In the 2019 offseason, during the Phillies buying spree of veteran free agents, the Phillies latched on to the aging outfielder, Andrew McCutchen, on a substantial 3yr/$50M contract. Cutch was 33 when he signed the deal, and the Phillies thought the former 2013 MVP still had reliable production, both offensively and defensively, left in the tank. After hitting a memorable leadoff homer to open the 2019 season, he was off to a decent start in Philly for an older veteran as a spark plug. Cutch then went down shortly after in June of ‘19 with a season-ending leg injury. He had a mediocre, shortened 2020 season, and fans expected the talent they once knew to be back in form for ‘21. 

In the final year of his Philadelphia deal, Andrew McCutchen has not lived up to his 5x all-star expectations. Signs of aging in his play are clear and a continued decline in production is inevitable for the near 36-year old. Some players have a knack for it in old age in baseball, while others have a clear-cut prime. McCutchen looks to be the latter. His batting average leveled at .222, a drastic dip from his career of .280, and an underwhelming .334 OBP. Though, he did have some bright spots with flashes of power, raking 27 homers and 80 RBI. He didn’t hit for consistency like his career numbers suggest, but when he did hit it this year, it was probably leaving the yard. Andrew was particularly dreadful in his left field defensive role, tallying 8 total errors, a career high. The number isn’t exceptionally high, but it’s an inaccurate representation of his play. The vet looked far worse in left field than the numbers suggest. 

Aside from his unsatisfactory play on both sides of the ball, McCutchen brought leadership and entertainment to the clubhouse. He took on the comical alias “Uncle Larry”, interacting with fans and the Phillie Fanatic. He even did things like play rock-paper-scissors on home run trots and have a catch during a game with a fan. It wouldn’t be right to disregard Cutch’s contributions to the clubhouse with his experience and lighthearted nature.In a postseason interview, even Cutch admitted, “with the seasons that I’ve had here… I definitely felt that my performance personally wasn’t where I wanted it to be.” Andrew has a club option to be decided by the organization this offseason, but it’s pretty evident the Phillies are looking forward to getting the vet off the payroll. Fans would agree McCutchen’s been entertaining, but ultimately disappointing in his three years here.

Ranger Suarez was probably the Phillies most successful pitcher in 2021 behind Zack Wheeler. Suarez began the year as a bullpen piece, then progressed to the starting rotation as he was pitching well and an opportunity opened. It was Ranger’s first season experiencing the success he did, as he took steps to massively improve his game. He’s been signed in Philadelphia since he was 16 years old, but he just broke out as a hot item now. If there were a “Most Improved Player” award in the MLB, it likely would’ve been won by Ranger this year. 

It’s difficult to compare this season to Ranger’s previous ones as he’s a young player with a limited sample size. In his last season of significant use, 2019, Suarez pitched to a 3.14 ERA – a respectable number for a bullpen arm, but he dipped in limited use in 2020. 

Suarez delivered the best of his few seasons thus far in 2021, posting career numbers in nearly every statistical category including ERA, strikeouts, innings pitched, and WAR. The standouts are his dominant ERA of only 1.36, with over 100IP, and a remarkable WAR of 5.9. For comparison, that’s the second lowest ERA a pitcher has had with over 100IP since 1969. For a large portion of the early season, his ERA remained under 1. He delivered eight wins and four saves for the Phillies in total. Ranger’s stuff isn’t overpowering, with an average fastball velocity of 94MPH, but he’s accurate, throws with precision, and changes speeds utilizing a slider and changeup. His success resulted in a hefty workload, pitching in every imaginable situation over the course nearly 40 ballgames. It speaks to his versatility as an arm, and the get-it-done mentality he’s been praised for. He kept coming through when his number was called, so the Phillies decided to employ him in the lengthened starter’s role. Ranger delivered two memorable starts – one was the Saturday night win at home over the Mets in an August first-place matchup that he put together, the other being his masterpiece, a complete game shutout of the Pirates in late September.

Suarez entered 2021 as a hopeful bullpen piece and he leaves it a bonafide starter of the league, and one of the Phillies best. The Phillies organization looks forward to many years of reliable production from an up-and-coming talent like Suarez.

Jean Segura has shined as one of the few bright spots on the Phillies roster this season. Coming off a down year in the shortened 2020 season, Segura has bounced back in hitting for a high average at the top of the lineup with a little pop, had outstanding defensive play at second base, and even showed veteran leadership qualities this year. The Phillies acquired Segura in the 2019 offseason along with much of the rest of the team, coming off an all-star season in ‘18. Segura is a career .285 hitter, but he didn’t perform at that rate in his first couple of seasons in Philadelphia. He was considered lazy and many viewed him as a trade prospect. 

Segura has become a fan favorite due to tremendous play in 2021. From his comical walk-up music to his swag on the diamond, he’s been the complete package that the organization signed on for this season. He’s been the staple in the Phillies 2-hole, hitting .290 with 14 jacks, and 58 RBI. As one of the only consistent producers at the top of the lineup, his value has not been diminished this year. Jean’s been great managing his defensive role at second base this year too. He boasts a fielding percentage of .981. He’s highly acclaimed for both his cannon of an arm and internal clock on the inner diamond. Comparisons have been drawn between Segura and Phillie Wall-of-Fame second baseman Manny Trillo, famous for his powerful and precise arm in the 1980 World Series run. Segura seems to always know exactly when a play needs to be made too, throwing runners out on time with consistency. 

The Dominican infielder smacked his first Major league grand-slam this season in a September matchup against the Brewers. It’s an accomplishment all amateurs dream of, and he finally got it in his ninth season in the bigs. Jean’s probably the biggest all-star snub in 2021 as one of the top second baseman in today’s game, because his name doesn’t pop like it once did. He’s been flat out great for the Phillies this year and fans hope to see him and the consistency he brought on both sides of the ball back in red pinstripes in ‘22. 

Throughout the 2010s, the Phillies organization was in a lowly place. When Aaron Nola made his debut for Philadelphia in 2015 and delivered a six-inning, one-run performance, there was reason to have hope once again. The LSU product was highly touted before entering the league as MLB’s 28th prospect at the time. Over the next several seasons, Nola would become the ace of the Phillies rotation. Beginning in 2018, he’s been the Opening Day starter for Philly ever since. ‘18 was Nola’s most notable season as he finished the year 3rd in National League Cy Young voting, with an ERA of only 2.37.  Though the team wasn’t reaching the playoffs, the organization came to expect a standard of excellence from their best pitcher in Nola. Nola’s repertoire became household for Phillies fans, enjoying seeing the ace paint the corners with a jumping fastball, and his famous, biting knuckle-curve. He was tallying strikeouts and consistently pitching to a mid-3s ERA as the leader of the staff.

2021 has been a different story for Nola. He’s embodied the term inconsistent. Suffering a loss in ERA production, up to 4.63 which is nearly a run higher than his career average, he maintained a high strikeout and innings pitched rate. All in all, he’s 9-9 with 223Ks – respectable numbers in those respective categories. But something was off with Nola this year as he was allowing more runs. There are two explanations for Nola’s decline in performance – hitters having learned Nola and Nola not executing. Nola was particularly poor in division games where hitters are more likely to have faced him before. Fans of the Phillies can recall many home runs off the bats of division superstars Juan Soto and Ronald Acuna. They’ve seen him a number of times and they’ve learned his stuff – Nola needs to adjust if he wants to get them out again. Nola has also been called out for having flat stuff – many games he simply hasn’t executed his pitches with the same movement that made him successful before. 

Nola has also had a few spectacular outings. He threw a complete game shutout in St. Louis in May, and an 8-inning shutout at Yankee Stadium. His signature performance came on August 21st when he threw an 8.2 inning loss to the San Diego Padres. It personified his season in terms of disappointment. The Phillies led the game 3-1 and let Nola pitch the bottom of the 9th, when he allowed a game-tying home run with 2 outs. Aaron Nola is a fan favorite in Philadelphia, as one of the only homegrown players on the team who’ve been here a bit, and everyone wants to see him back on the right track. But Aaron’s inability this season to get hitters out with consistency has led the organization to consider the prospect of trading him this off-season.