The Major League Baseball playoffs are an unpredictable masterpiece where you get to see who gets hot at the right time. That was seen in the NLCS as the Arizona Diamondbacks came back from being down 3-2 in the series and winning in seven games. No one would have thought the Phillies would have lost two games in Philadelphia, specifically with their offense getting shut down. The Phillies were one of the teams many thought had the best chance to make it to the World Series going into the NLDS. That is what makes the playoffs so fun, making it an even more exciting World Series as we get to see what happens between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Texas Rangers.
The real question is where the Phillies go from here. They had all the players in place to get to the World Series but just came up short with a star-studded lineup. So, who do they lose next season and who can they possibly add to make this team better to get pushed over the hump.
Who do the Phillies Lose?
For the Phillies, they have star players that are going to free agents this upcoming offseason that they need to make decisions on. The first is Rhys Hoskin who is their starting first baseman if he did not get hurt in spring training this past season. Last season he batted .246 with 30 home runs and 79 runs batted in. Hoskins has been in Philadelphia for his whole career so it would be hard to see him leave but you would have to have questions about what he looks like after his season-long injury.
The second big player they need to decide on is Aaron Nola. Nola has also been in Philadelphia for his whole career and has been a huge part of this Phillies pitching staff. This past season he went 12-9 with a 4.46 earned run average with 202 strikeouts on the year. In the postseason season, he is 5-3 with a 3.70 earned run average that has allowed the Phillies to stay in a lot of playoff games. He is going to have a lot of interest this offseason with teams looking for more depth in their pitching rotations.
Other lower-level free agents such as Craig Kimbrel, Michael Lorenzen, Scott Kingery, and Drew Ellis do not have as much importance to the team next season. Kimbrel being the biggest name of that group not look like that shutdown reliever for the Phillies late in games.
What’s Next?
This upcoming free agency has some big names for the Phillies to go after. After looking at what happened to them in games six and seven it is evident that they need hitters that can hit for contact more to put pressure on the opposing team. The big names of Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, and Nick Castellanos hit a combined 1-28 in games six and seven. Getting more athletic may be the move for the Phillies to help cause havoc on the base paths so I could see them calling up younger players to help that.
If the Phillies do not resign Rhys Hoskins, they should look to upgrade to first base which is not a very deep free-agent spot this year. A name to look out for is Josh Bell who they can get for a discount and can hit for some contact and is a switch hitter. I do think though it makes more sense to resign Hoskins because of how long he has been with the organization and is one of the leaders in the locker room.
The more interesting moves for them will come in the starting pitching market. Marcus Stroman and Blake Snell are the two big names in the class. I think the Phillies should try and resign Aaron Nola and go after Jordan Montgomery and or Sonny Gray.
Both of these pitchers have proved this season how they are after leaving the Yankees and can become vital parts of this Phillies team. Overall the Phillies have a lot of decisions to make as they enter the offseason to try to break the streak and win their first World Series since 2008.
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