<p>After dropping four straight series, the Blue Jays (16-19) are in Philadelphia today for a quick two-game series against the MLB-leading Phillies (25-11). The Phillies have been on a tear as of late, winning 10 of their last 11 games to pass the Atlanta Braves in the NL East standings. This will be the first of just two times all season where the Blue Jays will have two off days in the same week (Monday and Thursday). The club will return home this weekend to take on the Minnesota Twins.</p>
<p></p>
<h2>Nuts and Bolts</h2>
<p>Tuesday, May 7th, 6:40 PM EST &#8211; Jose Berrios (4-2, 1.44 ERA) vs Cristopher Sanchez (1-3, 3.68)</p>
<p>Wednesday, May 8th, 1:05 PM EST &#8211; Chris Bassitt (2-5, 5.45 ERA) vs Aaron Nola (4-1, 3.32 ERA)</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The National League Pitcher of the Month is Ranger Suarez! </p>
<p>His April Stats: </p>
<p>5 G | 36.0 IP | 18 H | 3 ER | 4 BB | 33 K | 0.75 ERA<a href="https://t.co/sOYelSucXe">pic.twitter.com/sOYelSucXe</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) <a href="https://twitter.com/PhilsTailgate/status/1786400486758744126?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<h2>Starting Pitching</h2>
<p>The Phillies&#8217; pitching has been the club&#8217;s biggest strength so far, ranking 5th in the Majors in overall ERA and 2nd in starting pitching ERA. Luckily for the Blue Jays, they won&#8217;t face either of the two Phillies starters who have been among the league&#8217;s best so far this season.</p>
<p>Ranger Suarez was named NL Pitcher of the Month on the heels of a 6-0 start to the year, with a pristine 1.72 ERA. He has struck out nearly a batter per inning (46 in 47.0 IP) and has been particularly stingy with baserunners (0.72). The Venezuelan lefty has carried over his strong performance from the 2023 playoffs, where he carried a similarly impressive 1.93 ERA and 0.80 WHIP through 18.2 IP. Zack Wheeler has been nearly as dominant, as he carries a 1.64 ERA and 0.89 WHIP through eight starts. He also leads the club in strikeouts with 63, after punching out 11 Giants in Monday&#8217;s win.</p>
<p>Cristopher Sanchez will make his seventh start against Toronto on Tuesday, in what appears to be the weak spot in the Phillies rotation. His 3.68 ERA is solid, but his 1.53 WHIP suggests that he has been getting a bit lucky to start the season. Walks have been the biggest issue for Sanchez, with 13 in 29.1 IP.</p>
<p>The Blue Jays will see Aaron Nola in game two, who has been up to his typical solid work in his 10th Major League season. A 3.32 ERA and 1.15 WHIP have been effective for the club, especially considering that he has been the Phillies&#8217; fourth-best starter so far this year. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana native will be making his 7th career start against the Blue Jays.</p>
<p>A welcome development for the Phillies has been the emergence of 31-year-old Spencer Turnbull, who has a 1.67 ERA and 0.84 WHIP through six starts. The Phillies made the surprising decision to move Turnbull to the bullpen due to Taijuan Walker&#8217;s return from the injured list. Not many teams have the luxury of opting to move a guy with a sub-2.00 ERA out of their rotation, but the Phillies currently have more than enough quality arms.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Matt Strahm is off to a great start this season, posting a 1.29 ERA and 0.21 FIP in 14.0 IP</p>
