Well, it’s over.
The Phillies couldn’t find a way to keep their comeback going, as they dropped Game 4 in L.A. in absolutely brutal fashion. The bats went cold again, scoring one run in 11 innings, and Orion Kerkering made an all time gaffe that officially ended the season. A win would’ve sent the series back to Philadelphia for a winner-take-all Game 5, but it wasn’t meant to be. It’s a heartbreaking end to a season that saw the team win 96 games, the second most in baseball, and enjoy an MVP-caliber
season from Kyle Schwarber in addition to a Cy Young-caliber season from Cristopher Sánchez.
In the end, the same problems that torpedoed their postseason runs in each of the previous two seasons reared their ugly head again. There will be changes coming for this team, as this was widely considered the last ride for this current group of players. Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto are free agents, as is Ranger Suárez. The team has looked to trade Nick Castellanos in each of the last two offseasons and it seems a safe bet that he will not be on the roster in 2026. It’s also likely that one of Alec Bohm, Bryson Stott, or Brandon Marsh will be playing elsewhere in 2026 as the team looks to shake up a core that seems to have stalled out in October.
There will be questions about the manager, as Rob Thomson had some questionable decisions in this series, but perhaps more prudent, would be the first lever to pull in an attempt at a shake-up. The front office will be questioned as well, as Dave Dombrowski’s successful trade deadline was needed in part because of last offseason’s failure.
Those will all be conversations to have in depth over the coming days, weeks, and months of a long offseason. But for now, in the immediate wreckage of the 2025 Phillies, we’ll ask one simple question.
Where do the Phillies go from here?
