The Philadelphia Phillies pride themselves on remaining a top dog in the National League. Among the plethora of talent in MLB, sits a Phillies team that has consistently challenged the top contenders in each postseason run since they broke through and got to the World Series in 2022. The Phillies have found a formula for getting to the dance, but have yet to secure that dance on their own.
This season is another year into the Bryce Harper Phillies era and the same core around him is getting another year older. The window might not necessarily be closing, but a change is sure to be on the horizon in the near future. They still have the star power to get it done in the postseason even though the belief appears to be fading. The belief is also at the point where an underdog status could become the club's new identity.
Is the Phillies winning the World Series really a bold prediction?
According to MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince, the Phillies are losing time to finish the job, but his bold prediction for this season is that they will finally win the World Series and get to hold a parade on Broad Street. The team is still uber-talented and littered with pieces they need to run the gauntlet come postseason time. The Dodgers are stacked from top to bottom, but we've seen what a shortened playoff series can do to any club. Before winning the last two games against the San Diego Padres in last year's Division Series, the Dodgers were on the brink of losing their third straight NLDS.
The prediction of the Phillies winning a World Series isn't as bold as some fans seem to think. The Phillies are coming off a decade-long best win total with 95 and still have the pitching staff and lineup worthy of duplicating that success. The World Series isn't awarded during the regular season, and the Phillies know that. They've been able to dethrone the likes of the Atlanta Braves, the Padres and others, even when it looked like the Phillies were the inferior team. The Phillies are also willing to battle it out just within their division (subscription required), per Will Sammon, Matt Gelb, David O'Brien and Jim Bowden of The Athletic.
Compress the 162-game season into a playoff series, and it will show how any team can be beaten and how any team can put it all together for just a few weeks. The Phillies may not get a chance to prove themselves against the mighty Dodgers, but they can still prove that their elite core is capable of beating anyone who steps in their way if they play to their strengths.
Phillies managing partner John Middleton is 70 years old, which leaves an unknown of how much longer this can keep going. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is signed through 2027, so time isn't on their side. The team knows not every year is a given, and with all the outside distractions, this team can still go out and prove they're not done yet.