3 biggest positives of the 2021 Phillies season

Ranger Suárez was the Phillies’ unexpected hero in 2021

Without a question, the biggest surprise of the Phillies season has been the emergence of Ranger Suárez. After missing the bulk of 2020, Suárez came into spring training as more of an afterthought.

With a 1.36 ERA, 9.1 strikeout rate, and allowing just 0.3 home runs per nine, Suárez became the second-best pitcher on the staff.

Ranger filled every role they could’ve asked him. At first, he was a low-leverage reliever mainly sent out to the mound to eat innings. In his first 6 games of the season, he had average championship leverage (acLI) index of .44, a stat where 1.0 is the average leverage situation.

As the season went on, he became a high-leverage stopper, and later, a closer; if they needed outs, the ball was going to him. From June 19th to his last outing as a reliever on July 29th, Ranger had an acLI of 2.29 in 14 appearances.

Suárez would then move to the rotation for the first time since 2018. He got even better, quickly pitching deep into games. By September, he’d thrown a complete-game shutout on less than 100 pitches, known in baseball as a Maddux. In 12 starts overall, he delivered: a 1.51 ERA, 2.35 FIP, and opponents hitting just .218.

With a 3.0 fWAR, Suárez has been the most surprising story of the entire season.

The Phillies had some great farm system call-ups in 2021

While it is fair to criticize the Phillies’ player development, this year has had some nice call-ups. Despite a depleted farm system, fans should have a more positive outlook on the depth of their organization going forward.

Matt Vierling, Nick Maton, Luke Williams, Bailey Falter, Cristopher Sánchez, Damon Jones, and Hans Crouse all made debuts in 2021, with some having more success than others. In addition, Alec Bohm, Mickey Moniak, Rafael Marchan, and others were called up last year, to varying degrees of success.

Vierling looks like a very valuable bench piece with a 137 OPS+ in 64 plate appearances. He has also done a great job at making hard contact, with a 92.1 average exit velocity and a 56.1% hard-hit rate. Vierling also has defensive versatility with not just being able to play all three outfield spots but can also play first and third base if needed.

Maton looks like a decent bench infield option for the Phillies. He got off to a hot start with a .795 OPS in his first 26 games as a Phillie, and showed he can also play second, shortstop, and third base as well.

Williams also looks like a future versatile bench piece with an ability to play almost anywhere he is needed.

Falter will be a solid reliever and starter hybrid in the future, as well.

With hopefully a bounce-back season for Alec Bohm in 2022, and potential call-ups like Bryson Stott, the Phillies could be moving up in the power rankings.