97.5 The Fanatic Phillies Notebook: Sweeping the Dodgers, MLB Draft Preview

Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers traveled to Citizens Bank Park to face the Phillies this week. The home team put a supposed slump behind them with a series sweep by a 19-5 combined score in all three games.

The Phillies play one home series against the Oakland Athletics before the All-Star Break. After Sunday’s series finale, the eyes of the baseball world will shift towards the 2024 MLB Draft and the MLB All-Star Game.

All stats as of the beginning of play on July 12

The Phillies lost two of three games against the rival Braves at Truist Park last weekend. They slipped to 13-12 in a less impressive stretch since the unusual MLB London Series.

Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and J.T. Realmuto had all spent time on IL.

The return of lefties Harper and Schwarber sparked a dominant sweep of the National League’s second best team in 2024.

Trea Turner led the charge in a 10-1 blowout win on Tuesday. He went 7-12 in the series with six RBI and two home runs. Perhaps he took the questioning of his All-Star selection personally.

Schwarber also homered twice in the series sweep that gave the Phillies a commanding 6.5 game lead over the Dodgers for the NL’s best record.

The Dodgers traveled to Citizens Bank Park without Mookie Betts. Their starting staff during a potential postseason matchup would likely feature Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Clayton Kershaw. The trio provides an exponentially bigger threat than Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, and Landon Knack.

Phillies pitchers still deserve credit for their approach against the best baseball player in the world, however. Shohei Ohtani provides a long ball threat every time he steps to the plate. He went 3-10 without an extra-base hit in the series.

Zack Wheeler faced Ohtani leading off in the top of the first in the series opener. Blowing a 98 mile per hour fastball past the Japanese sensation for strike three set a tone that the rest of the staff followed.

Matt Strahm inherited two runners in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s game with Ohtani coming to bat. A potential go-ahead home run didn’t scare Strahm. He struck out Ohtani with a wipeout slider that further established a reliever whose All-Star first half was no fluke.

Aaron Nola followed suit by sending Ohtani on a long walk back to the dugout in the fifth inning of Thursday’s series finale. Nola spoke after the game about how the staff’s ability to get ahead in the count kept them in control against Shohei Ohtani in all three games.

Hours after 30 MLB teams hit the All-Star Break, their front offices will turn their attention to the 2024 MLB Draft.

The opening round begins in Fort Worth, Texas on Sunday, July 14 at 7pm. The later rounds will wrap up on Monday and Tuesday afternoons.

Phillies Assistant GM Brian Barber spoke on Wednesday about the crop of talent in 2024, the best scouting practices that the front office uses, and the organization’s outlook with the 27th-overall pick.

While college position players might dominate the top 10, Barber also mentioned depth at all four levels of the talent crop (college position players, college pitchers, high school position players, and high school pitchers). 

The Phillies have used their first-round on a high school player four years in a row.

Jurrangelo Cijntje should draw some attention when his name is called on Sunday. The “switch pitcher” from Mississippi State has first-round talent as a right-hander. The major league organization that picks him in the MLB Draft might or might not allow him to develop as a left-hander too.

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The Phillies removed Zack Wheeler from his start on Tuesday because of tightness in his lower back. He’ll miss his scheduled start against the Oakland Athletics on Sunday in the final game before the MLB All-Star Game.

The injury likely isn’t serious, and Wheeler should return well-rested after the break.

Tommy Phillips, the local favorite from Bishop Eustace in Pennsauken, NJ, will start in place of Michael Mercado on Saturday. The Phillies haven’t announced a starter for the series finale.

The best starting rotation in the majors still holds the top spot in ERA by a significant margin despite a recent speed bump. Matt Gelb spoke on 97.5 The Fanatic about the plan to manage the health and performance of the pitching staff in the coming months.

The Phillies will wait for updates on Spencer Turnbull and Taijuan Walker during the second half of the season. However, they don’t have many favorable options in the fifth and sixth positions otherwise.

If Phillips capitalizes on his opportunity, expect the Phillies to give him a longer look at some point in 2024.