Phillies Prove Brian Snitker Soon After Bats Go Silent in Disappointing Playoff Exit

The Philadelphia Phillies proved Brian Snitker right in the worst way possible. Just a year after eliminating the Atlanta Braves from the postseason in their 2023 NLDS matchup, the Phillies fell in similar fashion, losing to the New York Mets in four games.

Perhaps worst of all, the Phillies really should have seen this coming. Philadelphia was motivated to buck the contenders’ trend with the Wild Card loss in the Division Series. However, as Snitker warned last year when the Braves fell to Philadelphia, staying focused after a week can be challenging.

“It’s hard to get up to speed when you haven’t seen anything in five days,” Snitker said. We had a team that set all these records and everything offensively, and we didn’t get a lot right in the postseason.”

Is this a lame excuse from Snitker to explain why a historic 2023 Braves roster failed when it mattered most? Absolutely. Does it have any merit? Well, the Phillies’ offensive numbers from this same series in 2024 tell a similar story.

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In mid-September, when both teams were still fighting for playoff positioning, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that the Phillies were upset by Snitker’s comment, which undermined the team’s NLDS series victory. Although Snitker never intended it, he did have a problem with the postseason format and used the Phillies series win as an example.

“Several Phillies were offended. They believe Snitker was making excuses and downgrading their back-to-back Wild Card triumphs over the Braves in the DS,” Rosenthal said on a FOX broadcast.

Snitker’s problem was with the system, but the Phillies certainly didn’t look at it that way. The current postseason format gives the top two teams in each league up to five days off while the Wild Card series is played. This should be an advantage, but for teams used to playing every day for six months, a break could hurt the rhythm, especially at the base.

“Honestly, I don’t like the system. We’re going to have to deal with it,” Snitker continued. “We better figure it out because we’re going to try our best this year to win the division and have five days off again. … I think as an offensive player, when you’re not seeing it, you know the lights are on. So the energy isn’t flowing and you’re not seeing the speed that you’re going to face in the playoffs, you know it’s hard to score.”

Snitker’s team hasn’t had to deal with the same disruption this season, as they lost in the Wild Card series to the San Diego Padres. Having experienced the Snitker fight now, perhaps the Phillies clubhouse will change its tune.