Phillies have given no reason to believe in them this season

The Phillies want to play the underdog role, but they have shown no reason to believe they can substantially change this late in the season.

The odds of the Phillies finding a way into the playoffs are only going down as the end of the season draws near. Most fans have written off the team, instead looking towards the Eagles and upcoming Sixers seasons to bring them some excitement.

Manager Gabe Kapler and his players recognize the pessimism surrounding the team. After Saturday’s win over the Mets, Kapler offered his opinion on this pessimism: [quote via Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia]

"“Some emotion happening in the dugout today and throughout the clubhouse. We know we’ve been written off and we don’t care. We understand that’s the sentiment and we don’t believe it.”"

More from Phillies News

• Philadelphia Phillies: Most impactful transactions in 2022
• How will Rob Thomson manage the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen in 2023?
• How Phillies’ Ranger Suárez is set to build on 2022 postseason dominance
• What can Philadelphia Phillies expect from Bryson Stott in 2023?
• 3 Reasons to get excited for Phillies’ Craig Kimbrel signing

The Phillies aren’t the first team to try to embrace the underdog mantra, and they certainly won’t be the last. However, unlike other successful underdogs, they don’t offer much reason to believe in them.

Let’s take an example near and dear to most Philadelphians: the 2017 Eagles. After suffering losses of many of their key players, there was reason to doubt their chances of having playoff success.

However, despite those injuries, they still had enough talent to overcome the odds and win the Super Bowl.

Turning back towards the Phillies, they do not enough talent on the roster to offset the injuries they have sustained. The bullpen has become a ragtag group of call-ups and waiver claims that can’t be trusted to hold late leads. The rotation has struggled all season long as well with similar issues.

The pitching injuries could be overcome if the offense could produce, but that has rarely been the case this year. They rank 14th in the league with 4.87 runs scored per game as well as ranking 14th in runs allowed per game. The overall offensive production simply just hasn’t been enough to keep the team in contention.

Further, projections for the remaining weeks of the season only add to the growing pessimism. Fangraphs projects Philadelphia to finish with just 82 wins this year, giving them a meager 2.5% chance of making the playoffs this year. Two teams (Brewers and Diamondbacks) are closer to the second wild-card spot, while five teams total have better odds of securing one of the two wild-card spots.

All things considered, there is little reason to believe in Philadelphia’s odds of making the playoffs. Neither side of the team has performed well, and they aren’t projected to finish the year in line for a playoff spot. Sorry Kapler, no one is believing in you for a reason.