While Alec Bohm sliced a sacrifice fly to right field in the ninth inning on Wednesday night, the extra run was too little, too late for the Phillies. It was a productive out, but an out nonetheless, not providing enough in an 8-6 loss to the Red Sox at Fenway Park and serving as something of a low point for the right-handed hitter’s struggles.
Despite the RBI, the final plate appearance of Bohm’s 0-for-4 performance in Boston dipped his season OPS to .797 to give him a mark below .800 for the first time since April 17. The third baseman dominated April after a slow first three series of the year, but his production has fallen off a cliff since the start of May. His recent struggles have been notable for Philadelphia, which has still hasn’t remotely slumped in 2024 but hasn’t quite cruised as easily over the past few weeks.
Bohm slashed .370/.448/.630 with 12 doubles, four home runs and a triple in 28 April games. He had a 1.056 season OPS on April 28 and looked poised for his first All-Star Game. He helped carry the Phillies and cemented himself as their cleanup hitter.
Since May 1, he’s batting .221/.258/.343 with 11 doubles and two homers in 35 games. He has just a .470 OPS in his nine games since the start of June. His drop off has come at a time when the team has been a bit tested by injuries to Trea Turner, Brandon Marsh and J.T. Realmuto and a long trip to London interrupting the normal schedule and routine. The Phillies are 9-7 in their last 16 games. They’re still 6-3 in June, a record boosted by a three-game sweep of the Brewers in which they won each game while only scoring seven total runs. The pitching staff is Philadelphia’s backbone, but the team soared earlier in the season when members of the offense provided standout performances. Bohm had been hitting like a star, which perhaps he can’t be expected to do across a full season. But his numbers of late have left a hole for this club as it also deals with those injuries in the lineup.
Still, there are reasons not to panic about Bohm. First and foremost, the Phillies are the best team in the National League at 46-21 with a 10 game lead over Atlanta for first place in the NL East. They have wiggle room to work with that should allow them to stay afloat through some individual skids. Bohm has also provided evidence that his current slump shouldn’t last and that the results could be better. The 27-year-old has a 47% hard-hit rate since May 1, a figure 2% higher than his season rate; he has a .298 expected batting average in that span compared to his .221 actual average. He’s making solid contact that isn’t falling for hits. However, he has a minuscule 3% walk rate since May 1; he’s always been a hit-first batter, but earning some additional free passes would give him a higher floor moving forward.
The signs are there that Bohm can improve, and the Phillies will need it. Maybe he won’t hit like a superstar or even an All-Star again, but he’s shown that he can be a contributor for stretches. That will be a key in keeping Philadelphia’s lineup deep as it strives for another run in October.
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