MLB Power Rankings Roundup: No surprise that the Phillies are in a downwards spiral

The Phillies might be 10 games over .500, but don’t let the record fool you — things have gotten ugly in South Philly.

Before Monday night’s extra-innings escape act against the Cubs, the Phillies were in full freefall: 1-9 over their last 10, swept by the Pirates, embarrassed by the Brewers, and generally unwatchable for more than a week.

Walk It Off, Marsh: Phillies snap skid behind Otto Kemp and some clutch small ball

Bryce Harper’s hurt again, nobody’s hitting, Jesús Luzardo is getting lit up like a bonfire, and the bullpen is still very much a problem. They desperately needed Monday night, and they got it — thanks to bunt singles, Otto Kemp, and Brandon Marsh.

Unfortunately, a single win doesn’t erase the red flags that popped up during that collapse. I rounded up the national media’s power rankings to see what people outside of the Philadelphia area think about our baseball team these days.

Before we get into it, I want to be clear that I absolutely hate power rankings. On top of that, I hate the general dialogue about baseball and the Phillies specifically on social media. Everyone is in fake outrage, crisis mode 24/7. It’s exhausting.

Anyways, here’s what they are saying about the Phillies…

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MLB.com: 6th

“The dip was coming.”
Will Leitch pointed to advanced metrics like Clay Davenport’s third-order standings as early warning signs. Phillies fans didn’t want to hear it, but here it is. The Bryce Harper injury — a repeat wrist issue — only adds to the concern. Rob Thomson’s trying to stay optimistic, but any time without Harper is time the Phillies can’t afford.

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The Athletic: 7th

The bullpen’s busted. Again.
Tim Britton put it bluntly — the bullpen swaps haven’t worked. Jeff Hoffman out, Jordan Romano in? Bust. Carlos Estévez for Carlos Hernández? Also not working. Add in José Alvarado’s suspension and this pen is straight-up leaking oil. There’s help to be found before the deadline, but with 2025’s chaos and postseason scars still fresh, no fix feels safe.

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CBS Sports: 8th

Swept in Pittsburgh. That’s the tweet.
Matt Snyder didn’t mince words. The Phillies bottomed out in Pittsburgh and looked lifeless doing it. Paul Skenes was dominant, sure — but the Phillies made it easy. Cristopher Sánchez actually held his own, but got zero run support in return. The whole thing felt like a bad rerun from 2022.

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Bleacher Report: 13th

Can’t wait for the deadline at this rate.
Joel Reuter highlighted just how dire the bullpen situation has become: 12 blown saves in 32 chances, and a bottom-tier ERA. If the front office is going to act, they better not wait until late July. The clock is ticking — and this bullpen is costing games.

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When the talking heads start talking about advanced metrics and other nonsense, I bail out immediately. It’s a long baseball season and the Phillies are perfectly fine right now. It’s still early-June and I don’t see how there are significant improvements made to this lineup and bullpen at the deadline.

Sure the recent stretch has been a nightmare. No contender should look this lost after 10-straight games and between Harper’s wrist injury, Nola’s rib shutdown, and a bullpen that’s appears to be actively sabotaging games, the panic is understandably creeping in.

Monday night may have stopped the bleeding, but it didn’t heal the wound. The Phillies need answers and I’m pretty confident in saying that they will find them over the next 30 days of baseball. Hang tight.

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