Phillies Are Not Built For The Moment, And These Quotes Prove It
The Phillies losing games 1 and 2 is frustrating enough. Especially when it is the same story we have seen in the past few years. Bats go cold, the bullpen…
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA – AUGUST 30: Nick Castellanos #8 of the Philadelphia Phillies reacts after striking out in the fourth inning during a game against the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park on August 30, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
(Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)The Phillies losing games 1 and 2 is frustrating enough. Especially when it is the same story we have seen in the past few years. Bats go cold, the bullpen implodes, and the Phillies crumble. However, what made Monday night even more frustrating was the team's reaction during their postgame media availability.
There is nothing they could say that would make things better. No magic words are going to undo the pain of what looks like another ugly playoff exit. But they certainly can do more damage, and that is exactly what they did.
Rob Thomson Played For The Tie
Let's start with the one making the rounds the most online. Rob Thomson said that the Phillies were trying to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th when he had Bryson Stott try to bunt Nick Castellanos over.
“Left on left, we’re trying to tie the score. I liked where our bullpen was at.”- Rob Thomson
Admitting you were playing for a tie in a pivotal game 2 is baffling. And we saw how it blew up in their face.
The Phillies had momentum. They were hitting the ball well, and they had a man in scoring position with no outs. Things were good. Tying the game is not the goal there, especially when we have seen the bullpen struggle vs the Dodgers. You need to win it there.
Instead, they show bunt, the Dodgers are clearly ready for it, and you end up with a runner on 1st and 1 out. You never even tied the game because momentum completely swung the other way.
If you had let Stott swing, and he got out, you would still be in a great spot. Bader came up next and singled. That would have tied the game if Stott was on 1st. If Stott got on, you would now have two runners on, no outs, and a tie game anyway.
It was a bad decision at the moment, and Thomson admitting he wanted to tie the game is hard to get past. Is this series his fault? No. But if that is the mentality from the Skipper, if he is content to play for a tie, you start to see why this team seems to have such little fight.
Castellanos Blames The Fans
Nick Castellanos did have the big double in the game that made it a 1-score game. But any goodwill he gained from that moment was tossed away with what he said after the game.
“It’s super stimulating and euphoric if everything is going for us. But then it’s a very uphill climb when you can feel that everything is amplified negatively, like if you do something bad, you’re going to get a negative response. So, it makes it harder to play freely.
If everything is going good, and we’re rolling, it’s a b---h to play here if you’re an opposing team because the environment is amazing. But if we roll into adversity and the tide shifts, we’re playing more tight because we don’t want to be reprimanded for something bad and playing becomes more difficult.”- Nick Castellanos
Fans are not perfect or above criticism. Jimmy Rollins once justifiably called us out for being a bit fairweather. But these comments go beyond that. This is Castellnaos admitting that they can't handle pressure. It is him admitting why they have come unglued every year.
That is not the fan's fault, it is your fault. To pawn that off on people spending crazy money to see you lose is cowardly.
After the season he had, Castellanos doesn't have the right to criticize the fans like that. He is not Jimmy Rollins. he has not given the fanbase enough reasons to cheer to call them out when they boo. He has failed to live up to the contract since he got here, and has pouted when things don't go his way. The comments are just tone deaf.
Bohm Admits Team Doesn't Know How To Handle Spotlight
Why do the Phillis keep coming up small? Well, Bohm told us why after the game.
What Bohm is explaining is the difference between clutch and unclutch. He is literally admitting this team can't handle the moment.
We have seen players with the innate ability to step up in the moment in this city. Jalen Hurts does. He has his struggles at QB, but he makes the plays in the moment almost every time. The 2008 Phillies had that aura about them too.
But Bohm just admitted that this team does not have that clutch gene. He straight-up told us that they get tight and lose focus when that spotlight comes on.
You never saw Jordan say that those moments are tough. Kobe Bryant never came out and complained about how hard it is to meet the moment. But this Phillies team, and Bohm, will tell you straight up that it is tough to hit in those moments.
And that is why the Phillies keep coming up small. Deep down, they do not have what it takes to meet the moment. There is something wrong with the mental makeup of the team. We thought after 2022 that they had the clutch gene, because in that season they did. But somewhere along the way they lost that edge.
This series has proved it, and the comments they made after the game confirmed it.
