By the Numbers: Nick Castellanos can be the perfect slump-buster for the Phillies in August, but he can’t do it alone

The Phillies enter the month of August in their worst slump over the past three seasons. Nick Castellanos and company were just swept at home by the New York Yankees.

They no longer hold the best record in baseball, and have watched their dominant lead in the National League and NL East dwindle after posting a 10-14 record in the month of July.

Luckily, we are entering the month of Nick Castellanos – but he alone can’t be the slump-buster. The rest of the lineup will need to step it up against a very tough set of opponents in August.

Nick Castellanos Career Regular Season Home Runs by Month:

• April: 31 HR, 1,024 PA
• May: 33 HR, 1,115 PA
• June: 34 HR, 1,076 PA
• July: 35 HR, 983 PA
• August: 54 HR, 1,008 PA
• September: 38 HR, 944 PA

Phillies enter a season-defining month of August, scheduled to face only 2 teams with a losing record >>

Last year, .293 batting average with 34 hits, 8 home runs, 23 RBIs and 16 runs scored in 27 games in August.

Ideally, with the Phillies entering the month in a massive slump, while only facing two teams with a losing record in August, Castellanos will lead the offensive charge for the Phillies as they look to keep pace with the Guardians (MLB), Dodgers (NL), and the Braves (NL East) heading into September.

Castellanos is hitting .241 with a .699 OPS on the season. He has 15 home runs and 57 RBI. While the numbers might not seem great, over his last 30 games, he’s hitting .281 with four dingers and 19 RBI. 

The key has always been to find some consistency with Nick Castellanos.

When he’s not seeing the baseball at the plate, things are beyond ugly and he immediately goes into “swing through it” mode in order to right himself. We have all witnessed that strategy take months before actually clicking – which has fans ready to incorrectly DFA him.

I still go back to what he managed to do during the NLDS last year. Castellanos absolutely dominated the Atlanta Braves. Casty posted a batting average of .467 with 7 hits, 4 homers, 4 RBIs and 5 runs scored in 4 games.

Point Being: I literally could care less what happens in the regular season as long as Casty is feeling good in October.

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