Three keys driving Phillies' surge back into NL playoff race

In early June, the Philadelphia Phillies looked like a team that was going nowhere during the 2023 season.

They reached a low-point of seven games under .500, had some significant injury issues that had robbed them of some key contributors and Trea Turner was off to a miserable start after signing a long-term deal with the team in free agency.

A lot has changed in one month.

Entering Friday's series in Miami, the Phillies are 22-7 in their past 29 games, have climbed back into a wild-card spot and are coming off of a three-game sweep of the Tampa Bay Rays, making them the first team to sweep Tampa all year. 

Here are three key factors that have sparked the Phillies' surge.

1. The pitching staff has been dominant

Pitching changes everything, and right now the Phillies have it all going on from the mound. 

Over the past 30 days, no team in baseball has a better ERA than the Phillies' 3.04 mark, and it is significantly better than every team in the league. The second-best pitching staff over that stretch is Seattle with a 3.34 mark, while the Phillies have given up 11 fewer runs than every other team in the league. 

Taijuan Walker has been leading that charge with a perfect 5-0 record and 1.97 ERA over the past month. Zack Wheeler and Ranger Suarez are also pitching at a high level with 3.34 and 2.27 ERA, respectively. 

2. Nick Castellanos has gone on a power surge

On paper, the Phillies have the potential for one of the most powerful lineups in baseball, but injuries and Turner's struggles have limited that production at times this season.

Slowly but surely, some of those players are starting to get back on track and right now nobody in the Phillies' lineup is hotter than Castellanos. Especially when it comes to his power production.

After hitting just five home runs in his first 55 games through April and May, Castellanos has already clubbed eight home runs and is slugging over .600 in only 29 games since the start of June. 

3. The complementary players are making big impact

Specifically, first basemen Alec Bohm and second baseman Bryson Stott. They have both been on a tear offensively over the past month, both hitting over .317 with an OPS over .830.

Players like Castellanos, Turner. Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto and Kyle Schwarber were always going to be the driving forces behind the offense. And to some extent, they have been. But when the Phillies are getting contributions from players like Stott and Bohn it really extends the lineup and makes it a matchup problem for opposing pitchers.

Bohm has been especially significant in recent weeks as he continues to fill in for Rhys Hoskins who is out for the season after tearing his ACL in spring training. 

The Phillies were a World Series team a year ago and after adding Turner in free agency were expected to be favorites for a return trip. The season did not get off to the start anybody expected but slowly but surely they are playing their way back toward that level.