5 Phillies who outperformed expectations in April

Which Philadelphia Phillies players outperformed expectations in April?

April is over, and the Philadelphia Phillies have to be glad.

After all, even with their multimillion-dollar upgrades, the Phillies still went 11-11 for a perfectly middle-of-the-road month. Their only series wins came against the Oakland A’s on Opening Weekend and when they hosted and swept the Colorado Rockies last week.

But amidst the mediocrity, quite a few players shined, and it’s encouraging for May and beyond (even though the Phillies already started the new month with a frustrating loss). Here are five Phillies who really impressed and outperformed expectations in April:

Alec Bohm

Starting with the obvious, Alec Bohm looks nothing like his 2021 self, and that’s a huge compliment.

Over 20 games in April, Bohm hit .308/.365/.462 with a .827 OPS, two doubles, two home runs, 10 runs scored, and 14 driven in. He’s drawn seven walks and only struck out 10 times, an encouraging sign of improved plate discipline; his walk rate is significantly higher than it’s been in previous seasons, while his strikeout percentage is 10.7% lower than last season.

He does lead the team with three errors, but they all came in one game, so let’s call that a horrific aberration.

Of course, 20 games is a small sample size, but Bohm’s turnaround has been nothing short of remarkable, and hopefully, he only builds on this momentum going forward.

Zack Wheeler

Hear me out on this one, because Zack Wheeler is supposed to be the ace, but his start to the season was slightly in jeopardy a month ago.

After shoulder soreness impeded his offseason throwing program, the Phillies handled their ace with kid gloves in spring training. He had to cede the honor of getting the Opening Day start he’d rightfully earned to Aaron Nola.

Much like the Phillies’ overall month, Wheeler was half-good, half-terrible. His season debut was a short gem of 4 2/3 innings, in which he only allowed one earned run on two hits to his former team, the New York Mets.

However, he followed that up by giving up seven earned runs in three innings to the Miami Marlins, and four earned runs in five innings to the Milwaukee Brewers. Factor in his lower velocity, and there was cause for concern.

But in his final start of the month, Wheeler looked more like his old self when he shut out the Colorado Rockies for six innings, holding them to just one hit. He did issue four walks, but the 90-pitch performance – his deepest of the month – was encouraging nonetheless.

Kyle Schwarber

Kyle Schwarber started April with a bang, homering in his first at-bat as the leadoff man on Phillies Opening Day. But like many players in the lineup between then and the end of the month, he went through quite a dry spell.

And if you’re familiar with Schwarber’s career, that’s not a surprise. His March/April/May numbers throughout his career are significantly lower than the later months of the season. Even in 2021, arguably the best season of his career, he began the season hitting .206 with a .619 OPS and two home runs over 16 games between March and April, and over 27 games in June, he hit .280 with a 1.122 OPS and 16 home runs, which all came in an 18-game span.

But towards the home stretch of April, Schwarber heated back up. He homered three times in two games over the weekend, including twice off Max Scherzer, against whom he’d only managed a sole single before. He has six home runs on the season now, four of which were hit in the last 11 games.

Schwarber also gave Angel Hernandez the reality check we’ve all wished we could for years, which was awesome.

Corey Knebel

Corey Knebel was somewhat of a risky signing for the Phillies, who gave him a hefty $10M paycheck for just one season.

Knebel had been a great closer in 2017-18, finishing 77 games and earning 55 saves over 133 appearances. However, he missed the entire 2019 season after undergoing Tommy John Surgery, and upon his return, only made 15 appearances in 2020 and 27 appearances in 2021, mostly as set-up man behind former Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen. So, signing him to be the new closer was a bit of a gamble.

But so far, his 0.96 ERA over nine appearances leads the pitching staff. He’s finished nine games, earned four saves, and only allowed one earned run on six hits.

While longevity is still in question for the new closer, who hasn’t pitched a full season in a few years, he’s off to a magnificent start.