4 Phillies storylines to watch in third month of 2021 season

With every month comes different challenges for the Philadelphia Phillies. With a 25-29 record at the end of the first two months of the season, many would agree that this season has been disappointing.

Things could get even worse for the team in June. Here are four storylines to follow this month.

1. Star players being injured continues to hurt the Phillies.

The Phillies missed three of their most important position players — Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, and Didi Gregorius — for a chunk of May. J.T. is now back in the lineup; hopefully, we can see Bryce (left forearm contusion) and Didi return soon. Harper could return from the injured list as soon as Wednesday, however manager Joe Girardi said Monday that he “wouldn’t plan” on him returning when he is first eligible.

Ranking just 20th in runs scored throughout Major League Baseball, the Phillies could use Bryce being back soon. With Didi, it seems things could take some time, as he hasn’t even started swinging yet.

Elsewhere, Roman Quinn was recently placed on the 60-day injured list and will require surgery on his left Achilles. He will miss the next nine to 12 months, meaning his Phillies tenure could be over. Fellow outfielder Travis Jankowski was called up as his replacement.

Adam Haseley returned to the team earlier in the month. He is in the minors and remains on the restricted list. At some point, it is hard to imagine he doesn’t get a chance to be back in the majors. Haseley simply is an upgrade from some of the outfielders on the roster.

Matt Moore is currently making an rehab assignment. That is good news for him to return to the big-league team soon, unless the Phillies want to keep David Hale in the long relief role.

Scott Kingery is also on the injured list. Who knows when he is back, but he should probably go back to Triple-A and fix his swing. Kingery has an OPS barely above 100 in 19 at-bats this season.

2. The back end of the rotation and bullpen remains an issue.

Chase Anderson and Matt Moore didn’t work out. Currently, both are out of the starting rotation — replaced by Vince Velasquez and Spencer Howard.

Velasquez was pitching quite well results-wise until his Cincinnati Reds performance on Memorial Day — when he gave up six earned runs in three innings. Velasquez is walking more than five batters per 9 innings, and teams’ BABIP against him is just .228. In other words, Velasquez was getting very lucky and we could soon see some regression, as he did against the Reds.

Howard is a weird case. His biggest struggle might be managing his velocity. Against the Boston Red Sox, the right-hander was great to start, but then his velocity later dropped to concerning levels. He said he couldn’t get his heart rate down after running to first base, but there could be something bigger.

Howard may want to start using his offspeed pitches more, as he is throwing his fastball 72 percent of the time. While it is his best pitch, he should really start mixing things up so he doesn’t become too predictable later in starts. Howard throws his changeup 13 percent of the time, slider 11 percent, and curveball 4 percent. An uptick in these would be smart for now and later in his career if he wants to remain a starter.

Another guy who could be in the running for a chance is Ranger Suarez, who has been used only in the bullpen this year — and has performed very well. Suarez hasn’t given up an earned run yet across 12 innings of work. He has been in the running for a starter spot before, so maybe he ends up getting the ball in the rotation soon.

This is all something to keep an eye on if Spencer or Vinny doesn’t work out.

3. The National League East is an awfully underperforming division.

The Phillies currently sit tied with the Miami Marlins for third place in the National League East — 4 1/2 games behind the New York Mets and 1 1/2 games behind the Atlanta Braves. With the Marlins looming, the Phillies could be in fourth place as soon as Tuesday. The Washington Nationals are last, two games behind the Phillies and 6 1/2 games back of the division leader.

The division has been off to a really slow start. The first-place team has just a 25-20 record and every other team is below .500. The Mets are doing this with what seems like everyone injured. Notable players out for them include Pete Alonso, JD Davis, Seth Lugo, Michael Conforto, Jeff McNeil, and Brandon Nimmo.

The Mets are practically playing their “B team” on some nights, and pitching has gotten them by for now. DeGrom has an ERA below 1.00, Taijuan Walker below 2.00, Marcus Stroman below 2.50. Their bullpen has also been very strong, having eight different pitchers with an ERA+ over 100.

The Braves, second at 25-26, has had disappointing pitching so far — with the 22nd-best ERA as a team in MLB. Their offense, meanwhile, ranks 11th in runs scored. The good news for them is Austin Riley has really improved this season, as he now has a 153 OPS+. Riley has the potential, but is now starting to show it.

Overall, the division has been very disappointing and the Phillies have had a chance to take advantage of it. Yet, they simply haven’t.