MLB Strength of Schedule: Can Phillies keep up momentum after easy fixtures to start 2024?

The Philadelphia Phillies are blisteringly hot right now. With a win last night on May 22, they moved to 36-14. That record is four games better than the next-best team in baseball. It is the only record with a .700 or better win percentage. The Phillies, so far, are the team to beat. However, some of this can be attributed to the fact that they've played a relatively weak schedule so far.

The Phillies have not played a team with an above-.500 record since March 31. That is, according to Bob Nightengale, a trend that very well could continue for the next week or longer. They're on pace to be one of the best teams of all time. Can they actually keep that up?

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Can the Phillies keep up their historic pace?

In recent years, the Philadelphia Phillies have been a respectable regular-season team that gets hot in the playoffs. They've been to the World Series and the NLCS in successive years, both as Wild Cards, winning no more than 90 games.

This year, at least in the early going, they seem to have figured it out for the regular season. However, their current pace is almost unsustainable and the strength of schedule all but assures that they won't keep winning at this rate.

In June, the Phillies will play the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers, the 29-18 Baltimore Orioles, and the 26-24 Boston Red Sox. The next month will see matchups with the Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers all in a row.

To think that they can't match up with those teams is not accurate. But to also think they'll come out with a .700 winning percentage against all those good teams is not either.

This is still a team with Bryce Harper, Alec Bohm and JT Realmuto. Eventually, they'll have Trea Turner back, too. They also have a dynamic rotation of Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and somehow the most valuable of them all (by fWAR), Ranger Suarez.

Bryce Harper of the Phillies

The Phillies have had it easier than most other teams in 2024 thus far, but a 36-14 record is still impressive. The Phillies can only play those they are scheduled to play, so there is no need for an asterisk next to their victory. They will just be unable to maintain this pace once the good teams arrive in town.