The month of May was a surging one for the Philadelphia Phillies. After what felt like a slow start, Philly charged out of their middling April, winning seven of their first eleven contests in the fifth month of 2025. That wasn’t enough, as they would then rattle off nine straight victories.
They had nine series in the month and were victorious in seven. Only two clubs in the major leagues had a better record in May. Yet, with World Series aspirations and an ever-critical media and fan base in the city of Brotherly Love, combined with the way the month closed – including a sweep at the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers that ended on the first day of June – has some questioning the strength of this club as the calendar flips forward.
Not only were they swept, but their four straight losses occurred in ugly fashion. Zack Wheeler had an uncharacteristic outing in a losing effort against the Braves. Taijuan Walker failed to record an out in the fifth inning in what is potentially his final start of the season. Jesús Luzardo went from a potential Cy Young candidate with a 2.15 ERA to a middle-of-the-pack 3.58 ERA from one historically bad outing. Finally, troublesome defense put the proverbial nail in the coffin, dooming the club to four straight losses before the off day today.
However, the club is still in the thick of things, as they sit just one game behind the rival New York Mets for the National League East lead. Will the team rebound from a tough ending to an otherwise great month? Let’s break down the outlook for this club and things to watch as we enter the month of June.
Overall Outlook
Philadelphia has been one of the best teams in all of baseball since Rob Thomson took over as manager in June of 2022 – two NLCS appearances, a National League pennant, and World Series appearance, and their first division title in 13 years. June isn’t just significant for the club in 2022 – it seems to be the month where they break out. Philadelphia’s winning percentage in the year’s sixth month is its best in the Rob Thomson era.
The Phillies are 52-28 in June since Thomson became manager, good for a 65% winning percentage, by far the best month for the organization. Only one other month does their winning percent touch 60% – and that’s May, sitting at 60.5% after the stellar month they had overall this year.
Thomson knows his club – he knows his veterans and how they seem to click as the season continues. Fans may be frustrated when the team struggles early and what they perceive as downplaying rough days or stretches, but there’s evidence to back him when he expresses that his team “will hit” or “will play better.” Almost all of the regulars on offense see an uptick in their numbers in June.
Only Bryce Harper, Max Kepler, Brandon Marsh, and Edmundo Sosa have an OPS in June that would rank as one of their worst two or three months of the year. Even with Harper’s OPS being his second-lowest mark of any month, his batting average is the second highest of any month – so the power surge may not be around the corner, but his continued production should be a welcome return when he reenters the lineup tomorrow.
Of course, you can likely see a similar trend of players or teams heating up as the summer months come around. Despite the rest of the roster’s propensity to turn things on when the temperature rises, no one in the league is quite as synonymous with scorching in June as Kyle Schwarber.
Can Schwarber get hotter?
Schwarber has already been off to one of the best starts of his career, putting up incredible reverse splits this season, after being dubbed a potential non-starter against left-handed pitching before coming to Philadelphia.
Schwarber performing even better seems unfathomable – the man is on pace for a career high with 50+ home runs, and his OPS against left-handed pitchers this year (1.146) is well above his career vs. right-handers (.872). However, the nickname “June Schwarber” didn’t come about for no reason. The real question is – did that version of Kyle arrive early, or are we on the precipice of an incredible extension of an already strong run from the Phillies’ DH?
Historically, Schwarber starts slow through April and May before turning into one of the most prolific power hitters in baseball history once the date starts with June. He averages one home run every 10.67 at-bats in June, third all-time behind only Shohei Ohtani (8.78) and Babe Ruth (10.64).
His .577 slugging percentage and .932 OPS are far and away the strongest numbers he has in any month throughout his career. If he can truly turn the dial to 11 once again, the Phillies could be the most dangerous team in the big leagues the next few weeks.
Pitching Staff Shuffle
No one wants to see players be moved around, especially the Phillies. After getting through the entire month of April without making a single pitching move, Philadelphia’s front office had to make some changes. While they still have limited the amount of arms used through the season’s first two months, we already know that changes are a-coming.
The organization made a flurry of moves and announcements on Sunday to open the month. Taijuan Walker will move to the bullpen full-time. Thomson previously told reporters that he didn’t want to keep switching his role in and out of the rotation, but an injury to Aaron Nola forced his hand. After a few more starts and some shaky performances from a bullpen still trying to shake off its early-season reputation, the team decided to make the move now, even though the veteran Nola still isn’t ready. They have even discussed putting him in one-inning, leverage spots to see if his stuff plays up and he can be effective at the back-end.
As a result, former top prospect Mick Abel will join the major league rotation, at least for the time being. Abel dazzled in his major league debut, tying a Phillies’ rookie strikeout record in a 1-0 win over the Pirates back on May 18. That start was a one-and-done. This time, it will depend on his performance and the team’s health. Originally slated for another start against Pittsburgh, Abel’s start was moved up, and he will pitch in Toronto as Zack Wheeler will miss his turn, awaiting the birth of his child.
Abel isn’t the only fresh face who will be making an appearance for the club in June. The club has recalled their No. 12 ranked prospect per MLB.com, right-handed pitcher Seth Johnson. Johnson was originally acquired as a starting pitcher alongside their No. 5 prospect, Moisés Chace, in last summer’s trade that sent Gregory Soto to the Orioles. He made his major league debut in September of last season with rough results (2.1 IP, 9 ER). To make room for him, the team designated José Ruiz for assignment.
Back on April 22, Johnson made the transition to the bullpen with Triple-A Lehigh Valley. As a reliever, he posted a 5.52 ERA in 12 appearances with the IronPigs, but did not allow an earned run in eight of those outings. In 14.2 innings, he struck out 20 batters while walking 10. Including the four starts he made to start the season, he is 2-2 with a 4.91 ERA in 16 total appearances (33 innings) with 42 strikeouts.
While top prospect Andrew Painter isn’t quite ready to appear, the Phillies have started digging into their minor leagues to shake things up and attempt to improve the big league club. Don’t be surprised if they begin looking at making similar moves with the offense if some struggling stars don’t begin to turn things around.
Are Trades Around the Corner?
While some may feel June 2 is a little early to begin diving into the trade market, it usually takes one contender making a significant move to make other clubs start to feel the pressure. Well, that string has already been pulled as the Dodgers struck a deal for Reds closer, Alexis Díaz, in what is categorized as the first big deal of the 2025 trade season. While Diaz’s numbers this season left a lot to be desired, his track record shows he is a strong option for any contending bullpen.
With Philadelphia’s need for an upgrade at the back end, and now one trade candidate off the board, will this make President of Baseball Operations, Dave Dombrowski, feel like he needs to make a move before another option is off the board? After the suspension of maybe his team’s best leverage option, José Alvarado – that might just be the case.
Dombrowski has pulled off some big trades in his career, but as far as mid-season deals are concerned, he rarely makes a move before the All-Star Break. In his Phillies tenure, he hasn’t made an in-season deal before late July. If another team makes an early move, don’t be surprised to see the rumor mill churn about Philadelphia’s potential targets.
While the last four games felt wrong, the month of May went right, and June is officially here. A month Phillies fans have looked forward to – especially to watch Schwarber – but overall, because of the team’s propensity to play its best baseball. Should that trend continue, Philadelphia should find itself right back at the top of its division and fighting for the top of the National League standings.
Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images
