‘Uncomfortable memories’ await the Phillies upon their return to Houston for World Series rematch

After winning eight of 11 games to hike their record to .500, the Phillies' three-game series against their conquerors in Houston can only reinforce how close they came to finishing the job last year.

Kyle Schwarber will lead the Phillies back to Houston this weekend for a rematch of the World Series, which was won by the Astros last year.Read moreYong Kim / Staff Photographer

by Scott Lauber

Published April 28, 2023, 9:37 a.m. ET

A half-dozen or so players gathered around Kyle Schwarber’s locker in a corner of the quiet clubhouse. Some pulled up chairs, others wedged into a couch. But they all cracked open beers, kicked back, and decompressed for one last time.

That was Nov. 5, the night the 2022 Phillies lost the World Series.

They will walk back into that room Friday in Houston, and, well, it’s going to elicit emotions. Anger? Maybe. Regret? Possibly. Disappointment? Most definitely. As Nick Castellanos, who made the last out of decisive Game 6, said Thursday, “Those memories are too strong to pretend that they don’t exist.”

But returning to the scene of the crime also figures to bring back the visceral feelings from that night, when the despondency over seeing their championship hopes dashed by the Astros was offset by the pride of having gone on a memorable postseason ride that made Philadelphia fall hard for baseball again.

“I think the biggest thing was just kind of reminiscing on the whole year,” Schwarber said. “Everything just comes to an end, it’s over, and everyone’s going their separate ways. But you just went through a chance of a lifetime with a bunch of individuals, and those are memories that everyone’s going to remember for the rest of their lives.

“Being able to sit down and talk through the year, talk about the mess that we had at the start and how we were able to keep going through it — playoffs, World Series, all the great memories. Yeah man, it was a good time. Don’t get me wrong. Were we upset? Sure. But definitely proud about it as well that we were able to be there.”

In a sense, then, maybe this trip is exactly what the Phillies need. They went through the rituals of raising the pennant before the home opener at Citizens Bank Park and getting their National League championship rings. Now, after winning eight of 11 games to hike their record to .500, a three-game series against their conquerors can only reinforce how close they came to finishing the job without actually doing it.

The roster remained largely intact. Schwarber leads the veteran holdovers, and the impressionable trio of Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott, and Brandon Marsh is a year older and seemingly better for having gone through the extreme highs and lows of a deep playoff run.

“Obviously you remember losing, but I think being back there, it’s just kind of going to be remembering there were a lot of good things that we did, too,” Bohm said. “It’s a combination of the two, really.”

They can also look across the field and see that it hasn’t been the smoothest sailing for the 14-11 Astros. Like the Bryce Harper-less Phillies, they are missing their best player. Jose Altuve will be out through at least the end of May after breaking his right thumb in the World Baseball Classic. Without him, the offense has been hit or miss, scoring only the sixth-most runs in the American League.

But the Astros overflow with pitching, even after Justin Verlander left for $43.3 million per year from the Mets. The Phillies must contend with Houston’s two best starters: lefty Framber Valdez in the opener Friday night followed by right-hander Cristian Javier, who tossed the first six innings of a no-hitter against them in Game 4.

Another postseason ghost to chase.

“There’s going to be some uncomfortable memories that I have to confront,” Castellanos said.

But Houston isn’t all nightmares for the Phillies. As manager Rob Thomson noted, it’s where they locked up a wild-card berth and ended a decadelong absence from the postseason. Aaron Nola, the longest-tenured player on the active roster who endured three 90-loss seasons, dialed up 6⅔ near-perfect innings in the clincher.

“It’s just a reminder that it’s not easy to get there, you know?” said Nola, who will start the opener Friday night. “The games that we played to get to that point were not breezes, by any means. Just the focus level and keeping that confidence that we have that, when we’re down, we’ve got a chance.”

Getting back to the top of the mountain is difficult, although the Astros are rather good at it. They have won five of the last six AL West titles, made the playoffs six years in a row, and captured four of the last six AL pennants. If they get back to the World Series again, it may be time to consider them in the context of a dynasty.

And as Bohm, Rhys Hoskins, Garrett Stubbs, and others sat around Schwarber’s locker after Game 6, they talked not only about everything that led them to that point but also how they could lean on that experience to help them get back there again.

Surely they will think about that, too, as they walk back into Minute Maid Park this weekend.

“When I was in Chicago [with the Cubs], everyone thought when we won one World Series that we were going to go win multiple World Series. It’s not that easy,” Schwarber said. “Is there a group in this room that, can we do it? Absolutely. It’s on us now to go out there and play this whole year and make it to the playoffs again.

“But there’s steps all along the way that we’re going to have to take. But the pieces are here. We could see that at the end of last year, and we can see it now.”