PHILADELPHIA — It was exactly two weeks ago Wednesday night that the Phillies left New York having endured a potentially season-changing sweep at the hands of the Mets.
The Phillies’ lead atop the National League East had shrunk to four games following the three-game thumping. It seemed as if the race for the division title was suddenly back on.
Fast forward to this Wednesday, however, and it’s almost hard to believe.
The Phillies beat the Mets for a third straight game in a 11-3 victory at Citizens Bank Park. After being outscored by 17 runs (25-8) in the three-game sweep at Citi Field, Philadelphia has turned the tables by outscoring New York by 15 runs (21-6) through the first three games of this four-game set.
The Phillies improved to 10-3 since that forgettable series, while the Mets fell to 4-9. The latest win extended Philadelphia’s (86-60) lead over New York (76-70) to a season-high 10 games. It’s only the second time in franchise history that the Phillies have had a double-digit division lead in September (also in 2011, when they won the NL East by 13 games over the Braves).
“I’m really proud of the ballclub,” said manager Rob Thomson. ” … I think everybody understands where we’re at and what we need to do to get this thing done. And things change in a heartbeat, so I’m not counting my chickens right now.”
At this point, holding on to the No. 2 seed over the eventual NL West champion is likely a bigger concern for the Phillies than anything to do with the NL East. Similarly, the Mets’ focus has likely shifted to clinging to the third and final NL Wild Card spot.
Like the team itself, Cristopher Sánchez rebounded nicely from his rocky showing in New York, when he allowed a season-high six runs on Aug. 25. This time around, the lefty tossed six innings of one-run ball in what could have been a preview of a potential Game 1 assignment in the NL Division Series.
It was an encouraging sign given that he had a 9.82 ERA in his first two outings against the Mets this season — compared to a 2.29 ERA vs. all other teams.
But the biggest turnaround for the Phillies in recent weeks has come from their much-maligned outfield.
On Wednesday night, right fielder Max Kepler had three hits (including a home run) and a season-high five RBIs. Left fielder Brandon Marsh had three hits, two runs and two RBIs. Center fielder Harrison Bader — slotting into injured shortstop Trea Turner’s spot atop the lineup for a second straight game — had two hits and scored a pair of runs.
Even Nick Castellanos, who was the odd man out in the outfield rotation this time around, has already made his mark on this series. He drove in the Phillies’ run in Monday’s 1-0 victory, and he had a two-run double in Tuesday’s 9-3 win.
Philadelphia’s outfield hasn’t just stepped up — it might be the most improved unit across the Majors.
Prior to the Trade Deadline, Phillies outfielders had a combined .677 OPS, which ranked 26th in the Majors. Since the Deadline, however, their outfielders rank sixth in MLB with an .825 OPS.
Through nine games in September, the outfield has combined for a ridiculous 1.143 OPS — by far the best in the Majors.
“It’s been great; it really has,” Thomson said. “I’m really happy with where we’re at right now. We’ve just got to keep moving forward, but everybody is contributing, and it seems like a different guy every day who steps up.”
“I talked to him after the [All-Star break] and I said, ‘You know, you’re in a good spot. We believe in you. You’re going to have a really good second half. Just keep grinding, keep working,’” Thomson said of Kepler. “And fortunately, he’s swinging the bat well and playing well.”
Kepler is hitting .307 with five home runs, 16 RBIs and a .921 OPS over his past 20 games. He was hitting .200 with 11 homers, 34 RBIs and a .645 OPS in 97 games prior to that stretch.
“Early on, me personally, I think I was trying to prove myself and I played the game as more of an individual than for the team,” Kepler said. “Not in a selfish way, but just being a new guy in the organization, I was trying to do a little more than I was used to.”
The Phillies will look to inch even closer to their second straight division title — and deal another blow to the Mets’ postseason hopes — when they go for a four-game sweep in Thursday night’s series finale.
“It’s awesome. Big accomplishment,” Kepler said. “We grinded over in New York and were unhappy with what we did there, so to win a series and hopefully get a sweep tomorrow is all you can ask for as a team.”
