Johan Rojas
It may be harsh to ask rookie Johan Rojas to step up his game in just his first year with the big league club. But after seeing the impact other prominent rookies, such as Josh Jung of the Texas Rangers and Gabriel Moreno of the Diamondbacks, have had in helping their respective ballclubs to success in the playoffs, one just wishes Rojas could provide something similar for the Phillies.
There’s no denying he has brought elite-level defense throughout the postseason, but it may be time he makes some solid contributions with his bat and speed to become a difference-maker for the Phillies in Game 7.
Trea Turner
One must be wondering how on earth Trea Turner managed to make this list. After all, he has been perhaps the Phillies' best hitter during the 2023 postseason, and captured many key wins for the ballclub during that stretch.
However, since Game 2 of the NLCS, Turner has actually gone a woeful 2-for-15 with just one RBI, one walk and four strikeouts in the past four games, including being caught stealing in one of the rare times he has managed to get on base.
For the Phillies to win Game 7, they'll definitely need Turner to regain his dominant form seen throughout the first couple weeks of the postseason once again, or else all of the record-breaking stats they have accomplished this postseason will end up meaning nothing in the end.
Nick Castellanos
Finally, one of the unsung heroes for the Phillies in the 2023 postseason, Nick Castellanos had been bashing home runs like no tomorrow in powering the team to victory on many nights.
However, he appears to have suffered a power outage heading into the NLCS. In six games so far, he has only one hit in 20 at-bats along with nine strikeouts. Perhaps opposing pitchers have finally figured him out, but nevertheless, Castellanos will need to quickly adjust and figure something out soon for Game 7 before it becomes too late.