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That Balls Outta Here

Phillies first month in review: Who was hot, who wasn’t in April

By John Town

Rhys Hoskins #17 and Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
Rhys Hoskins #17 and Aaron Nola #27 of the Philadelphia Phillies (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA, PA – APRIL 26: Maikel Franco #7 of the Philadelphia Phillies singles in the fifth nning during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citizens Bank Park on April 26, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Diamondbacks won 8-2. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) /

Somewhere in the middle

3B Maikel Franco

– Franco’s numbers this season are an improvement on last year’s with a .250/.290/.440 line and 101 OPS+ in 24 games. It is the first time his OPS+ is over 100 since 2015. Still, they aren’t amazing overall and he continues to show poor plate discipline. He certainly isn’t saving himself from being replaced by Manny Machado.

More from That Balls Outta Here

  • OF Aaron Altherr – Alther has had a Jekyll and Hyde season. Through his first 17 games, he had a .091 batting average and .495 OPS. Since then, he has been on fire, posting a .324/.378/.559 line with eight runs batted in in his last 10 games. With Williams struggling, Altherr could become the full-time right fielder.
  • UT Scott Kingery – Kingery made waves early in the season after signing his historic contract, but the magic has worn off. He is hitting just .217 with a .647 OPS. Kingery has also struggled with the strikeout, racking up 28 in 101 plate appearances. Kingery will need to counter the adjustments opposing pitchers have made and hone his defense at the many positions he has played.
    He is day-to-day after suffering an elbow contusion in Tuesday’s loss.
  • SP Vince Velasquez – Velasquez had a nice three-start stretch where he allowed just five runs in 18.2 innings. He has since allowed 10 runs in his last 8.2 innings. Compared to last year, his strikeout rate is up and his walk rate is considerably down. Along with his 3.97 fielding-independent pitching and 3.78 xFIP, they may indicate that his last two outings were a fluke.

    • Next: Phillies former closer Ken Giles goes on rampage

    May will go a long way towards whether or not this team is the wild-card contender we thought they were in mid-April.

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