<p>His arsenal grades don&#39;t jump out, but his 4-Seam command elevates his results immensely. He precisely locates his fastball at the top of the zone, leading to many chases and whiffs <a href="https://t.co/JfqygnKrzF">pic.twitter.com/JfqygnKrzF</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) <a href="https://twitter.com/TJStats/status/1787866749460730127?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<h2>Bullpen</h2>
<p>For as good as the Phillies starters have been, their bullpen has been a bit shaky to start the year. Their 4.75 ERA ranks 23rd in the Majors entering play.</p>
<p>The club&#8217;s two best relievers so far have been righthander Jeff Hoffman and lefthander Matt Strahm. Both were key pieces in the Phillies playoff bullpen a year ago, albeit in lower-leverage roles. Hoffman and Strahm lead the 2024 bullpen in wins (2 apiece) ERA (1.13, 1.24), WHIP (0.94, 0.79), and strikeouts (24, 22).</p>
<p>Eight total relievers have received save opportunities so far, but the team has primarily used Jose Alvarado in such situations. He has converted all seven of his chances, although his struggles with walks (7 in 14.2 IP) have led to some shaky outings. A reliever that has surprised a bit this year has been Yunior Marte, who has orchestrated a 2.70 ERA in 13.1 innings of work.</p>
<p>The high bullpen ERA has largely come from Gregory Soto, Seranthony Dominguez, and Ricardo Pinto&#8217;s poor starts to the season. All have pitched over 10 innings and have ERAs over 6.00 on the season. Soto was one of the top two or three most important relievers on the team last year, but walks have caused him trouble this season (7 in 10.1 IP).</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Who is the most improved hitter from last season to this season?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MLBCentral?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MLBCentral</a> dishes up Alec Bohm and CJ Abrams&#8230; <a href="https://t.co/t9N8uXje0B">pic.twitter.com/t9N8uXje0B</a></p>
<p>&mdash; MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1787878558683312260?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2024</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<h2>Hitting</h2>
<p>The Phillies have been one of the best-hitting teams in the league so far, ranking 3rd in OPS and 4th in home runs. They are also one of the best baserunning teams, with their 41 stolen bases placing 5th in the majors.</p>
<p>With a lineup that runs deep, it&#8217;s somewhat surprising to see that they are being led by third basemen Alec Bohm in OPS, with a .976 mark. His 13 doubles and 32 RBI have paced the team, as he&#8217;s been entrenched in the cleanup spot for most of the season. The team has had typical solid production from veterans Trea Turner, JT Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, the latter of which has hit three-run home runs in back-to-back games. Schwarber is having another odd statistical season, leading the team in home runs and walks, but also strikeouts by a wide margin. It is interesting to note that all nine of his extra-base hits have been home runs.</p>
<p>One lineup regular who has really struggled has been Nick Castellanos, whose .529 OPS ranks one spot below Bo Bichette for 164th among 171 qualified Major League hitters. The Phillies have been able to put up with his poor performance given the quality production they have received elsewhere in the lineup.</p>
<h2>Final Word</h2>
<p>Facing the sizzling-hot Phillies seems like the last thing that the Blue Jays need right now. The silver lining is that the series is only two games, and they won&#8217;t have to face either of their top two starting pitchers. A series split may be a realistic expectation before the team heads back home to host the Twins this weekend.</p>

