‘Let’s figure it the [bleep] out’: Three Phillies take stock of their disappointing start

WASHINGTON — The Phillies have had ongoing discussions over the course of the season about how to play to their capabilities, starting on opening day with their 11-7 loss to the Texas Rangers. Their loss on Thursday afternoon in New York that capped the Mets’ three-game sweep was no different.

It wasn’t just one player leading these discussions. It was a group effort, and everyone has different ideas. Catcher Garrett Stubbs, for example, thinks the Phillies need to be reminded of not just how good their team is, but of what the bar is.

“Not, ‘Hey, we’re really good, the tide will turn,’” Stubbs said. “No, it’s, ‘Hey we’re really good but we’re playing like [bleep].’ The pat on the back, it’s OK; it’s all right — that’s fine, mentally, and in the back of the head, you know that. But sometimes you’ve got to be like, man, we’re playing terrible. Like, how are we losing this many games with this many good players? Let’s figure it out.

“I know we’ve had some unlucky stuff happen offensively. Like guys hitting the ball hard and it’s going straight to guys. It’s crazy. [Kyle] Schwarber got robbed twice. Once in Atlanta, once in New York. Obviously it [stinks], but you’re not going to push everything on bad luck. But I think there’s a point where you’re like, ‘We can play way better than this. So let’s stop playing not to the level where we’re capable of.’

“Let’s figure it the [bleep] out. It’s one thing to be patted on the back, and then it’s another thing to be, let’s go. What the [bleep] are we doing?”

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With a 25-31 record on June 2, and after losing 12 of their last 17 games going into Friday’s game against the Nationals, the urgency is high. There still were 106 games left, and the Phillies aren’t too far out of the last wild-card spot. But it isn’t ideal.

“Yeah, we were talking about it,” Stubbs said. “There’s no meeting or anything like that. We talk all the time. Our locker room is really close. Just random conversations like — the pat on the back, it’s going to be fine, is fine and dandy and all are good mentally, but also sometimes you’ve got to want to be called out for playing not good. And even if you get [ticked] off at whoever for calling you out, sometimes it can create some good things. A little bit of spark.

“If your parents told you all the time that it’s OK, and you were doing great, but really you weren’t, what’s the motivation to get better? Sometimes you need your parents to tell you to knock it off.

“I am not [the parent]. I’m not any sort of parent. This is a general locker room — sometimes we as people, including me, sometimes I need to be told, ‘Hey man, figure it ... out. And people need to be told that in their 9-to-5 jobs. And our fans do a great job of telling us that.”

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For Trea Turner, it has to be more of a balance. It’s important to remind yourselves of how good you are, but also to have some urgency.

“I think you need to have the confidence to know you’re going to play better and not be negative and down on yourself,” Turner said. “Because this game is hard enough. But at the same time, have some urgency. And I think we have that. But sometimes I know we’ve played and it looks like that, but I can tell you on the inside that’s not how we feel. Be accountable and have some urgency, but also have belief in yourself.”

Schwarber leans on honesty above all else in these moments. He pointed to a recent conversation with Stubbs as an example.

“I’ve had moments where Stubbs comes up and asks me what I was thinking in that spot or that at-bat,” he said. “Obviously it wasn’t a good at-bat. And I tell him what I was thinking and he tells me what he’s thinking, and that’s honesty. You have to be able to hear all sides.”

Like Turner, Schwarber thinks it’s important to maintain that balance between accountability and confidence.

“I mean, I think that’s when we talk about the urgency factor,” he said. “What I always talk about is, we’ve had the experience but we can’t bank on that. It’s always good to have experiences, but it doesn’t automatically mean you’re going to do that again. So I think the biggest thing for us is we know what we’re capable of. We know that we haven’t played to our capabilities. But that’s the positive side. We’re in this position.

“It’s not the position we want to be in, but we know we haven’t played to our capabilities. I think the best thing to say is we’re not in the biggest hole. Don’t get me wrong: We don’t want to be in this spot. But for us to still come out and be able to turn this thing around — we know we can. We know we’ve got the talent to do it. We got the players to do it. Now it’s on us.”

Darick Hall (torn thumb ligament) had his rehab assignment transferred to triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday. He was to play nine innings at first base, DH on Saturday, and play first base again on Sunday. Catcher Rafael Marchán (fractured right hamate bone) and outfielder Cristian Pache (torn meniscus) will play in high-A Jersey Shore as part of their rehab assignments on Friday night. … Reliever José Alvarado (elbow inflammation) was scheduled to pitch one inning in triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday. ... Starting pitcher Taijuan Walker, who saw his velocity dip in his start on Thursday, felt “good” on Friday, according to manager Rob Thomson. He played catch, and the Phillies expect him to make his next start on schedule.