The Phillies’ lousy road trip did not damage their overall outlook | Bob Brookover

Usually you have to win on getaway day to feel good about the trip home. All the Phillies had to do Thursday was not play. The foul weather in Queens allowed them to return to Philadelphia without having to face Jacob deGrom in the postponed series finale against the New York Mets.

That qualified as rare good news on their bad-news road trip that wiped away the momentum they had gathered during a 5-1 start to the season at home. The Phillies will resume play Friday at Citizens Bank Park against the St. Louis Cardinals after a 1-5 road trip to Atlanta and New York.

The Braves would argue that the Phillies actually went 0-5-1 on the trip and out in Las Vegas Pete Rose agreed with them.

“I don’t know how the Phillies won that game,” Rose said. “I mean, you go back to the New York (replay) experts who looked at the same thing you and I saw and (Alec Bohm) got on the airplane that night and he still hasn’t touched home plate. You talk about the integrity of baseball. What happens if Philadelphia beats Atlanta by one game this year? That could happen.”

» READ MORE: Struggling Phillies avoid Jacob deGrom as series finale vs. Mets is postponed

Maybe, but immediately following that game the Phillies lost three straight to the Mets. They also lost one of their top relievers in Archie Bradley to an oblique injury during the road trip and center fielder Adam Haseley left the team for undisclosed personal reasons.

“I just don’t think we’re swinging the bats particularly well right now and I think all offenses go through it from time to time,” manager Joe Girardi said after Wednesday night’s loss to the Mets. “Right now there are a lot of guys who aren’t swinging well.”

A good portion of the blame for the Phillies’ rotten road trip can and should be pinned on the offense. The Phillies averaged 2.7 runs per game during the six games and scored four times in three games against Mets starters not named Jacob deGrom.

You can focus on the center-field duo of Haseley and Roman Quinn batting a combined .122 with one extra-base hit in the first 12 games, but the bigger problem during the road trip was at the top of the order. The Phillies’ 1 through 5 hitters — Andrew McCutchen, Rhys Hoskins, Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, and Alec Bohm — batted .172 and struck out 33 times.

“When you don’t hit, it seems like the world is going to end,” Girardi said. “Everybody goes through this. It’s just what it is. You can’t predict when it’s going to happen. You don’t understand why it happens sometimes. Sometimes you have a grueling schedule and guys get fatigued, but I wouldn’t say that has been our issue.”

It better not be. The season is 15 days old and the Phillies have been off four times, thanks to their two rain postponements in New York.

The fact that the Phillies struggled on their first road trip of the season is troubling because of the team’s recent history away from Citizens Bank Park. They are 77-119 away from home since 2018.

The Phillies hit .262 with a .348 on-base percentage and .753 OPS during their 5-1 homestand. They hit .194 with a .233 on-base percentage and .550 OPS in the six games on the road.

“As a team and as a club we have to do better, especially in that batter’s box right now,” Harper said after going hitless and striking out three times in Wednesday’s loss.

Pitching was also a problem during the road trip. After posting a 2.62 ERA in their six games at home, the Phillies had a 5.83 ERA during the six games on the road. The staff allowed 38 hits, including four home runs, in 55 innings at Citizens Bank Park, while surrendering 58 hits and nine home runs in 46 1/3 innings on the road.

“It’s just the comfort level that is the biggest thing,” Girardi said. “You get used to your backgrounds as a hitter. Even a pitcher feels a background. You get used to your own mound and your own infield and outfield. I think it’s the comfort factor that is missing a little bit on the road and with the COVID factor I think it’s a little bit harder because you’re not able to go out and have breakfast somewhere or lunch somewhere.”

» READ MORE: Adam Haseley takes leave from Phillies; Mickey Moniak called up from Lehigh Valley

Both Girardi and Harper mentioned that the Phillies have faced some tough starters in the early part of the season, but even if that’s the case, good teams find ways to beat good pitchers and they also find ways to win more often than they lose on the road.

“I think we’re looking too much into it with the start,” Girardi said. “We’ve faced two pretty good teams on the road to start.”

For now, the Phillies get to go home again. They open a three-game series Friday night against St. Louis and they will have the good fortune of missing Cardinals ace Jack Flaherty while also being able to pitch Thursday’s scheduled starter Zach Eflin in the series opener.

As bad as the road trip was, the big-picture outlook for the Phillies is just fine. It’s almost as if the season is starting all over again right now. The 6-6 Phillies trail the 5-3 Mets by one game and remain in front of the division-favorite Braves, who had lost four straight before finally beating the Miami Marlins on Thursday.

It was an awful trip and if the Phillies cannot figure out a way to stop losing away from home, this is going to be another lost season. But for the next six days they will be back in the friendly confines of Citizens Bank Park, where they know they play good baseball.