Castellanos? Bohm? Stott? Phillies are going to need their ‘other guys’ to step up in Game 7.

by David Murphy | Columnist
Updated Oct. 23, 2023, 8:41 p.m. ET
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Published Oct. 23, 2023, 8:35 p.m. ET

It was the start of the sixth inning, and the desperation had settled in. The unease was evident in both the volume and tenor of the cheers as Alec Bohm strode to the plate. The focus of the sellout crowd had shifted from a World Series clinch to all that stood in the way. The Phillies were three runs away from the Diamondbacks, 12 outs away from a do-or-die Game 7, and six batters away from Kyle Schwarber.

Ten pitches later, the sixth inning was over.

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There are lots of reasons why the Phillies’ season has dwindled from a 2-0 lead in the National League Championship Series to a single do-or-die game. The bullpen in the late innings of Games 3 and 4. Aaron Nola in the early innings of Game 6. The one constant, though, has been the gaping void in the lineup after the three-hole. J.T. Realmuto and Brandon Marsh been fine. For everyone else, it’s long past time.

» READ MORE: Hayes: Big marbles for all the marbles? Harper, Schwarber can be first Game 7 heroes in Phillies history

Somebody needs to step up. It can’t always be the stars. That’s what we saw in the Phillies’ 5-1 loss to the Diamondbacks in Game 6 on Monday night. Nothing will have changed by the first pitch of Game 7. That’s all there is to it. It’s the story of every zero sum elimination game.

Technically, this is the first Game 7 in Phillies franchise history, but look back to 2011, and that all-or-nothing duel between Roy Halladay and Chris Carpenter. Rafael Furcal led off the game with a triple. Skip Schumaker doubled him home. That was the only run the Cardinals needed to end the Phillies’ season. Albert Pujols, Lance Berkman, and Matt Holliday combined to for 0-for-10.

Who is it going to be for the Phillies?

Bohm, Bryson Stott, Nick Castellanos, Johan Rojas. The Phillies don’t need something from each one. But they can’t have nothing from all of them.

NLCS: D'backs defeat Phillies, 4-3

Game 1: Phillies 5, Diamondbacks 3 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 2: Phillies 10, Diamondbacks 0 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 3: Diamondbacks 2, Phillies 1 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 4: Diamondbacks 6, Phillies 5 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 5: Phillies 6, Diamondbacks 1 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 6: Diamondbacks 5, Phillies 1 | Hayes | Murphy

Game 7: Diamondbacks 4, Phillies 2 | Hayes | Murphy

 

Castellanos would be ideal. Since hitting a home run in his first plate appearance of the series, the right fielder is 0-for-19 with nine strikeouts. That includes an 0-for-4, two-strikeout performance in Game 6.

“From the first game in Arizona, I feel like I would get my A-swing off and I’m just fouling pitches straight back over and over again,” said Castellanos. “And then also, sinkers down and in, making good swings and hitting it off my foot or fouling it off. It’s a game of inches, or whatever is smaller than inches.”

As bad as Castellanos has been, a bigger problem has been the tandem of Bohm and Stott in the four- and five-hole. They are the first line of defense behind Schwarber, Trea Turner, and Bryce Harper. The Diamondbacks have made their strategy clear since the early stages of the series. Somebody might beat us. But it ain’t gonna be those guys.

Harper and Schwarber have combined to draw an incredible 13 walks this series. They had three more in Game 6. Schwarber led off the game with a four-pitch walk. Two batters later, Harper was aboard in five. The fact that the duo has managed to power the Phillies to three wins is remarkable given the care with which Arizona’s pitchers have approached them.

“I’ll go take four walks tomorrow if I can,” said Schwarber, who drew two in Game 6. “I’ve got trust in the guys behind us. That’s plain and simple. This offense is so deep. If we get guys on base, if we get traffic on base, I’ll take our chances with anyone at the plate.”

It’s a philosophy that has served the Phillies well for most of the last two Octobers. Not this series. After Schwarber and Harper walked to put two on with one out in the first in Game 6, Bohm struck out and Stott popped out. It has been a recurring problem this series. Bohm and Stott have combined for one extra-base hit, going 11-for-44 with five strikeouts and three walks.

After the game, somebody asked Rob Thomson how much thought he would give to switching up the batting order. The Phillies manager answered with one word.

“Zero,” he said.

» READ MORE: Kyle Schwarber’s advice to Rhys Hoskins on possible World Series return: It’s your choice — ‘it was different for me’

That’s par for the course with Thomson, who is reluctant to do anything that might betray a sense of panic. You could argue that recent results call for Realmuto batting cleanup and Marsh hitting fifth. But, then, we’ve seen in this series how fast recent results can change.

Same goes for Rojas at the bottom of the order. In the seventh inning, Thomson opted against pinch-hitting for the struggling rookie with a leadoff runner on first. His reasoning was sound: The Diamondbacks had lefty Joe Mantiply up in the bullpen in case he went to lefty pinch-hitter Jake Cave. Rojas ended up popping up on a drivable off-speed pitch. He is now 3-for-18 in the series.

Thomson is going to dance with the guys who brought him. As he should. It’s on those guys to make him not regret the date.

They need something, anything, and they need it fast. You can bet on this: The Diamondbacks are not going to let Schwarber and Harper beat them in Game 7. This would be a good time for a Turner explosion. But he is still going to need help.

Man cannot live on Schwar-bombs alone.