The Philadelphia Phillies finished off a West Coast trip that concluded with a three-game series loss to the imposing Los Angeles Dodgers. This was also the Phillies' first time returning to Dodger Stadium since the catastrophic Orion Kerkering blunder that ended their 2025 postseason chances.
They dropped two of three in Los Angeles over the weekend, drawing similar results from their shortened postseason run. The Phillies' starting pitching shined in moments, but the offense failed to spark any significant threat. It's been a recipe for disaster, and one that Phillies fans would rather not relive again this year.
The Phillies have made the postseason each of the last four years, and regardless of how dominant the newest rendition of the team looks during the regular season, it always seems to come crumbling down when facing elimination. The Phillies were outscored 16-7 over the weekend, with their only victory coming via a late comeback in the eighth inning on Saturday. The Phillies have a good overall roster but have to provide offense to pose any threat against other top teams in MLB.
Phillies can't solely rely on starting pitching to carry them to postseason success
Since the Pirates series, here’s how things are going for the Phillies offense:
— Jack Fritz (@JackFritzWIP) June 1, 2026
They’ve scored the least amount of runs in baseball, they have the lowest average in baseball, the lowest OBP and are 27th in slug.
In particular, Adolis García is 3 for his last 57 with 30…
The Phillies' starting staff may be one of the best in all of baseball, but that won't matter if they can't hit against other top pitching teams. Against the Phillies, the Dodgers' starters (Justin Wrobleski, Roki Sasaki, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto) pitched to a 1.02 ERA with 26 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings. Those three arguably aren't even the Dodgers' best three options to start a game, but they kept the Phillies at bay, extinguishing any life the Phillies rotation gave them.
The series has been a microcosm of how the offense has looked as the calendar turns to June. Previously, the Phillies were able to slug their way to the postseason with a starting staff being the cherry on top. That has been anything but the truth during the 2026 regular season.
As a club, they rank 28th in MLB with 3.9 runs per game. Last year they ranked eighth with 4.78 runs scored per game. Their team's .673 OPS also ranks 28th compared to last year's .759 OPS, which ranked fourth. Phillies fans' current concerns with Adolís Garcia, along with other expected impact bats in the lineup, have also played into the worries if the Phillies' offense can sustain.
The Phillies have a starting pitcher ERA of 4.12 and a 6.6 fWAR, good for fifth in MLB. They continue to roll out and dominate on the mound, with Cristopher Sánchez pleading his case for his first career Cy Young Award this year. They will always be in contention with their pitching, but the offense has to come around to have a real shot at postseason success.
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