Sure. The Braves scored a ton of runs. The Phillies, save Nola, are horrible pitchers. The homers fly out of the park against the Phillies like a tornado tossing mobile homes. The reason: Realmuto’s movement behind the plate on pitch placement is tipping off hitters as to where and what type of pitches are coming. It may not be all the time. But it coincides with bad pitches, and it’s so long Mr. Spalding!
Second, the injuries to all the pitchers must be attributed to preparation by coaches. Today, players are private about training due to agents and incentive based contracts. No player is going to admit to be hurt. It will cost them money. But an injury changes contract incentives. Mums the word pays.
In the end, coaches must be able to diagnose pitchers who throw hurt. And two innings for closers and setup men is the past. Pitchers from little league throw entirely too much. Extra MLB pitching is a huge no-no! Tell that to Gabe Kapler. It isn’t 1977 when Sparky Lyle could pitch 6 innings in a playoff game and then come back to save the next game. No, these kid pitchers can’t pitch more than 20 pitches effectively as relievers. That’s all they got. And jerking pitchers like Velazquez around from starter to reliever and back is good enough to fire Kapler. But the injuries in the bullpen are truly shocking.
However, the real underlying reason the Phillies are doomed is that they can’t field very well. Save Franco at third, the team is a fielding disaster. Whereas, the Braves make plays in the field. And…. defense wins championships. Laugh if you must, but check the box scores. It really does. And for the Phillies, it won’t be playoffs this year until these three aforementioned problems are fixed.
The Philadelphia Post 