97.5 The Fanatic Phillies Notebook: Showdown With Mets

Orion Kerkering slammed the door on the Miami Marlins for another series victory. The Philadelphia Phillies and their fans quickly turned their minds away from a last place “bottom feeder,” however.

The New York Mets will visit the Phillies this weekend at Citizens Bank Park with first place in the National League East on the line.

The Mets enter Citizens Bank Park with the satisfaction of the rivalry’s upper hand over the Phillies. They’ve reignited Philadelphia’s venom for a team that had previously taken a backseat to the Atlanta Braves as the chief rival of the current Phillies era of World Series contention.

The month of June has brought stunningly extreme peaks and valleys in the NL East standings. The Phillies began the month in a freefall, but the Mets have more recently squandered a lead during a rough six-game losing streak entering the weekend.

New York’s starting rotation has stunningly survived pitching injuries to post the best starter’s ERA in the majors.

More talented staffs like the Phillies, Dodgers, or Mariners might gain better rhythm and catch the Mets with ace Kodai Senga on the injured list. However, surprises like David Peterson, Griffin Canning, and Clay Holmes are responsible for keeping their team in first place nearing the midway point of 2025.

Juan Soto struggled out of the gates after joining the Mets on his record-setting free agent contract. However, he’s unsurprisingly begun to look like a top-tier MLB hitter in recent weeks.

The Phillies went down with a whimper that left Red October dreams unfulfilled in the 2024 NLDS. The disappointment carried through the offseason and into spring training. The Mets also completed an eerily similar series sweep at Citi Field in late April that underscored the doubt surrounding the Phillies within their own fan base.

The weekend Phillies-Mets series at Citizens Bank Park has implications at the top of the standings, but it won’t make or break the NL East race in 2025. The mindset of skeptical Phillies fans, however, could sway with a series victory. Nothing drives excitement in Philadelphia like kicking a rival team and its chesty fans out Citizens Bank Park with a tough loss to swallow.

The Mets series begins a schedule hurricane for the Phillies with six of their next seven series against opponents currently over .500, including five that currently occupy playoff positions.

The 18-game stretch will lead into the MLB All-Star Break from July 14-17.

The drama dissipated after Rob Thomson benched Nick Castellanos in the second game of the Marlins series. The Phillies hope to leave the disagreement in South Florida, but first, Castellanos inevitably had to become the main character in his first game back in the lineup.

Castellanos put the first pitch in play in each of his first four at-bats, and his first of two hits came in the seventh inning with a 400-foot double off the center-field wall. He also made a running catch on the warning track to record the final out on a ball that could've tied the game if it had fallen.

Thomson praised the things his player did well. The fourth-year manager also admitted when asked about a baserunning mix-up with Alec Bohm that an overanxious jump by Castellanos initially caused the issue.

Castellanos finished 0/4 with two strikeouts in the series finale. He didn’t back up first base on a throw that Bohm sailed over Otto Kemp’s head in the second inning. Thomson kept his embattled right fielder in the game for the ninth inning with a 2-1 score and a superior defensive outfielder Johan Rojas available on the bench.

While the ironic night on Wednesday helped fizzle the disagreement, the Phillies owe Castellanos $20 million in annual salary through 2026.

He’s underperformed relative to high expectations through three and half seasons of his five-year contract. The organization now has to monitor the extent and impact of his backlash against the manager for a World Series contending team that has a reputation for a strong clubhouse bond.

97.5 The Fanatic will broadcast the final two games of the upcoming Mets series at Citizens Bank Park.

The Sunday Night Baseball crew called the (only) highlight of the 2024 MLB Playoffs in Philadelphia. Nick Castellanos finished off a Game 2 rally with a walk-off base hit on the Fanatic airwaves.

Mike Couzens and Doug Glanville will team up for the ESPN simulcasts.

Glanville played center field for parts of six seasons in two stints with the Phillies. His best career season came in 1999 during the glory days of the franchise when former teammate Ricky Bottalico held down the bullpen at Veterans Stadium.

The University of Penn graduate memorably visited Citizens Bank Park last summer to unveil the new “Monty’s Angle” nickname on the left-center field wall.

Tune in for game broadcasts and pregame coverage on 97.5 The Fanatic beginning at 6:30pm on Saturday and 6pm on Sunday leading you up to first pitch.

All numbers as of the beginning of play on June 20. All advanced stats courtesy of StatCast, Baseball Reference, and FanGraphs.