Phillies Falling, Atlanta Advancing in N.L. East

The Philadelphia Phillies went all out in the offseason to bring in some big name players, most notably Bryce Harper, but also Jean Segura and J.T Realmuto, to go with a core of young talent they already had. But while the Phillies were considered to be the favorite to win the National League East, they aren’t going to run away with the title. In fact, if they don’t turn themselves around, they’ll have to settle for a Wild Card, or even nothing.

Over the June 21st-23rd weekend, the Phillies were swept in a three game set with the Miami Marlins. The June 23rd loss was the club’s seventh in a row, and ninth in 10 games. Philadelphia was 31-21 on May 25th, but has dropped to 39-38. Over the weekend the Atlanta Braves took two of three from the Washington Nationals, and have won seven of 10. Atlanta improved to 46-32 and took a 6 1/2 game lead over Philadelphia.

One area the Phillies must improve at is their road record. The Braves and Phillies are nearly identical at home (24-17 for Atlanta, 23-17 for Philadelphia), but the Braves are 22-15 on the road while the Phillies are just 16-21.

Here’s some highlights from Atlanta’s June 23rd 10 inning win over Washington: