Phillies: 5 players who moved to the dark side in Washington DC
By David Esser
Which Phillies abandoned us for the curly W’s in DC?
Long before Bryce Harper was rocking the Phillies red and white, the roles were quite reversed when it came to the shapeup of the NL East. The Phillies were the hotspot destination, coming off years of success and even a world championship, while it was usually teams like the Nationals who overpaid for Philly’s former players.
Obviously, the roles have changed quite a bit in recent times. Although the Phillies did steal Harper right out of DC’s grasp, it’s now been two consecutive offseasons where a former National has received monster money in free agency (Anthony Rendon, 2020).
While the Nationals are by no means the Phillies top rivals (that spot is reserved for the New York Mets of course), it’s still never fun seeing a former Phillie wearing a DC jersey down at Nationals Park. Whether through a free agency contract or even a trade, here are five former Phillies who went to the dark side down in Washington DC.
Honorable Mention: Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson
#5. Ben Revere
Acquired in late 2012 via a trade with the Minnesota Twins, Ben Revere was supposed to be the centerpiece for a new era of Phillies baseball. The glory days of the 2008 team were coming to an end, and the Phillies front office knew they had to start adding younger pieces to the roster. The hype surrounding Revere was so great prior to the 2013 season, that he even beat out Jimmy Rollins for the Opening Day leadoff spot.
Revere was a phenomenal contact hitter. Across three seasons with the Phillies, he recorded a .303 batting average. His above average speed also led to a combined total of 95 stolen bases, while also allowing him to cover a decent amount of grass out in center field.
Due to some nagging injuries, and the Phillies ultimately going into full-on “tank” mode, Revere was traded away during the 2015 season. He finished out the year with Toronto before ultimately being traded yet again, this time to the Washington Nationals.
Revere was a shell of himself in DC, batting just .217 while continuing to struggle through various injuries. The Nationals opted to not re-sign the outfielder following the conclusion of the 2016 season, and he entered free agency. Unfortunately for both Revere and the Nationals, he was just simply never able to replicate that form he had in Philadelphia.