Five bold Philadelphia Phillies predictions fans can look forward to unfolding in 2023.
What will the 2023 Philadelphia Phillies surprise us with? After narrowly making it to the postseason and then fighting their way to the World Series, the team is in pretty good shape despite the absence of Bryce Harper for the first few months.
Dave Dombrowski and company have been hard at work improving the roster. Trea Turner is locked up for the next decade. The bullpen includes additions of Gregory Soto, Craig Kimbrel, and Matt Strahm. Things are looking up for the Phillies.
We should expect some obvious things to occur, like Kyle Schwarber swatting home runs and J.T. Realmuto furthering his case as the best catcher in MLB. What about some of the bolder predictions for this team in 2023?
Bold Phillies prediction: Nick Castellanos bats .300 and leads the team in this category
It might be more outlandish than bold to predict Nick Castellanos hits .300 if you haven’t seen him play for any other team. A year before signing with the Phillies, he did that and more for the Cincinnati Reds.
Castellanos did, somehow, manage to pick his average up to .263 by the end of the 2023 season. Despite some lackluster power numbers and a poor OBP, it was a promising turnaround for a major free agent signing that looked like it could be an early bust.
The 2021 campaign is the lone .300+ batting average season in his career. The .309 total stands well above his career total of .276, but with four total seasons of .285 or better, it’s not too crazy to see him get there with the Phillies.
Adding to this bold prediction, Castellanos finishes the season with the team lead in batting average. Pinch yourself, this is no dream.
A huge year from Castellanos at the plate in 2023 can make a difference for the Phillies, particularly in the absence of Harper early on. He was signed to hit dingers, drive doubles, and bat in the .280s or higher. By the time his contract is over in Philadelphia, we’ll all forget about his underwhelming debut season.