Least clutch players:
1. JT Realmuto
Everyone can see that Realmuto hasn’t had the most ideal season at the plate. He is currently hitting just .250 on the season with career high in strikeouts and nearing a career low on base percentage. The clutch numbers don’t exactly get any better and in fact, look much worse. In Late & Close game situations he is hitting an abysmal .197/.315/.610. His high leverage numbers don’t show much improvement hitting .212/.333/.710. Striking out has been a big issue this season for the 32-year-old catcher and it shows, striking out 75 times in high and medium leverage situations in comparison to just 21 walks in the same spots. The Phillies need their All-Star catcher to step up in these important situations in order to truly capitalize on the opportunities presented to them.
2. Trea Turner
While the numbers for Trea Turner look much better since the standing ovations on August 4th, the season long clutch numbers leave a lot to be desired. The numbers seem almost made up as he is batting a putrid .172/.238/.428 with RISP and two outs. And they stay on the low end in Late & Close game situations as well slashing .173/.247/.519. However, this is a stark difference from Turner’s 2022 numbers. In two out and RISP situations in 2022 he hit .313/.343/.821 and in Late & Close situations he was .418/.439/.933. It just goes to show that the All-Star shortstop has it in him and he has definitely shown it as of late with his hot hitting and homerun power. The Phillies hope that his confidence continues to grow which will directly translate to his clutch stats. Being inserted back in the two-hole spot in the lineup, he will have many opportunities to contribute after Schwarber draws his many walks and it will be the difference between a win and a loss in many cases.
Following one of the many late inning comeback wins, Turner recently said that this team never feels like they are out of the game and a lot of teams don’t truly think they can come back but that this team always feels they have a chance. It is very clear that the whole team shares that sentiment as they have shown their fight time after time again. While it would be great for the Phillies to get out to early leads and win easy games, it’s nice to know that they have the guys in the clubhouse who are capable of coming from behind and fighting to the end.