PHILADELPHIA _ There could come a time this month when the Phillies begin to look toward next season instead of that night's game. They could roll with lineups favoring players they need to learn more about, and shy from the veterans they acquired this summer. They could ease up on their young starting pitchers, end their seasons early, and allow them extra time to recover. The Phillies could start 2019 a bit early.
But Friday night _ as the Phillies rocked the Marlins, 14-2, to keep their slim playoff hopes alive _ was not that time. Aaron Altherr homered twice, Rhys Hoskins hit his 31st home run of the year, Mitch Walding homered off a position player for his first major-league hit, and Zach Eflin reached the seventh inning. The Phillies were staying in 2018 for now.
"We still have a chip and a chair," manager Gabe Kapler said. "And I think as long as we have a chip and a chair we are going to put the emphasis on winning tonight's baseball game."
The Phillies do still have a chair at the postseason card table and they are clinging to that final chip. If they're going to cash in come October, they'll have to go on quite the heater. The Phillies entered Friday trailing Atlanta by 7{ games with 17 remaining. The win snapped a five-game losing streak. A win Saturday or Sunday will give them their first series win in six weeks. The Phillies still have seven games left with the first-place Braves. A hot hand might be unlikely, but it is possible.
The Phillies were able to field a team Friday that was best fit to win that game while also providing some insight into the future. Altherr homered for the first time since June 6 as he spent the majority of the second half in Triple-A.
He was such a promising piece of the team's future last season before fizzling out this year. Altherr had an .856 OPS last season with 19 homers in 412 at-bats. The Phillies need to find out if that's who Altherr is or if he's closer to the batter who had a .305 slugging percentage in late July when he was dropped to the minors. The final two weeks could give a better picture, and Friday was a start.
Altherr was in the lineup because Kapler wanted to provide Eflin with an optimal defensive outfield. The smooth, athletic Altherr may be the best defender the Phillies have. And the manager also wanted to stack his lineup with right-handed hitters against Miami left-handed Wei-Yin Chen.
The Phillies started a lineup exclusively of right-handed batters and switch hitters. The strategy worked. Altherr blasted Chen's change-up in the second for a two-run homer to left. Roman Quinn, starting for the first time since fracturing his foot last week, followed three batters later with a homer off Chen as a protective brace shielded the injury. The switch-hitting Quinn was only in the lineup because he told Kapler that he felt comfortable batting right-handed despite the injury.
Altherr added another homer in the fifth after the Marlins took an early dip into their bullpen. The game quickly turned into a rout. Altherr provided the Phillies some hope that he could be in their plans for 2019. He also gave them the best chance to win on Friday night. And when you're down to a chip and a chair, every win matters.
