Watch that at bat by Marsh again and remember that a) they have scouting reports on players, and b) they had seen him the night before. Was there a secret as to what he was going to throw?

Bryce Harper came up small yet again in a pressure spot and that’s pretty much the ballgame.

Good? Ok, now, let’s get real here.

There can be multiple truths about a team. One truth about the Phillies is that they are a good team. The lineup is a good one, deep and has multiple ways of scoring runs. The starting pitching is still four deep, when healthy, and will present a challenge to anyone in the playoffs. The bullpen, even after all the trades, still goes at least four deep with high leverage arms and will also be a test for any National League lineup once the calendar turns to October.

Another truth about this team is that we can call out players for playing exceptionally poorly right now, leading with the MVP of the team, Bryce Harper. He has been dreadful and no amount of blaming umpires will make up for the fact that for the past week plus, he has been beyond bad. Joining him in the hitting doghouse is Trea Turner, who seems to have reverted back to early 2023 Trea Turner and looks for all world to be stuck in a rut. The bullpen has not been anywhere near as effective as their All-Star ballots would show. Even the manager has made some questionable decisions of late.

The final truth is that this is how baseball works. Teams, even elite teams, go through painful slumps, torturous even. For all the highs that a team can have, it can also have just as painful a set of lows. It’s why the baseball season is such a mentally and physically challenging slog to get through and only the best of the best are left standing once the final gun sounds.

The Phillies will be one of those teams when it is all said and done. Are they showing worrisome warts? There is no arguing that. Are they the same warts that showed up at the exact wrong time last October? Indeed they are. The approaches some of these hitters have at the plate are confounding and infuriating.

But they’ll snap out of it.

It looks so bad because the team is right in the middle of it with no signs of the pain letting up. Yet the last two games, the bottom half of the lineup has at least shown a pulse. Austin Hays has hit the ball hard and was within mere feet today of taking the lead twice on home runs. Carlos Estevez, through only two appearances, looks like a solid addition to the bullpen.

It’s going to get better.

It’s just going to take some time.