The 2023 season brought a lot of fun and exciting moments for the Phillies.
It’s hard to pick the five best moments, and everyone has their thoughts, but these are my top five Phillies moments of 2023.
Phillies Walk-In to Postseason
What better way to officially clinch a postseason birth than a walk-off by a rookie? That’s exactly what happened in moment #5.
Rookie center fielder, Johan Rojas was up to bat with Cristian Pache on second base as the ghost runner. Rojas had gotten himself into a pitcher 1-2 count when Pirates reliever David Bednar threw a pitch high and inside for him to hit through the gap, allowing Pache to score.
During the celebration that night, they found out they clinched the top wild-card spot as well, which kicked off a week of stress-free baseball before the postseason began.
Trea Turner Standing-O
Yes, you should add this to your national media bingo card for next year and beyond. It is the new “I hate this place”.
Shortstop Trea Turner was having the worst season of his professional baseball career. It reached its peak when an error in Miami led to a loss. Following the game, Turner was interviewed and visibly upset. The following day on Twitter, Jack Fritz spread the word of giving Trea a standing ovation for the next home game, which happened to be the next day. Most people agreed to do it, and while he only hit a single in that game, he hit a home run the next and completely turned his season around thereafter.
It was evident he was trying to do too much, and after the ovation, he seemed to relax.
The Postseason Grand Slam
Bryson Stott’s first-pitch grand slam in the wild-card round takes the #3 spot.
The Phillies were up 3-0 on the Marlins in game two of the wild card round when Stott came up to bat with the bases loaded. Every fan was singing his walkup song, and he immediately hit the first pitch he saw for a home run. That put the Phillies up 7-0 in the sixth inning, giving a cushion the Marlins just wouldn’t be able to battle back to.
The Stare Down
Bryce Harper’s stare-down of Orlando Arcia while he trots the bases after a home run takes the #2 spot.
Following game two of the NLDS, Orlando Arcia made a comment about Bryce Harper that he wasn’t supposed to hear. In their clubhouse, Arcia said “Atta boy Harper” because of his baserunning error that ended the game. The media ran with it and it made sports headlines everywhere.
For game three, Bryce and Nick Castellanos wore Deion Sanders’ merchandise entering Citizens Bank Park, basically telling everyone the series is now personal without directly saying it. What did Bryce do in game three? Hit two home runs and stare down Arcia as he rounds second. Everybody knew the series was over after this.
No-Lo
Michael Lorenzen’s no-hitter against the Nationals in his home Phillies debut has to be #1.
Is there a better way to introduce yourself to your new team and fanbase than a no-hitter in your home debut? I don’t think so. Traded to the Phillies at this year’s trade deadline, Michael Lorenzen was starting in his second game, first home game, with his new club.
Lorenzen walked three batters in nine innings and didn’t allow a single hit, making it the 14th no-hitter in franchise history.
There were more moments, but these are the top five in my eyes. 2024 is sure to have plenty of memorable moments that we can all look forward to.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
