Only "Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos & Zack Wheeler showed up" against Mets in NLDS, says ex-Phillies All-Star

The Philadelphia Phillies dream season, which finally yielded a division title and nearly a top seed, came to a crashing end at the hands of a team they were six games ahead of in the regular season. They are officially in offseason mode, a stunning development in what seemed like a season full of potential.

Former Phillies All-Star Ricky Botallico, who is part of the postgame crew for the team, lamented the lack of performance from certain players. He said on NBC Sports (1:02):

"Maybe we did see it coming, but maybe they just got beat by a better team. I hate to say that because I'm not really thrilled ... at least [the Mets] showed up ... Four hits from this type of lineup ... It's not right ... Harper showed up in the series, Castellanos showed up in the series, and Zack Wheeler showed up in this series."

Harper had four hits in the four games, including two doubles, a home run and five walks. Castellanos had seven hits in those games, including the walk-off single in their only win.

Wheeler pitched Game 1 and dominated, throwing seven innings with one hit, no runs, four walks and nine strikeouts. The Phillies lost that game.

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Bryce Harper laments latest Phillies downfall

In 2022, the Philadelphia Phillies shocked the world by making the World Series, but they lost to the Houston Astros. In 2023, they had a better team record but lost to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NLCS.

Bryce Harper lamented the loss (Imagn)

In 2024, they won the division but lost in the NLDS to the New York Mets. The losses all sting, according to Bryce Harper. Via ESPN, he said:

"Every loss is kind of the same, man. Any time you lose and don't finish the job of a World Series, it's the same -- if it's the next round or the World Series round, it all feels pretty similar."

The Phillies have moved backward since that darling run in 2022, and the future for the veterans does not look as bright as it once did.