The Philadelphia Phillies have been one of the best teams in baseball since they fired manager Joe Girardi and gave the interim tag to Rob Thomson.
In 63 games with Thomson as manager, the Phillies have gone 41-22.
But, they still sit 11.5 games behind the New York Mets for first place in the NL East.
Do they still have a chance to win the division title?
It looks like that answer is “no” because with only a month-and-a-half left of baseball, making up 11.5 games is too difficult.
Plus, the Phillies have not had much success against New York this season.
Philadelphia is 4-11 against their division rivals and that is a large reason why they are in such a big hole.
Not to mention the Phillies are still behind the Atlanta Braves in the division race.
Meaning they have to jump two teams to win the NL East.
The Phillies have seven more games against Atlanta and four more games against the Mets this season.
Those games will decide whether or not the NL East championship is still in the cards for the Phillies.
Since June 26th, the Phillies are 24-13
Only the Mets and Dodgers are better in the NL during that span.Oh yeah and this is without BRYCE HARPER
Things are getting scary in Philly @BarstoolPhilly pic.twitter.com/6uMkTIASzl
— Starting 9 (@Starting9) August 11, 2022
Easy Remaining Schedule
According to tankathon.com, the Phillies have the fifth-easiest strength of schedule remaining.
They still get to play the likes of Washington, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati who are three of the worst teams in all of baseball.
The issue for Philadelphia is that the Mets have the fourth-easiest schedule the rest of the way.
Plus with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer back in the cards for New York, the deficit for the Phillies seems insurmountable.
What has been most surprising for the Phillies is their ability to have success without Bryce Harper.
The reigning NL MVP has been out since June 25 when he was hit by a pitch and broke his thumb.
While the division crown is seemingly out of reach the Phillies still have postseason aspirations.
The new playoff format allows for a third Wild Card team to make the playoffs.
That third Wild Card team is currently the Phillies and getting Harper back could help push them back into the postseason for the first time since 2011.
The trade deadline acquisitions of David Robertson, Noah Syndergaard, and Brandon Marsh have presented a win-now mode vibe.
David Robertson gets the save and the Phillies take game 1 in NY! pic.twitter.com/vyC6Gp3Jes
— Brodes Media (@BrodesMedia) August 13, 2022
But, the 22-29 start with Girardi put the Phillies behind the eight ball and they have not been able to recover those games in the NL East standings.
The playoffs remain a must for a Phillies team that has one of the biggest payrolls in all of baseball.
The offseason signings of Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber have to pay off in October.
Ultimately, the NL East crown is out of reach for the Phillies.
But, they can still finish the season strong and make a push for one of the three Wild Card spots.
With a one-two punch of Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola, the Phillies can compete in any playoff series they find themselves in.
With a strong finish to the season, the Phillies should find themselves in the playoffs and Thomson should find himself with a deal to be the team’s manager moving forward.
