What struggling Phillies can do to turn around season

The Philadelphia Phillies are the worst team in the National League and tied with the Kansas City Royals for the worst record in the majors. The Phillies (8-17) have dropped five straight series, with their last series win coming against the Colorado Rockies in early April. 

Heading into Friday's game at Atlanta, last-place Philadelphia has lost nine straight and is 9.5 games behind the first-place Braves in the NL East. 

Clearly, the Phillies must make changes to save the season. Here's what they should do to turn around 2026 before it's too late:  

1. Phillies must change up young core

Infielders Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott, along with outfielder Brandon Marsh, have made up the young core for a while. However, the playful moniker of “the daycare” has worn off. Only Marsh has produced this season. 

Bohm has never developed power (career-high 20 home runs in 2023), while Stott has not figured out how to hit consistently. He's a career .254 hitter. 

Bohm’s struggles may be related to his off-field issues, as he has a lawsuit pending against his parents for misappropriating funds. 

Despite his occasional inconsistency, Marsh has proved to be the best out of the three. In 22 games this season, he is hitting .300 with a .829 OPS and four home runs. 

Sliding over to left field may be contributing to Marsh’s progress at the plate. The 28-year-old has proved to be a better left fielder (17 defensive runs saved) than he was a center fielder last season (-12 defensive runs saved). 

With Bohm and Stott struggling, manager Rob Thomson may need to use infielder Edmundo Sosa (.278 BA) or option the duo to Triple-A for a reset. However, both would need to accept an outright assignment, with each having five-plus years of service time. 

The Phillies could also call up infielder Christian Cairo, a 24-year-old who signed a minor league contract with Philadelphia. He is hitting .287 with a .799 OPS at Triple-A. 

Able to play everywhere in the infield, Cairo could platoon with Bohm at third and be an upgrade over utilityman Dylan Moore, who has played sparingly (nine at-bats). 

2. Phillies must mix up the outfield 

The outfield consists of left fielder Marsh (.300 BA), rookie center fielder Justin Crawford (.261) and right fielder Adolis Garcia (.221). Beyond them, the Phillies have little depth. 

The fourth outfielder and backup center fielder, Johan Rojas, received an 81-game suspension for PEDs in the offseason and won’t be available until the second half. This leaves the Phillies with three options in the minor leagues to fill in. 

• Otto Kemp, .100 batting average in 20 at-bats in the big leagues this season; 
• Felix Reyes (currently on the roster), .200 batting average and a home run in 15 at-bats; 
• and Steward Berroa, who's in the minors and is batting .314 with a .893 OPS.

Outfielder Gabriel Rincones Jr. would be an option, but he has not appeared in a game this season. The Phillies placed Rincones Jr. on the seven-day injured list in March with a knee injury. 

Berroa may be the next man to get an opportunity, given his performance at Triple-A. The 26-year-old was acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers on April 8 for cash considerations. 

Berroa would give the Phillies another dynamic runner alongside Crawford and shortstop Trea Turner — Berroa has had five straight seasons with 30+ stolen bases, with 58 in 2021. However, he won't provide the Phillies the power they need. His career high of 10 homers came in 2024. 

3. Phillies should fire manager, president of baseball operations 

Taking over for manager Joe Girardi in 2022 after three failed seasons, Thomson has done well. He is 354-267 and has led the Phillies to four straight postseasons and a loss to the Houston Astros in the 2022 World Series in five games. 

But Thomson’s even-keeled manner is growing stale, and a new voice may be needed to get the Phillies back on track. It worked after the firing of Girardi. 

Dave Dombrowski has been the team's president of baseball operations since 2020 with mixed results. Eight of his free-agent signings have been released, according to Matt Gelb of The Athletic. 

Given his failures in putting together a roster, Dombrowski seems have run his course, too. Vice president and general manager Preston Mattingly could take over for Dombrowski. He was promoted to his current role in 2024. 

The son of the Phillies' current bench coach, Don Mattingly, Preston offers the Phillies something new, with a background in scouting and player development. Right-hander Andrew Painter is one of Preston’s development projects, with Painter showing promise early.