Chances of a Phillies turnaround get even tougher with first looks at Braves and Mets next

When spring training opened, John Middleton liked the Phillies’ chances of repeating as National League champions. But the owner also acknowledged the challenge they faced from within their own division.

“The top of the National League East,” Middleton said then, “is better than even the top of the American League East.”

What does it say, then, that the Phillies are off to a 23-26 start, buoyed by Wednesday’s come-from-behind 6-5 walk-off victory, despite having played exactly no games — zero, zip, zilch — against the Braves and the Mets?

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It’s all about to change. The Phillies will open a four-game series Thursday night in Atlanta, then move on to New York for three games beginning Tuesday. The longest road trip of the season — 10 games in 11 days — will finish up June 2-4 in Washington.

And it’s about time. In a quirk of the new balanced schedule, the Phillies played only three of the first 49 games within the NL East — an April 10-12 series at home against the Marlins. By comparison, the Braves have played 13 NL East games; the Mets 17. No other team in baseball has played fewer than eight divisional games.

“It is kind of weird,” Kyle Schwarber said. “We’ve mentioned it a few times here and there that we haven’t played them. We’ve even gone to the West Coast quite a few times already. It’s funny.”

But seven consecutive games against the division-leading Braves and star-studded Mets won’t make it easier for the Phillies to climb out of their early-season hole.

“I always say, if you want to win your division, you’ve got to win at home and you’ve got to win in your division. That’s the test,” manager Rob Thomson said. “There’s some good teams in our division.”

Initially, the lack of early-season matchups with the Braves and Mets seemed to favor the Phillies, who expected to be without Bryce Harper for a prolonged stretch. But Harper made it back from Tommy John surgery after only 30 games, plenty of time to be ready for the division rivals.

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And it isn’t like the Phillies need a refresher course on the Braves and Mets. They’ve faced both teams enough that they know them inside and out.

The Braves have nearly the same roster from last year’s divisional round playoff series, save for star catcher Sean Murphy, an offseason addition. They still hit a ton of home runs, led by first baseman Matt Olson, and right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. is off to an MVP-caliber start.

Meanwhile, the previously struggling Mets won five of six games entering Wednesday. First baseman Pete Alonso was leading the league with 18 homers. They lost one ace (Jacob deGrom) but replaced him with another who is bound for the Hall of Fame — and Justin Verlander is healthy after beginning the season on the injured list.

“We’ve seen those guys so many times that you know what they have over there. It’s pretty much the same group,” Schwarber said. “You know who the Mets are. You know who Atlanta is. Atlanta’s always a tough opponent. They seem like they keep getting younger and good players, right?”

Indeed. And so, as the Phillies seek to turn around their season, the degree of difficulty is about to be ratcheted up.

“Are we excited to go play the division? Absolutely,” Schwarber said. “It’s always fun to go play in our division and play good teams. I think we’re excited.”

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In deciding Tuesday to scratch Brandon Marsh, the Phillies said he was dealing with right shoulder inflammation. As Marsh returned to the lineup Wednesday — and notched two hits, including an RBI single — Thomson revised the diagnosis and said the center fielder “had something going on in his back.”

“We got a chiropractor in and moved some things around and the pain’s gone,” Thomson said.

According to Thomson, the Phillies were wary that Marsh seemed to be cutting off his swing as a way of dealing with the back pain. After getting treatment Tuesday night, they thought he swung the bat more normally before Wednesday’s game.

Marsh singled in the fifth inning to snap an 0-for-15 drought, part of an icy-cold 2-for-32 spell. He punched a two-run single the other way to left field in the sixth inning to shave the deficit to 5-3.

Since helping to hoist the pennant before the home opener, Rhys Hoskins has been recuperating at home in California from season-ending knee surgery. To bide the time, he has grown a beard. “It looks good,” Thomson said. “Mountain man.” Hoskins will rejoin the Phillies in June for the next phase of his recovery. ... Bryce Harper is the seventh Phillies player since 1901 to score at least 16 runs in his first 19 games of a season, joining Chase Utley, Lenny Dykstra, Mike Schmidt, Chuck Klein, Cy Williams, and Roy Thomas. ... Six weeks after thumb surgery, first baseman Darick Hall is slated to face live pitching in Clearwater, Fla., before the end of the week. ... Aaron Nola (4-3, 4.31 ERA) will start Thursday night in Atlanta. The Braves are expected to call up rookie lefty Dylan Dodd (2-1, 6.46).

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