Phillies' Jean Segura, J.T. Realmuto Finally Achieve Playoff Aspirations

The two players with the longest playoff droughts in all of baseball finally broke the cycle in 2022.

Author:
Alex Carr
Oct 4, 2022 6:00 PM EDT

In this story:

2,331 games. The equivalent of fourteen seasons. A combined twenty years in the major leagues. That is how long it took both J.T. Realmuto and Jean Segura to finally realize their playoff dreams.

On Monday, Oct. 4, the two players in all of baseball with the longest active playoff droughts thirsts were quenched, as the Philadelphia Phillies clinched a National League Wild Card spot.

One would expect that the two athletes of their caliber would have reached the postseason numerous times prior to this point, and it wasn't for lack of trying. Both Segura and Realmuto have each accrued more than 28 rWAR across their expansive careers, with five All-Star appearances between them. Each of them have also finished within the top 15 of Most Valuable Player balloting at least once, and Realmuto has taken home the Silver Slugger Award twice.

Though their journeys were different, their lack of postseason appearances stems from one common thread: neither of their teams, prior to joining the Phillies, had ever expressed a true desire to win.

The Phillies celebrate their first Postseason clinch in over a decade.
© Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

A Los Angeles Angels product, Jean Segura spent four years with a middling Milwaukee Brewers club to begin his career. The team relied firmly on aging veterans like Ryan Braun and Carlos Gomez, and were constantly thrust into mediocrity with weak pitching staffs and shallow lineups. They failed to finish above .500 during Segura's tenure there.

Thus, the shortstop was traded to an Arizona Diamondbacks club which, by all accounts, should have been good. A rotation stacked with Robbie Ray, Zack Greinke, Patrick Corbin, and newly acquired Shelby Miller from Atlanta (yikes) was set to headline the team to victory. Unfortunately, the lineup was shorthanded outside of the bat of Paul Goldschmidt, and their bullpen proved atrocious following closer Brad Ziegler.

Now a journeyman of sorts, Segura was shipped off to Seattle alongside outfielder Mitch Haniger, in exchange for the "little-known" duo of Ketel Marte and Taijuan Walker. There, Segura signed a five-year extension with the Mariners, looking to be a fixture of their club for years to come.

But everyone in baseball now knows the nature of Jerry Dipoto, the Mariners' wheelin' and dealin' general manager. When the Phillies sought to dump first baseman Carlos Santana's remaining two years and $40 million left on his contract, Dipoto pounced. Despite Segura's All-Star season in 2018, the Mariners sent him Philadelphia's way, snatching up shortstop J.P. Crawford in the process.

The rest, as they say, is history.

J.T. Realmuto, on the other hand, had the exact opposite experience to that of Segura's, and remained with the same team for the majority of his career prior to joining the Phillies.

Realmuto was a member of those mid-2010s Marlins—you know the ones. That Christian Yelich-Marcell Ozuna-Giancarlo Stanton-Jose Fernandez core that appeared destined to win a World Series one day.

Yet, somehow, those Marlins never really lived up to expectations. Despite a slew of MVP-level seasons from Giancarlo Stanton, and multiple strong years from Yelich, Ozuna, Dee Gordon, and Realmuto himself, they failed to achieve above a .500 record.

Thus, a year after the sudden loss of the beloved Jose Fernandez, the Marlins' fire sale began. First out the door was Giancarlo Stanton. Then went Marcell Ozuna. Christian Yelich followed. Finally, the last-man-standing Realmuto, was traded to the Phillies, where he would go on to thrive, and become the best catcher in the sport.

It's been a long journey for these two players, but ultimately, they ended up right where they needed to be. Segura has been a spark-plug for the Phillies since he arrived, and Realmuto posted a career year in 2022 to lift the Phillies to their first postseason berth in over a decade.

Together, Segura and Realmuto have combined to propel themselves, as well as a core of Aaron Nola, Rhys Hoskins, Zach Eflin, and many others to the playoffs for the first time in their careers. The relief, pride, and immeasurable joy they felt in the moments following their clinch was palpable—and while it may be their first-ever postseason appearance, it most certainly won't be their last.