2022 Phillies Recap: Starting Infielders
The 2022 season has officially come to an end, with the Philadelphia Phillies dropping the World Series to the Houston Astros in six games.
The last month still doesn’t feel real, and I don’t know if it ever will. The Phillies, who scratched and clawed their way into the last Wild Card spot, somehow found their way to the World Series, powered by the long ball, elite pitching, and a lockdown bullpen.
Over the next few days, we’ll go back and look at all of the players on the Phillies roster and recap their season. The highs, the lows, and everything in between. The Phillies infield was a great group this season, and other than one player, it should be the same group next year, in addition to a star.
C: JT Realmuto
Final 2022 Stats: .276/.342/.478, 22 HRs, 84 RBIs, 139 H, 26 2B, 5 3B, 21 SB
The BCIB fell out of form over the first three months of the season after coming into the 2022 season with major pressure taken off his shoulders. With the addition of Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos to this loaded Phils lineup, JT Realmuto was set up for a season of stress-free hitting.
JT’s 2022 got off to a rough start, hitting under .270 in the first three months, including a .225 average in June, one of the worst months of his career. JT struck out 60 times over April-June and was holding the Phillies’ offense back while being a consistent liability. in the Top 5 of the order.
And then a switch flipped when Bryce Harper went down…
JT Realmuto had the best month of his career in July, slashing .358/.423/.642 with 5 HRs, 17 RBIs, and 24 hits in 67 ABs. He would continue to dominate throughout the rest of the season, hitting .303 in August and .273. Realmuto stayed lethal behind the plate as well, holding a .993 fielding percentage in 1,131 innings, throwing out 26% of runners, which would bring him the second Gold Glove of his career.
Realmuto, along with Jean Segura, were the two players in the MLB with the longest playoff droughts, and Realmuto was a huge reason the Phillies broke that drought. Realmuto had moments all throughout the playoffs, including his inside-the-park homer vs. San Diego, but his biggest moment came in Game 1 of the World Series when he hit a ball over the right field fence in the 10th inning to win the Phils the game.
1B: Rhys Hoskins
Final 2022 Stats: .246/.332/.462, 30 HRs, 79 RBIs, 145 H, 33 2Bs, 122 OPS+
Maybe the most hot-and-cold player in all of baseball, Rhys Hoskins caps off another season with an ending that a lot of fans aren’t happy with.
For the fans that have watched the Phillies for years, you already know what to expect from Rhys Hoskins. He’s going to get hot, and when that happens, there are maybe five bats across the league I’d take over him. When he’s cold, Rhys is one of the most frustrating players in all of baseball.
Compared to his past seasons, Hoskins did have a slight down year, but when you have a guy like Rhys who truly only needs to hit singles, doubles, and home runs, he did his job. Hoskins crushed 30 tank shots in 2022, along with just under 80 RBIs, and logged 145 hits, which was a career-high for Rhys.
The city of Philadelphia tends to only remember the moment and forget about what a player has done just a few weeks or even days prior. Rhys Hoskins struggled badly in the World Series, there’s no argument there. But don’t forget that Hoskins was tied with Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber for HRs in the playoffs and was second behind Bryce Harper by just one for RBIs in the entire postseason.
Rhys Hoskins will enter his final year of arbitration in 2023 with an estimated luxury tax salary of $12.8 million. If the Phillies were smart, they’d bring back Hoskins, slide him back in the order, and let him rake in the 7th or 8th hole.
No matter what happens with Rhys Hoskins, don’t ever forget this moment. This was the coolest thing I have ever seen in person and probably ever will see.
2B: Jean Segura
Final 2022 Stats: .277/.336/.387, 10 HRs, 33 RBIs, 98 H, 9 2Bs, 104 OPS+
Jimmy Cigs, James Cigarettes, Jean Bo, whatever you want to call him. Segura is the type of baseball player that just does his job, and. he did that again in 2022 when he was on the field.
