The second half is underway. That means that the Philadelphia Phillies are heading into what can only be described as the most important two and a half months of regular season baseball this core has played. The MLB trade deadline is the first item up on the schedule, and once July 31 passes the Phillies will be headlining a national broadcast mere days later.
Coming out of the All-Star break, ESPN announced that it had picked up the Phillies' Aug. 3 home game against the Detroit Tigers for Sunday Night Baseball. Originally scheduled for 1:35 p.m. at Citizens Bank Park, the series finale now has a start time of 7:00 p.m. ET.
At 59-38, the Tigers hold the best record in baseball. They're running away with the American League Central, boasting an 11.5-game lead heading into Friday's action. Leading the National League East by half a game coming out of the break, the Phillies, at 55-41, have less than two weeks to make some much-needed improvements to the roster for the stretch drive to the postseason.
Phillies should look different by the time they're featured on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball after the trade deadline
Phillies fans will be hoping that by the time this Sunday Night Baseball national broadcast rolls around, their team will be featuring some big-time additions from the trade deadline. They certainly could be if the rumors are true that Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is gearing up for his most aggressive deadline with the team.
The bullpen will likely be Dombrowski's primary focus, but the outfield/lineup situation could also use some attention.
Despite getting the suspended José Alvarado back in less than a month, the big lefty won't be eligible for the playoffs. With veteran offseason signings Jordan Romano and Joe Ross not performing the way the front office had hoped for, the relief corps is paper thin. Despite some turnover at the edges, the bullpen holds a 23rd-ranked 4.38 ERA to begin the second half. Phillies relievers have been better in July, however, taking a 3.03 ERA into the break.
The Phillies have already been connected to the Cleveland Guardians' closer Emmanuel Clase, the Pittsburgh Pirates' David Bednar and Dennis Santana, and the duo of Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax of the Minnesota Twins.
They'll also be shopping for a right-handed outfield bat to insert into the lineup. With the Max Kepler experiment in left field officially a bust and the Brandon Marsh-Johan Rojas center field platoon always in danger of falling apart, Dombrowski will try to add some more firepower. There's no guarantee that will happen, though (subscription required), at least according to Matt Gelb of The Athletic.
This isn't the only game on the schedule that the Phillies had "flexed" over the break. Apple TV+ announced that their Aug. 29 home game against the Atlanta Braves has been changed to an exclusive Friday Night Baseball broadcast. The Sunday finale of that four-game NL East clash is already scheduled as the Phillies' second ESPN Sunday Night Baseball game of the month.