Phillies’ Nick Castellanos is ‘locked in’ at a historic playoff pace

Castellanos hit his fifth home run in three postseason games, joining Reggie Jackson as the only players to do so.

Nick Castellanos hits a solo home run in the second inning of Game 1 on Monday. He's had five homers over the course of three games.Read moreYong Kim / Staff Photographer

Published Oct. 17, 2023, 12:32 a.m. ET

Nick Castellanos is locked in. His coaches can tell. His manager can tell. He can tell. It’s not just the fact that he’s slashed .370/.414/1.000 this postseason, or that he’s hit five home runs. It’s where he’s driving the ball.

In the second inning of the Phillies’ 5-3 win over the Diamondbacks in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, the right fielder stepped up to the plate, saw two pitches from Arizona starter Zac Gallen, and launched a four-seam fastball into the right-field seats. Up until that point, he’d hit all of his postseason home runs to left or left-center.

This one carried a different meaning.

“It means I’m locked in,” Castellanos said.

“When he’s really good, he’s driving the ball to right-center field,” said manager Rob Thomson. “And that’s what he did tonight. Every once in a while, he’ll clip something out front and pull it like he has the last couple of nights.

“He’s on a tear right now. Knock on wood he keeps going.”

It was Castellanos’ fifth home run in his past three games. According to ESPN Stats and Info, only two players have accomplished such a feat in the postseason: Castellanos and Mr. October himself, Reggie Jackson, who did it for the Yankees during Games 4-6 of the 1977 World Series.

What Castellanos has done is even more impressive when you consider his postseason history up to this point. Over his 85 postseason at-bats in 2014 with the Tigers, 2020 with the Reds, and 2022 with the Phillies, he hit only one home run, and slashed .188/.242/.282.

This year, he’s looked like a completely different player. A more confident player. His teammates have noticed it, too.

“You can just see that confidence in his demeanor,” said catcher J.T. Realmuto last week. “That’s who Nick is. And you can tell when he’s feeling good at the plate. His confidence just beams and radiates throughout the whole dugout. He’s been that guy for us all season long. So to see him succeed on this stage is no surprise to us.”

Added Castellanos: “Since the postseason, I feel like I’ve settled in nice. I’m happy with where I’m at.”

He is aware that he joined an exclusive club on Monday night, one that is occupied by only himself and a player nicknamed Mr. October. For now, he said that doesn’t mean much. He has one focus. It’s why he flips his ring finger toward the dugout after most of his home runs.

“I’m interested in winning seven more games,” he said. “I’m sure I’ll hear about it from my family when I get home.

“If we don’t win seven more games, it means very little to me.”