Segura was hitting .307 in May before going down with a broken right finger that would sideline him all the way until August. It was a tough blow. for the Phillies, as Bryson Stott was moved over to 2nd for a good part of the year, with a rotation of Didi Gregorius and Johan Camargo filling in for the veteran alongside Stott.
Segura came back from injury, and although he was still feeling the after-effects of a hand injury over the last few months of the regular season, Segura had many big moments. No moment was any bigger than the Top of the 9th inning of Game 1 of the NLWCS, when Jimmy Cigs ripped a liner through the first and second base hole to tie the game, sparking the World Series run.
Just yesterday, the Phillies declined Jean Segura’s $17M option for the 2023 season, opening the door for Segura to pursue a bigger contract worth more years with another team. Segura is still a valuable piece, and teams around the league looking for a second baseman would be a fool not to give Segura a shot.
Jimmy Cigs Forever.
SS: Bryson Stott
Final 2022 Stats: .234/.295/.358, 10 HRs, 49 RBIs, 100 Hits, 58 Runs, 12 SB, 19 2B
If Bryson Stott has a million fans, I am one of them. If Bryson Stott has a thousand fans, I am one of them. If Bryson Stott has a hundred fans, I am one of them. If Bryson Stott has one fan, I am the fan.
Bryson Stott’s trip to the majors was an anticipated one with the Phillies’ need for a starting shortstop. Stott’s first season in the majors may not have come up so well on the stat sheet, but the kid has shown the potential to be a star in the future of this league.
Stott’s season got off to a rough start, as the rookie was seeing major league pitching for the first time in his career. He hit just .133 in April and .116 in May, but even through that time, his glove and attitude never suffered. Stott played 658 innings at shortstop in 2022, making just seven errors the entire season as a rookie.
Bryson’s bat turned it on in August, hitting .287/.337/.426 in that time. The stat sheets don’t show the hard work at the plate, but Bryson has shown many signs of veteran presence at the plate already, with how deep he gets in counts and makes the pitcher work.
Jean Segura helped Bryson Stott so much during this season, and the 25-year-old having a veteran next to him in the future is only going to make him better, especially once he moves back to second base, where he really belongs.
Stott’s big moment of the 2022 season came on June 5th, when he crushed a 3-run homer in the bottom of the 9th to beat the Angels.
3B: Alec Bohm
Final 2022 Stats: .280/.315/.398, 13 HRs, 72 RBIs, 164 Hits, 24 2B, 31 BBs
Alec Bohm, the man who has been through it all in this city through just three years in the pros. After a poor 2021 outing, many were doubting an Alec Bohm bounce-back season. Bohm got off to a smoking hot start, had a major cool-off, then had one of the most legendary moments in Phillies history.
The clip went viral; Bohm owned up to it after the game and came out the next night to a standing ovation. After that, Alec started getting better and better at third base every day and now looks better than ever.
Bohm truly might be one of the best pure hitters I’ve ever seen. Watching the kid swing a bat is fascinating, and when he puts. the bat on the ball, there are not many prettier sights in this league than watching his ball go to the outfield. Starting next year, expect Alec Bohm to permanently hit in the 2-hole in the lineup.
Bohm’s best month of the season came in July, where he hit .434/.457/.632 in 76 ABs with 3 HRs, 14 RBIs, 33 hits, 15 runs scored, and an OPS. of 1.088. Bohm hit .286./348/.524 in the World Series, and with a star shortstop potentially on his left next year with Bryson Stott at second, expect the Phillies to have an elite defensive infield.
Alec Bohm Hits His 1st Career Postseason HR
More on the Phillies’ Offseason
- Phillies 2023 Offseason Guide >>
- Phillies Pitching: Notable Free Agents, Options, and Players to Watch >>
- Phillies 2023 Guaranteed Contracts >>
- Phillies Pick Up Aaron Nola’s 2023 Option >>
- Zach Eflin Declines 2023 Option >>
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