During the first month of 2024, the Philadelphia Phillies are within the top five clubs in Major League Baseball according to power rankings released with the start of spring training near. It is to be anticipated that Philly would be placed high among the top franchises, considering they lost in last year's National League Championship Series and were the 2022 World Series runner-up.
Jake Reuter of Bleacher Report ranked the Phillies as the No. 3 team in the majors. Only the NL East rival Atlanta Braves (No. 2) and Los Angeles Dodgers (No. 1) are ahead of Philadelphia. Rounding out numbers four through 10 include the Minnesota Twins (10), Tampa Bay Rays (9), Baltimore Orioles (8), Arizona Diamondbacks (7), Texas Rangers (6), Houston Astros (5), and New York Yankees (4).
Where all 30 teams stand less than a month away from spring training ⌛️ @JoelReuterBR pic.twitter.com/ALTYa4RbYm
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) January 25, 2024
Will Leitch of MLB.com listed the Phillies at No. 5 in his inaugural power rankings piece released earlier in January on New Year's Day. He placed the Orioles (4), Rangers (3), Dodgers (2), and Braves (1) ahead of the Phils.
Our New Year's Resolution: Perfect power rankings throughout 2024.
— MLB (@MLB) January 2, 2024
1-for-1. 😉 pic.twitter.com/3T8msi1VCL
The Phillies enter 2024 in their second consecutive year of looking to return to the World Series after reaching it for the first time in 13 years two seasons ago. They haven't been nearly as active in the trade/free agent market this offseason as two of their primary competitors in the National League, the Braves and Dodgers.
The odds are good that, presuming Philadelphia makes the postseason for a third straight season, one or both of Atlanta and Los Angeles will also qualify. Philly may also need to defeat one or both of these teams to win their second NL pennant in three years.
Despite their lackluster offseason in terms of roster additions, Philadelphia continues to be mentioned in rumors to make some changes, before or during spring training. Signing free agents or making trades for the sake of doing so is not always wise, but the Phillies did come up short of returning to the World Series last year with the same roster they currently have.
There are several moves the Phillies could make between now and the start of the 2024 season on March 28. Philadelphia has a talented roster but would benefit from making a few other additions. The organization may wait until an injury occurs in spring training or possibly until the trade deadline during the summer to do so. If they get off to a better start to their season than last year, it could be the difference in finishing among the top three to five teams in baseball or not entering the postseason at all.