This one was actually closer than we thought
Sometimes, there are players that stick out as the obvious choices for our award. A hitter who has gone off for the week, a pitcher that has spun two games worthy of recognition. For the Phillies, this week is one of those weeks. There were two players, a pitcher and a hitter apiece, that truly do deserve to have their names called. However, when you get your name mentioned among those in the team’s record books, that’s going to win you the hardware.
Player of the Week: Ranger Suarez
Weekly stats: 2 GS, 2-0, 15 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 13 K
Ranger Suarez’s scoreless innings streak ends at 32.2 innings, but he still turned in another gem pic.twitter.com/tYMHYNPmq8
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 28, 2024
Behold, the nonchalant Ranger Suarez fadeaway leg swivel to gun someone out. pic.twitter.com/Q2KfznqW9G
— CogginToboggan (@CogginToboggan) April 28, 2024
In our TGP Slack channel, there were whispers of a certain name when discussing Suarez’s starts in real time.
“Hershiser”
He, Orel Hershiser that is, is the author of one of the more difficult to achieve streaks in modern sports where he put together a 59 inning scoreless streak in 1989. It’s impressive not only in how he kept runs off the board, but how long he kept runs off the board.
Once Suarez crossed the 30 inning threshold, we started wondering if it was actually possible for him to get close to Hershiser, but alas, it was not meant to be.
The way Suarez has pitched this year has been truly impressive. He’s making hitters look silly with an array of pitches that he also mixes quite well. His work with J.T. Realmuto on executing the gameplan put together beforehand has helped vault him out of the “he’s a solid #3 pitcher” to the “he might be a solid #2 pitcher!” territory. If he can keep together the kind of season he has had so far all the way through September, there is another conversation he could be a part of as well, one that involves certain awards handed out by the baseball writers.
Other candidates
Alec Bohm: .567/.581/.933, 8 2B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 1 BB, 3 K
Usually, when you have a week as good as Bohm had, it’s an easy way to get your name engraved on our clearly very real award here (definitely not us sending them Wawa coupons). It’s not often you see a guy hit over .500 for a week, a week that saw him hit six doubles over six games, and not recognize him as the best player for the team that week, but that’s where we are.
Brandon Marsh: .300/.364/.500, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 4 K
Listen, he’s not up there with the other two since they were somewhat otherworldly last week. But Marsh still had a solid week of production, one that has started to see him becoming more of a regular in the lineup that doesn’t get much time off. That trade for Logan O’Hoppe is looking more and more like one of those trades that truly helps both teams getting something.