3 Phillies players who already have our trust entering the 2024 season
As the Philadelphia Phillies prepare for spring training in Clearwater, Florida, we look at three players firmly established in the hearts of fans.
Trust can be a funny thing in professional sports, to the point that some individuals can often end up receiving too much or not enough. These scenarios are no different for the Philadelphia Phillies, whether it be the front office, coaches, or fans determining what the trust level should be for certain players.
For the purpose of this article, we're going to stick to when players are actually deserving of the trust they receive. Without further ado, here are three Phillies players who have already done enough to earn the appreciation of everyone connected with the organization ahead of the 2024 season.
Zack Wheeler
First, we turn to the most reliable pitcher on the Phillies staff, Zack Wheeler. He's more than proved value for money since signing a free agent deal at the end of 2019 to come to Philadelphia, for five years and $118 million.
The talent was never in question, but there were some concerns about Wheeler's durability. However, for the most part he's been healthy and available during his four seasons to date with the Phillies, hence only reinforcing the trust in him.
The 33-year-old pretty much earned the confidence of the Phillies faithful almost from the word go during the COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign. As per Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer, he became the first pitcher in club history (subscription required) to allow three or fewer runs in each of his first 10 starts for the team.
Wheeler was even better the following season, in what proved to be a career year. He set a whole host of single-season bests, including 14 wins, a 2.78 ERA, 2.59 FIP and 1.008 WHIP.
The righty additionally proved the doubters wrong about his propensity for getting injured, as he led all pitchers with a career-high 213 1/3 innings. He also led the NL with a career-best 247 strikeouts, as he went on to finish second in NL Cy Young voting.
Wheeler was only slightly below this standard in 2022, as his 2.82 ERA, 2.89 FIP and 1.039 WHIP were all the second-best of his career to date. He more than played his part in helping the Phillies advance to their first World Series since 2009.
Despite the emergence of Aaron Nola, any doubt about the Phillies' staff ace was put to bed last season. Wheeler proved to be the very personification of reliable, and then some.
The 2009 sixth overall draft pick equaled his career high of 32 starts, as he went 13-6 and finished sixth in NL Cy Young voting. He produced a 3.61 ERA, 3.15 WHIP, and 1.078 WHIP while throwing the second-most strikeouts of his career and setting a new single-season low with a 5.0 percent walk rate.
Wheeler was even more effective during the postseason, recording a 1.95 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 27 2/3 combined innings. He was tremendous in the NLCS as he went 2-0 in two starts, producing a 1.84 ERA and 0.750 WHIP, to have the Phillies on the verge of another World Series before they collapsed in Games 6 and 7.
The Smyrna, Georgia native also became the first Phillies pitcher since 1981 to win a Gold Glove Award, to cap a wonderful individual 2023 campaign. If anyone deserves to receive complete and utter trust — and loyalty — from Phillies fans, it's Wheeler.
J.T. Realmuto
After five seasons in Philadelphia, J.T. Realmuto is already the second-best catcher in team history and closing in on the No. 1 spot. If that isn't enough reason to deserve trust, then we don't know what is.
Realmuto has been getting it done for the Phillies ever since arriving in a trade from Miami prior to the 2019 season. With all due respect to the return package of Jorge Alfaro, Sixto Sánchez and Will Stewart — as well as $250,000 in international bonus slot money — they were more than worth it.
The Del City, Oklahoma native played with a new sense of freedom during his first season in Philadelphia, having wanted to leave the Marlins for some time. Galvanized by a change of scenery, he immediately strengthened the Phillies' catcher position both at and behind the plate.
Realmuto had career highs of 25 home runs and a .493 slugging percentage, while also hitting an at-the-time single-season best of 83 RBI. He earned his first-ever Gold Glove and All-MLB First Team selection, as well as his second Silver Slugger Award and All-Star appearance.
However, as impressive as the 32-year-old's 2019 campaign was — and it really was — it speaks volumes that it doesn't stand out as the best of his time in Philadelphia. Instead, that honor goes to his play during the 2022 season.
The 2022 season was special for the Phillies in general, due to their return to the World Series for the first time since 2009. And on an individual level, Realmuto proved to be the real deal (apologies for that blatant, lame play on words).
The 2010 third-round draft pick hit a career-high 84 RBI, which highlighted another strong offensive season that won him his third Silver Slugger Award. He was also once again stellar behind the plate, as he went on to collect his second Gold Glove Award.
Realmuto continued his impressive season by not being fazed during the first playoff action of his career, as the Phillies only fell short at the final hurdle, in six games to the Houston Astros in the World Series. As if to cement how good he was in 2022, he finished a career-high seventh in NL MVP voting.
An important contributing factor to the three-time All-Star's success in Philadelphia has been dismissing the notion that he wears down over the course of a season. In this respect, he's currently on a streak of catching the most games in the NL for three consecutive years.
There is understandable concern that Realmuto's age will catch up with him soon, and in this respect, 2023 wasn't his best. But for now, he's still ranked by MLB Network as the game's fourth-best catcher (and this is after three seasons being ranked as the best). Up to a certain point trust has to be earned, but he's now at a point where it deserves to be given automatically.
Bryce Harper
If you're looking for a way to earn the trust of coaches, teammates, fans or whoever, a couple of ways to achieve this are persevering through pain and being amenable to where and how you are used. In the case of Bryce Harper, he's done both of these during the past two seasons.
First up, Harper suffered a UCL injury to his right elbow early in the 2022 season. It speaks volumes that he took a plasma injection to deal with the pain and continue playing, although he did have to restrict himself to DH.
Unfortunately for the two-time NL Hank Aaron Award winner, the sporting gods hadn't finished having fun with him yet. He suffered another injury in late June and was ruled out indefinitely, although those same sporting gods hadn't reckoned with his superior mental fortitude, and he was back with the Phillies by late August.
Harper would proceed to endear himself even more to the Philadelphia faithful, as he played a pivotal role in helping the Phillies advance through the playoffs despite being underdogs. His first postseason action since 2017 was highlighted by being named NLCS MVP, although the team ultimately came up short to the Astros in the World Series.
The seven-time All-Star continued to earn the admiration of Phillies fans after undergoing offseason Tommy John surgery and returning to action last May. Thanks to Rhys Hoskins' season-ending injury and Darick Hall's struggles, Harper was asked to contribute at first base, albeit while still being used as a DH in the majority of his games.
After playing almost exclusively in the outfield during his career, the 31-year-old duly obliged. He proved to be reliable with just one error in 36 starts at first base and no mistakes in 13 further starts at the position during the postseason.
On the subject of the postseason, Harper continued to show what he's all about, particularly in the NLDS versus the Atlanta Braves. He had an eye-popping .462/.611/1.154 slash line and 1.765 OPS in four games, to beat the favored Braves and advance to the NLCS.
The three-time Silver Slugger is all about the team despite his perceived surly demeanor, and in this respect, he will become the Phillies' full-time starting first baseman in 2024. It will be interesting to see how he adapts, but all indications are he'll be just fine.
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In all honesty, Harper had already done more than enough to earn the trust of Phillies fans. He's been nothing but fantastic during his five years in Philadelphia with a bevy of achievements, highlighted by winning his second NL MVP in 2021.
If the Phillies are going to finally win the World Series in 2024 after two near misses, everyone associated with the team is confident Harper will be at the heart of it all.
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