Philadelphia Phillies 'Declining Upside' On Offense Pushes Team Down Rankings

While the Philadelphia Phillies have a ton of talent on paper, where do they rank among their peers around the league in offensive ability?

Oct 8, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) hits an RBI single in the eighth inning against the New York Mets during game three of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies have been a powerhouse in the MLB for a while now, but may have already reached their peak offensively with their current unit.

Barring any trades, which should certainly not be off the table for this Phillies front office, they are an aging group of stars.

ESPN's Bradford Doolittle recently did a ranking of the best offenses around the league, and Philadelphia closed out their list at No. 10 overall.

Their "best trait" as listed by Doolittle is the fact that they still have Bryce Harper, who is still playing at an elite level.

Harper is coming off of his second All-Star campaign in six years with the Phillies. He posted a .285/.373/.525 slash line with 30 home runs and 87 RBI. He also tied his career-high in doubles with 42.

As long as he is playing at an MVP level, he can be the cornerstone of the team.

The problem is that he and four other starters for Philadelphia are going to be at least 32 years old next season. Nick Castellanos is going to be 33 and J.T. Realmuto will be 34.

For that part of the lineup, the only way to go from here is down because of their age.

Doolittle is also worried about the younger players on their roster, because of the "declining upside."

Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh and Bryson Stott were once viewed as the next wave of stars for the Phillies, and while they haven't been bad, calling them star players is now a stretch.

Because all of them are at least 27 years old in their own right, them breaking out further would be a bit of a shock.

There isn't much hope for homegrown talent improving enough to push them over the edge into being a World Series squad.

The only way to really remedy that is by being active in the trade market, finally pulling off the oft-requested move for another star in the outfield.

Philadelphia lost out on the race for Kyle Tucker to the Chicago Cubs, and they seem to be out of the running for Cody Bellinger as well.

Perhaps they start up the conversation about Chicago White Sox slugger Luis Robert Jr. once again.

No matter who it is, if they are open to moving their top prospects, they need to decide on what to do soon.

The Phillies have been desperate to win a ring for a while now and have the core to pull it off, at least on paper.

They might as well do whatever they can to add to this group before players start leaving.