The Philadelphia Phillies not only ended the majors' second-longest playoff drought, reaching the postseason for the first time since 2011, but then went on a dramatic postseason ride that ended with a tough six-game loss to the Houston Astros in the World Series. None of that could be foreseen on June 2, when the club fired manager Joe Girardi with a 22-29 record and promoted bench coach Rob Thomson. With the core of the team intact for 2023, expectations will be high.
Of course, Dave Dombrowski and the front office have a lot of ground to make up on the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets, both of which finished 14 games ahead of the Phillies in the regular season. Some of those improvements were already made during the 2022 season: Trading for Brandon Marsh to give the team a good defensive center fielder, releasing shortstop Didi Gregorius and playing rookie Bryson Stott, and seeing Jose Alvarado and Seranthony Dominguez maturing into a strong bullpen duo.
One unknown as the team heads into the offseason: Will Bryce Harper have to undergo Tommy John surgery to fix the elbow injury that limited him to DH duties? If so, he could miss the first part of the 2023 season.
Here's what's next for the surprise National League champions.