After dropping four straight series, the Blue Jays (16-19) are in Philadelphia today for a quick two-game series against the MLB-leading Phillies (25-11). The Phillies have been on a tear as of late, winning 10 of their last 11 games to pass the Atlanta Braves in the NL East standings. This will be the first of just two times all season where the Blue Jays will have two off days in the same week (Monday and Thursday). The club will return home this weekend to take on the Minnesota Twins.


<h2>Nuts and Bolts</h2>
Tuesday, May 7th, 6:40 PM EST - Jose Berrios (4-2, 1.44 ERA) vs Cristopher Sanchez (1-3, 3.68)

Wednesday, May 8th, 1:05 PM EST - Chris Bassitt (2-5, 5.45 ERA) vs Aaron Nola (4-1, 3.32 ERA)

https://twitter.com/PhilsTailgate/status/1786400486758744126
<h2>Starting Pitching</h2>
The Phillies' pitching has been the club's biggest strength so far, ranking 5th in the Majors in overall ERA and 2nd in starting pitching ERA. Luckily for the Blue Jays, they won't face either of the two Phillies starters who have been among the league's best so far this season.

Ranger Suarez was named NL Pitcher of the Month on the heels of a 6-0 start to the year, with a pristine 1.72 ERA. He has struck out nearly a batter per inning (46 in 47.0 IP) and has been particularly stingy with baserunners (0.72). The Venezuelan lefty has carried over his strong performance from the 2023 playoffs, where he carried a similarly impressive 1.93 ERA and 0.80 WHIP through 18.2 IP. Zack Wheeler has been nearly as dominant, as he carries a 1.64 ERA and 0.89 WHIP through eight starts. He also leads the club in strikeouts with 63, after punching out 11 Giants in Monday's win.

Cristopher Sanchez will make his seventh start against Toronto on Tuesday, in what appears to be the weak spot in the Phillies rotation. His 3.68 ERA is solid, but his 1.53 WHIP suggests that he has been getting a bit lucky to start the season. Walks have been the biggest issue for Sanchez, with 13 in 29.1 IP.

The Blue Jays will see Aaron Nola in game two, who has been up to his typical solid work in his 10th Major League season. A 3.32 ERA and 1.15 WHIP have been effective for the club, especially considering that he has been the Phillies' fourth-best starter so far this year. The Baton Rouge, Louisiana native will be making his 7th career start against the Blue Jays.

A welcome development for the Phillies has been the emergence of 31-year-old Spencer Turnbull, who has a 1.67 ERA and 0.84 WHIP through six starts. The Phillies made the surprising decision to move Turnbull to the bullpen due to Taijuan Walker's return from the injured list. Not many teams have the luxury of opting to move a guy with a sub-2.00 ERA out of their rotation, but the Phillies currently have more than enough quality arms.

https://twitter.com/TJStats/status/1787866749460730127
<h2>Bullpen</h2>
For as good as the Phillies starters have been, their bullpen has been a bit shaky to start the year. Their 4.75 ERA ranks 23rd in the Majors entering play.

The club's two best relievers so far have been righthander Jeff Hoffman and lefthander Matt Strahm. Both were key pieces in the Phillies playoff bullpen a year ago, albeit in lower-leverage roles. Hoffman and Strahm lead the 2024 bullpen in wins (2 apiece) ERA (1.13, 1.24), WHIP (0.94, 0.79), and strikeouts (24, 22).

Eight total relievers have received save opportunities so far, but the team has primarily used Jose Alvarado in such situations. He has converted all seven of his chances, although his struggles with walks (7 in 14.2 IP) have led to some shaky outings. A reliever that has surprised a bit this year has been Yunior Marte, who has orchestrated a 2.70 ERA in 13.1 innings of work.

The high bullpen ERA has largely come from Gregory Soto, Seranthony Dominguez, and Ricardo Pinto's poor starts to the season. All have pitched over 10 innings and have ERAs over 6.00 on the season. Soto was one of the top two or three most important relievers on the team last year, but walks have caused him trouble this season (7 in 10.1 IP).

https://twitter.com/MLBNetwork/status/1787878558683312260
<h2>Hitting</h2>
The Phillies have been one of the best-hitting teams in the league so far, ranking 3rd in OPS and 4th in home runs. They are also one of the best baserunning teams, with their 41 stolen bases placing 5th in the majors.

With a lineup that runs deep, it's somewhat surprising to see that they are being led by third basemen Alec Bohm in OPS, with a .976 mark. His 13 doubles and 32 RBI have paced the team, as he's been entrenched in the cleanup spot for most of the season. The team has had typical solid production from veterans Trea Turner, JT Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper, the latter of which has hit three-run home runs in back-to-back games. Schwarber is having another odd statistical season, leading the team in home runs and walks, but also strikeouts by a wide margin. It is interesting to note that all nine of his extra-base hits have been home runs.

One lineup regular who has really struggled has been Nick Castellanos, whose .529 OPS ranks one spot below Bo Bichette for 164th among 171 qualified Major League hitters. The Phillies have been able to put up with his poor performance given the quality production they have received elsewhere in the lineup.
<h2>Final Word</h2>
Facing the sizzling-hot Phillies seems like the last thing that the Blue Jays need right now. The silver lining is that the series is only two games, and they won't have to face either of their top two starting pitchers. A series split may be a realistic expectation before the team heads back home to host the Twins this weekend.

Up Next: Blue Jays head to Philadelphia for a two-game series against the red-hot Phillies

Recent articles from Chris Georges

Breaking News