With five straight series wins prior to Monday night’s loss to St. Louis, the Phillies have found stable ground.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They’re 24-17, keeping pace with the Mets in the early NL East race, and 7-3 in their last 10 games.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their starting pitching remains stellar, their bullpen is still concerning but might be rounding a corner, and Kyle Schwarber? Man, does it feel like they can’t get him the contract extension soon enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There’s still a long way to go in the 162-game schedule, but right now, the Phillies are looking alright.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Here’s where they stand in the latest wave of power rankings…<\/p>\n
MLB.com<\/a>: 6th<\/p>\n Since the Cubs series in Chicago late last month, Schwarber is batting .283 with a 1.052 OPS, seven home runs, and 16 runs batted in.\u00a0<\/p>\n He has 14 homers already so far, which as of Tuesday morning was tied with the Yankees’ Aaron Judge for the most in the majors.\u00a0<\/p>\n Again, the Phillies can’t get him that contract extension soon enough.<\/p>\n Wrote Will Leitch<\/a>:<\/p>\n Is Kyle Schwarber having the best year of his career? He\u2019s tied for the MLB lead in homers, he\u2019s more than halfway to Ted Williams\u2019 record of 84 straight games reaching base, and he\u2019s top 10 in the majors in OBP. Pretty good way to head into free agency, all told. [MLB.com<\/a>]The Athletic<\/a>: 5th (tied with Yankees)<\/p>\n The Phillies are in a rhythm now, but the relievers are still their glaring weakness.\u00a0<\/p>\n Winter signing Jordan Romano became the poster boy for that weak point because of some brutal struggles through the season’s first month and change.\u00a0<\/p>\n He has improved of late, but that said, a common point among fans and media still stands: The Phillies miss Jeff Hoffman.<\/p>\n Wrote Tim Britton among The Athletic’s baseball panel<\/a>:<\/p>\n Philadelphia\u2019s pitching staff has been notably healthy, especially now with Ranger Su\u00e1rez back. But the bullpen has drifted to the bottom third of the league thanks to a series of changes from last year, none bigger than Hoffman\u2019s signing in Toronto. The Phillies essentially swapped him out with the Blue Jays\u2019 former closer, Jordan Romano, and they\u2019re losing that trade. Romano entered Monday having allowed more runs than innings pitched, though he\u2019s been much better of late (five straight scoreless appearances, including a save on Sunday) and the Phillies have been remarkably resilient in his bad outings. The club is 4-1 in games Romano has allowed a run. [The Athletic<\/a>]Bleacher Report<\/a>: 6th<\/p>\n Late March into April instilled some worry, but since the calendar flipped to May, the Phillies have been pulling further and further away from that.\u00a0<\/p>\n They look like a postseason contender again.\u00a0<\/p>\n Also, sign Schwarber.<\/p>\n Wrote Joel Reuter<\/a>:<\/p>\n A five-game losing streak dropped the Phillies to 13-13 on the year in late April, but they have gone 11-3 over their last 14 games, wrapping up their fifth straight series win with a 3-0 victory over the Guardians on Sunday Night Baseball. Slugger Kyle Schwarber went 10-for-25 with three home runs last week, and he has a .997 OPS with 14 home runs in the final season of a four-year, $79 million deal. [B\/R<\/a>]<\/p>\n MORE:\u00a0Schwarber keeps crushing, Wheeler and Su\u00e1rez cruise vs. Guardians<\/a><\/p>\n CBS Sports<\/a>: 5th<\/p>\n Wrote Matt Snyder<\/a>:<\/p>\n They are surging again. The Phillies have won 11 of 14 after falling to .500 with a loss on April 25. [CBS Sports<\/a>]<\/p>\n To take a page from our own Jimmy Kempski’s book: \ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25\ud83d\udd25 analysis.<\/p>\n FOX Sports<\/a>: 5th<\/p>\n Zack Wheeler has also rebounded from a bit of a middling start to the year, and tossed seven shutout innings against Cleveland on Sunday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n The righthander sets the tone for the Phils at the top of the rotation, and over his last five starts \u2013 where the team has gone 4-1 \u2013 it’s been back to the club being dominant when he’s on the mound.<\/p>\n Wrote Rowan Kavner<\/a>:<\/p>\n The Phillies have won 11 of their last 14 games and five straight series. Kyle Schwarber\u2019s five homers in May are tied for the MLB lead, while Zack Wheeler has a 2.14 ERA with 46 strikeouts and five walks over his last five starts. Also, shout out to Jos\u00e9\u00a0Alvarado, who would like you to know he loves his mom. [FOX<\/a>]<\/p>\n Amazing move by Alvarado:<\/p>\n MORE:\u00a0Andrew Painter climbs to top-5 ranking among MLB prospects<\/a><\/p>\n Follow Nick on Twitter: @itssnick<\/a><\/p>\n Follow Nick on Bluesky: @itssnick<\/a><\/p>\n Like us on Facebook: PhillyVoice Sports<\/a><\/p>\n