Phillies, J.T. Realmuto right at home in opener at Citizens Bank Park, topping Reds, 5-2

A few minutes before the Phillies took the field at Citizens Bank Park, for the first time in 2023, Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins stood by a flag pole in Ashburn Alley. Hoskins, fresh off ACL surgery, was leaning on a crutch with a brace over his left leg. Harper, who had Tommy John elbow surgery in November, used both of his hands to grab the rope. Together, they raised the 2022 National League pennant into the cloudy April sky.

In a normal year, Harper and Hoskins would have been lined up alongside the first base line with their teammates. But this is not a normal year.

» READ MORE: Phillies’ Darick Hall to have thumb surgery; Kody Clemens will take over at first base

The Phillies returned home on Friday, ahead of a 5-2 win over the Reds, with a different lineup than most expected. Infielder Kody Clemens, who was activated earlier that day, was in the eight hole. Bench outfielder Jake Cave was in the seven hole. Instead of batting second and third, Harper and Hoskins were raising the pennant. Darick Hall, who was supposed to fill in for Hoskins, was sitting in the dugout with a brace over his right thumb.

It wasn’t ideal, but it made that moment all the more impactful. For J.T. Realmuto, who was watching the Jumbotron from the bullpen, it represented the two players at the heart of last year’s playoff run. For Harper, it represented the playoff run, but also an opportunity to see Hoskins, who he hadn’t seen in person since his ACL surgery.

“I was just happy for Rhys to be able to do it,” he said. “Us doing that together was a really special.”

For Kyle Schwarber, it was gratifying, but also a reminder of what they want to accomplish.

“They’re the two perfect people to raise that flag,” Schwarber said. “I think for a lot of people it’ll hit more when we’re done (playing). We’re hungry. I wouldn’t say we’re upset, but we wanted to finish the job last year and we didn’t.

“A lot of people won’t get to the position that we got to. So we’re very grateful to be able to raise that flag, but we didn’t finish the job. And we want to. There’s going to be a lot of steps. A ton of steps.”

» READ MORE: Phillies need to find a way to make do until Bryce Harper and the calvary arrive

He’s right. A $250 million team has eight of its 40-man roster players on the injured list. This wasn’t how president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski drew it up. But the Phillies have experience to draw from.

Last year, when Harper went down, they rallied around their injured star. They cobbled together hits, and runs, and unsung heroes stepped up, from Garrett Stubbs to Roman Quinn to Bryson Stott to Matt Vierling. No one tried to replicate Harper; they merely tried to be the best version of themselves. And they showed a glimpse of that blueprint in their home opener.

It wasn’t hot-hitting Schwarber or Alec Bohm who hit the first home run, but Realmuto. In the seventh inning of a 2-2 game, he took a cutter right down the middle of the plate and launched it 448 feet into the left-center field stands for a two-run shot, his first of the season.

In the eighth inning, pinch-hitter Edmundo Sosa saw just one pitch — a 78 mph slider — and hit it 394 feet to give the Phillies a 5-2 lead. It was the first pinch-hit home run of Sosa’s career, and his first home run of the season.

“It’s a little bit comforting to us to know that we went through something a little bit similar last year,” Realmuto said. “It’s not new to us. We know what this adversity is like. It’s very similar to what we went through last year.

“Everybody just has to be themselves. You can’t try to be somebody you’re not. Nobody is going to step in and fill Rhys’ 30 home runs from the right side. That’s hard to do.”

As he took in the game from the dugout, Hall had flashbacks to October. There were so many times last fall when he saw Zack Wheeler give his club five good innings, and Jose Alvarado strike out the side with ease, but most of all, what brought him back was the crowd. It felt like postseason energy to him.

He hopes that feeling will stick around. But even if it doesn’t, the Phillies now have a clear reminder of what they’re playing for. All it takes is one glance over toward center field, where a 2022 NL pennant is flying high, to know that their work isn’t done.

Zack Wheeler didn’t have a perfect outing, but he looked far better than he did in his previous start against the Rangers on Saturday when he allowed seven hits and four earned runs in 4⅓ innings. Against the Reds, he allowed five hits, two earned runs and three walks in 5⅓ innings with five strikeouts.

Wheeler allowed only two walks and one hit through his first four innings. He hit trouble in the fifth inning when he allowed a double to Spencer Steer, walked Will Benson and gave up an RBI single by Jose Barrero. He exited the game after a double by Tyler Stephenson drove in TJ Friedl to tie the game 2-2 in the sixth inning. He threw 92 pitches, 59 of them strikes.

After going hitless through his previous four games, right fielder Nick Castellanos went 2-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout. Both of his hits were doubles, one of them hit very hard (it clocked in at 108.4 mph, the second highest exit velocity of the day and his hardest hit of the season). Needless to say, with the injuries of Hall, Hoskins and Harper, the Phillies could use a bounce-back season from Castellanos.

Castellanos now has four walks in his first seven games. He had 29 walks through 136 games last season.

“Just keeping it simple,” Castellanos said. “Not trying to add. I know that (Hunter) Greene throws 100 mph. So trying to get the barrel to the baseball. That’s about it. Just simplifying.”

» READ MORE: Three Phillies prospects to keep an eye on as the minor league season kicks off