Jim Salisbury Joins Us To Discuss The Phillies Making The Playoffs
The drought is over! The Phillies are in the playoffs! And Jim Salisbury joined “The Best Show Ever?” to discuss the Phillies making it. Does Jim think they could win in the first round? How did JT and Kyle Schwarber turn their seasons around? Here is some of what Jim had to say to us…
On the weight being lifted off this team…
“This drought has been hanging around this franchise’s neck for a while. And the weight has only gotten heavier as they spent more and more money. It’s been painful for the ownership group, and for the players, especially the guys who have been around for a while. And they have really worn it, and felt the weight. The weight got more pronounced in September. I thought they were really pressing. But last night what I sensed was euphoria, excitement, and another emotion, relief. A great deal of relief that they were able to punch this ticket, and get to the postseason. And lift this weight, I would even call it a burden. I think everyone takes a deep breath now. Enjoy what they have done. And see if they can go out and pull off a miracle. Who knows?”
On JT Realmuto turning his season around…
This is a 6 month season. A test of your skill, endurance, and your mental strength. And nothing tests it more like the grind of baseball. Just because you have a few bad months, doesn’t mean you can’t have 4 good months. And that is what we saw with JT Realmuto. He didn’t get off to a good start at the plate. He was searching for things, he was messing with his toe tap, he was messing with everything. A tinkering player is not a confident player. But in mid-June he found it…
We have seen an awesome display behind the plate and at it… What he does for that pitching staff, Zach Wheeler’s numbers with runners on base are much improved. And he says that is because he is staying in his mechanics. He is not rushing. And the reason he is not rushing is that he has confidence the man at the plate is going to control the running game, so he doesn’t have to… JT has had one of the best seasons a catcher has ever had.
On what Kyle Schwarber does for this team…
If they didn’t have Kyle Schwarber they’d be packing boxes and getting ready to go home… They would be going home if it wasn’t for Kyle Schwarber. Going into the month of June they were a dead team… The guy who put everybody on his back was Kyle Schwarber… Every night you couldn’t wait to see what this guy was going to do to put this team on his back… I think they are going home without Schwarber. You can debate who the MVP was… But they are not here without Kyle Schwarber. people say he is hitting .213. Who cares. he has 46 bombs. He shows up in big games. He’s getting hot again. And on top of the production, he is a tremendous leader, one of the best I’ve ever seen… To me, he is Jason Kelce, without the Mummers outfit.
On how their rotation gives them a chance vs any lineup…
As far as the rotation, this is what you have always liked about the Phillies. They have a shot because they have Wheeler and Nola at the top. Those guys at any point in time can beat any lineup in Baseball. If I am a favored team, I don’t want to face Wheeler or Nola. because I know what they can do to a bat rack. I am not saying it’s going to happen, but it has a chance to happen.
Listen to the full interview with Jim below…
