The Philadelphia Phillies have been presented with a golden opportunity to win their first World Series title since 2009. Sure, they're without Zack Wheeler and have to go up against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, but the Dodgers are incredibly flawed, and even without Wheeler, Philadelphia has an outstanding starting rotation. We saw that in Game 1 on Saturday.
Cristopher Sanchez was outstanding for much of the night, and the Dodgers didn't look like world-beaters, yet Los Angeles came back from a 3-0 deficit to stun Philadelphia, taking a 1-0 series lead and stealing home-field advantage in the process.
Rob Thomson has been getting blamed a ton for this loss, and understandably so, but in reality, he only deserves some of the blame.
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Rob Thomson deserves blame, but only some
Thomson received a ton of backlash throughout the night, some of which was warranted and some of which was not. For example, Thomson sticking with Cristopher Sanchez, his ace, as long as he did, frustrated some Phillies fans, but was absolutely the right call even though it backfired. He needed his ace who was in control all night to get one out and that ace did not come through.
On the other end of the spectrum, though, it's hard to defend him for decisions like bringing David Robertson back out to start the seventh inning with a one-run lead after he had finished the sixth, or relying on Matt Strahm against a big right-handed bat like Teoscar Hernandez with runners on.
Admittedly, he can only use the cards he was dealt by Dave Dombrowski, but I did think Thomson could've put his guys in better spots.
While his bullpen decisions might not have been the best, the stars simply have to show up for Philadelphia. They, once again, did not.
Phillies star position players deserve most of the blame for Game 1 loss
After an uneven start to his Phillies tenure, Trea Turner won the NL batting title this season. He went 0-for-3 with one walk and a strikeout on Saturday. Kyle Schwarber had one of the most prolific power-hitting seasons in Phillies history. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts on Saturday. Bryce Harper had another great year, hitting 27 home runs and posting a .844 OPS in the regular season. He went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.
That star trio went 1-for-11 with six strikeouts and one walk in Game 1, and went 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position. Those same three players went 9-for-43 with one home run and four RBI in last year's NLDS. At some point, when is enough enough?
Phillies fans have seen them show up time and time again in the regular season, but for whatever reason, when the lights get bright, they just disappear without warning. What is Thomson supposed to do when his best hitters consistently no-show? This Phillies team is built around those players. Just like the New York Yankees will never win if Aaron Judge can't show up in the postseason, the Phillies won't win if their stars continue to disappear.
There's still time for something to change, but Phillies fans will need to see it to believe it. They've seen it in the regular season, but all that matters is October. Phillies fans have seen it countless times before, and just witnessed it again.