Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez tries to spark slumping Phillies players with direct call-out

To say the Phillies have had a rollercoaster season would be an understatement. The Jekyll-and-Hyde nature of the Phillies has impacted nearly the whole team. From the losing streak that got Rob Thomson fired at the start of the season to becoming one of the winningest teams in baseball, we've now seen a September slump fueled by inconsistency that nearly kicked the team out of the playoff field.

Aaron Nola went from almost unplayable in the first half of the season to one of the Phillies’ best starting pitchers in the second half. Brandon Marsh followed that arc in the opposite direction, going from All-Star starter to one of the worst hitters in baseball.

The Phillies' uneven play has frustrated fans and analysts alike, and now Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez is the latest to call them out.

Pedro Martinez pins Phillies' issues directly on the players

Pedro Martinez, who pitched for the Phillies in 2009 on the way to the team winning the NLCS, had a direct message for the team. Speaking on Foul Territory with AJ Pierzynski,  Martinez called out the Phillies players specifically for their inconsistency.

“The Phillies, when are they gonna finally click?” Martinez said. “And I think it’s their responsibility, but it’s not about anyone but the players. I’m gonna call out the players. They have experience, they have pitching, they have relievers, they have everything, and now it’s up to them. This is a big moment for the Philadelphia Phillies to get their heartbeat checked, cause the Philadelphia Phillies have been sniffing the World Series so many times with a whole bunch of stars, a whole bunch of numbers. And they have everything, experience and all to win it. I would have to check their hearts because they need to make it happen.”

Martinez is clearly frustrated by the Phillies faltering in the postseason every year, despite having the pieces in place to make a World Series run. Martinez continued by referencing the Phillies' series against the Dodgers last season, where the Phillies had home-field advantage and got quality starts out of all of their starters, but couldn’t finish the job due to both lack of run support and the bullpen falling apart.

“We saw it against the Dodgers last year,” Martinez noted. “They were just unbelievable, but they just couldn’t close the door. I think the players individually need to look themselves in the mirror because that can be one of the best teams in the postseason.”

For the Phillies to live up to the potential Martinez believes they have, they will need to overcome a disastrous September stretch.

The Phillies' offensive numbers have been ugly this month

Part of the Phillies' struggles this season has been the entire lineup taking turns going into massive slumps, and this month the problem has become more widespread. This season, the Phillies rank 27th in wRC+ and 24th in OBP.  In September, despite ranking near the bottom of the league, those numbers have somehow gotten worse.

This month, the Phillies' wRC+ is tied for 29th, their OBP is 28th, and their FanGraphs rating is the worst in baseball at -10.3. For the Phillies to make a run this postseason, they’ll need to play against their own tendencies; however, history is not on their side.

According to Anthony Esbensen of The Good Phight, the last time a team finished in the bottom 10 in wRC+ and made the World Series was the 2014 Kansas City Royals, who finished 21st.

The Phillies over the last few seasons haven’t lived up to their lofty postseason expectations, and as Pedro Martinez said, it’s time for the players to start looking in the mirror.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow