It’s no secret the Phillies offense has floundered for much of the season thus far. Despite ranking near the top of the league in walks and on-base percentage, the Phils have struggled to hit for power this April, with the third-fewest home runs in the Majors (22), a slugging percentage (.375) that is 22nd and an isolated power (.126) that is 25th.
Only five players entered Tuesday’s series opener with the Nationals with more than one home run: Kyle Schwarber (7), Bryce Harper (5), Nick Castellanos (3), and Bryson Stott and Max Kepler (2, each).
Only Schwarber is a real threat to hit more than 40 bombs this season, but the hope was Harper’s power numbers would tick up a bit from the 30 homers he hit a season ago.