Baseball America’s 21st ranked system in 2015, all the way to eighth prior to this season.
Baseball America ranked six of the Phillies prospects in their top 100 in their mid-season report: J.P. Crawford, Thompson, Williams, Alfaro, Kilome, Andrew Knapp. Last year, only three made the list: Franco, Crawford, and Nola.
To make the future look even brighter, the Reading Fightin’ Phils have the best record in professional baseball (63-27) thanks to those trades, and the contributions of kids such as Dylan Cozens, Rhys Hoskins, and Roman Quinn.