Philadelphia Phillies Stars Set the Tone During Intense Intrasquad Scrimmage

With the Philadelphia Phillies trying to find ways to stay ready during their bye week, their intrasquad scrimmage had some interesting results.

Jun 11, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) celebrates with Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) after a leadoff solo home run during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park / Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies entered the postseason dealing with something that has been foreign to them during their last two playoff appearances.

By way of getting hot in the second half of 2022 and the Atlanta Braves running away with the division in 2023, the Phillies have made their deep runs the past two years by starting out in the Wild Card round.

Braves manager Brian Snitker seemed to use the layoff as an excuse for why his team that looked unstoppable on paper was eliminated, something that ruffled the feathers of many players in Philadelphia's clubhouse leading up this campaign.

Well, they are now sitting in the same position Atlanta has been in, and they are looking to avoid the same fate as their rivals.

While they got the week off to recover and get healthy after a long 162-game schedule, there is always the concern about rust becoming a factor when not facing Major League pitching on an everyday basis, causing the bats to go quiet at the worst time.

The Phillies put a plan in place to keep the players sharp during this week leading up to the NLDS beginning on Saturday.

That preparation largely culminated in the intrasquad scrimmage that took place on Wednesday that left manager Rob Thomson happy with what he saw take place on the field.

"I was really excited about the intensity of it. I thought the guys really got after it," he said per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.

The practice game was closed to members of the media, but there was information released about what occurred between the two sides that were captained by Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper.

After a hard fought eight innings, the contest ended in a 5-5 tie.

Zolecki reported that Harper, Nick Castellanos and Weston Wilson all homered during this game. Johan Rojas and Austin Hays made it back to the field after missing the final contests of the regular season. Ranger Suarez impressed Thomson with his performance and Spencer Turnbull also pitched after missing extended time on the injured list.

The results of the scrimmage don't matter, but the skipper was looking for intensity.

And for all intents and purposes, that's exactly what he got.

Heading into Saturday when facing either the New York Mets or Milwaukee Brewers who have already adjusted to the do-or-die mode that the playoffs present, Philadelphia has to be ready from opening pitch in Game 1 with Zack Wheeler officially getting their 2024 playoffs underway.

Thomson didn't want to have multiple intrasquad games because he felt like that would make the players not take things as seriously as they should.

Instead, he opted to have one matchup that featured teams selected by captains played at Citizens Bank Park in an environment that simulated a real game.

The players were bought in, led by the stars who have to carry the Phillies to victory if they are going to accomplish their goal of winning the World Series, a great sign of what could be coming when this team gets back onto the field this weekend.