This really hasn't been the start to the season that Phillies fans had in mind. Philadelphia enters the weekend with the fourth-worst winning percentage in the National League thanks to three consecutive series losses to the Giants, Diamondbacks, and Cubs. But it could be worse, right? At least we're not in Queens.
Still, the Phillies are in the basement among NL teams in collective runs scored and ERA. It's a freezing cold start, on both sides of the baseball, to the 2026 campaign. But there is hope that guys like Adolis García, Jesús Luzardo, and Bryson Stott will turn it around. In the same breath, others riding the struggle bus with that trio may not have the same fate. It might be time to accept that Alec Bohm and Taijuan Walker are well-beyond their best days.
3 Phillies players whose cold starts can't be sustainable
Adolis García
García ended his gut-wrenching 3-for-28 slide in Philadelphia's most recent series against the Cubs. He grabbed a pair of two-hit games, including two doubles, which halted his 15-day drought without collecting an extra-base hit.
García is still consistently barreling the baseball. He remains among the game's best in hard-hit percentage and average exit velo. This prior series hopefully hints that better days are quickly ahead.
Jesús Luzardo
A 7.94 ERA through four starts for a guy who just got himself a contract extension is unacceptable, but there is more than meets the eye. Last year, Luzardo's FIP was 2.90, which placed him seventh in the NL Cy Young race.
In spite of Luzardo having the most earned runs allowed three weeks into the 2026 season, his FIP is exactly the same as last year's. 2.90. So, luck has not been on his side, which should infuriate us all. But it also tells us that his ERA should not be this inflated for long.
Bryson Stott
Stott remains a contact-hitting king, but hits are not falling yet. His .493 OPS and 38 OPS+ are painful to look at, but he is still squaring up the ball as well as ever. He entered the weekend series against the Braves riding a five-game hitting streak, so he is already breaking out of this early, decrepit shell.
2 Phillies players whose cold starts we're worried about
Alec Bohm
Bohm seems to always fall into a historic slump, but his current slide has fans turning against him quicker than usual. Entering Friday, he is 0-for-his-last-23 with seven strikeouts. Six of his 10 RBI were recorded in two games. This streakiness is pitting him in an even deeper hole than when he said on the field that he hates Philadelphia. Is it time to really move on from Bohm?
The team's top prospect, Aidan Miller, getting hurt ahead of the season bought Bohm some time. For now.
Taijuan Walker
In three starts, Walker has not walked off the mound once with Phillies fans feeling good about his performance. He can't pitch past the fifth inning. He labors through each start, throwing 99, 87, and 85 pitches in spite of recording minimal outs.
Everything about his game is trending down. His fastball is slower, his xERA is abysmal, and he is not getting anyone to swing and miss at anything. The panic button should already pressed on Walker.
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