Kyle Schwarber wasn’t having it.

He was adamant after the game – an embarrassing 5-0 loss to the Miami Marlins at Citizens Bank Park, that nothing needs to change right now for the Phillies – in terms of lineups or in the clubhouse.

“No. Not at all,” he said. “No. No. I think the group that we have is one of the most talented groups I’ve been around and some of the best dudes I’ve been around. You go through one through nine (in the order), you go through our staff, you go through our bullpen – we’ve assembled a really good team and we’ve assembled a bunch of good dudes too.

“That’s why, for us, there’s frustration. You’re going to see us really come together. And we’re going to figure this thing out. I promise you we’ll be better for it at the end.”

That kind of foxhole mentality should play well in this city. It should give them a little runway – maybe the next two weeks before the calendar flips to September, and the spotlight becomes even harsher.


But is it the right thing? Should the Phillies just stay the course? Should they not mix things up? Would that be viewed internally as a panic move?

It’s at times like these that managers earn their salaries.

Schwarber may not have known at the time, but 15 minutes earlier, Rob Thomson was asked the same thing about changes. And he wasn’t nearly as adamant as Schwarber that things should stay the same.

“We’re getting close,” Thomson said, of potential changes. “We’ll see tomorrow.”

Thomson is usually a stay the course manager. His even-tempered approach to managing a team is what has made him successful. It’s what has brought the buy-in from the players it has. It’s what created the clubhouse culture that has gotten so many people talking for the past couple years.

So, it’s no surprise that he hasn’t made any kind of noticeable change yet, nor is it surprising that Schwarber would be so resolute on the notion that nothing needs to change.

This is what the Phillies know. This is what has made the Phillies good and, at times, special. It’s always more comfortable relying on what you know to course correct than it is at trying something new.

But something has to give. It’s one thing to lose to good teams on the road during a tough stretch of games. It’s something else entirely to get shutout at home by the last place Miami Marlins. And by a rookie pitcher, few have even heard of, who can’t break a pane of glass with his pitches.

Now would be the time for Thomson to make a change. It doesn’t have to be permanent. It doesn’t have to even be for more than a day or two – but enough for the Clubhouse to take notice.

Because as much as Schwarber is right about the group inside that clubhouse, sometimes the easiest solution is the one that’s staring you in the face.

The changes won’t be drastic – nor should they be – and whatever they are, they won’t reek of panic or desperation.

Was there panic when, during his late-season struggles a year ago, that Nick Castellanos was dropped in the lineup by Thomson? Castellanos started to hit again, and then in the playoffs, he was making history with his power against the Braves – all from hitting at the bottom of the lineup.

Was it deemed panicky when Thomson dropped Trea Turner down the lineup during his prolonged slump last summer? Turner was able to work his way back in a less-high profile spot in the order. And just because the standing ovation coincided with that resurgence for Turner, doesn’t mean that was the reason he figured it out.

Cute story, and all, but let’s be realistic – Turner got his act together after a lineup demotion.

Thomson has already done it a few times this year. He’s tried to get Bryson Stott, Brandon Marsh and J.T. Realmuto going by moving them around the order. last night Stott hit fifth, Realmuto seventh, Marsh eighth. They went a combined 1-for-10.

Stott took some better swings and is making harder contact. Realmuto is slowly starting to look like he’s having better at bats. He’s 4-for-15 in his last four games (.267) with a double and a homer. Marsh, however, is completely lost.

He was 0-for-3 and struck out twice on Tuesday. Marsh has now struck out 62 times in his 144 at bats (43.1 %) since coming back from a hamstring injury on June 16. He is hitting just .201 in that time.

“He needs to make more contact, for sure,” Thomson said, choosing not to elaborate further.

It’s when Thomson gives those short answers, that you can almost bank on it that the topic has crossed his mind, but that he hasn’t addressed it with the player. So, it’s likely that one of his considerations is taking Marsh out of the lineup. And it would be the right thing to do. Let him clear his head. Take the whole day off. No outfield work. No batting practice. Just take a day and watch.

There’s no guarantee it will work, but repeatedly doing the same thing over and over again and getting the same unwelcome result is a sadistic form of insanity.

So, mix it up. Give Cal Stevenson a start. It’s the Marlins. It’s August.

But that might not be the only change.

Thomson was reluctant to consider sliding Turner down the lineup prior to Tuesday’s game, but after another 0-for-4 with really only one of those at bats – the first one – being considered a good approach by Turner at the plate, it should be on the table.

You probably aren’t benching Turner – even though lately you had him not running his hardest to beat out the back end of a double play in Arizona, killing a rally, and his struggles at the plate leaking over to his play in the field – he made his 13th error of the season, booting a routine grounder.

It’s tough to bench a guy who is still hitting .297 with an OPS of .805.

Less than a month ago, Turner was hitting over .340. His OPS was over .900. Everything has plummeted – specifically in the last 16 games.

In that span his 10-for-70 (.143) and has just two extra base hits (both doubles). His OPS is a woeful .350. It has dropped his batting average for the season below .300 for the first time since April 15.

But we’ve seen this before.

Last season, between July 29th and August 19th, Turner batted in the bottom half of the lineup in 17-of-20 games. He was demoted in the lineup because he was under water at the plate for several games. In those 20 games batting down, he slashed .295/.353/.539 for an .891 OPS.

Once reinserted back into the two-hole thereafter, in 34 games, he slashed .324/.379/.655 for an 1.034 OPS.

And his stats in the 16 games leading up to the demotion?

He was 13-for-70 (.197). Sound familiar?

The difference between this season and last season is Thomson had other guys going well while Turner was off his game a year ago. It was easier to move guys around the lineup.

With so many Phillies struggling at the same time now, Thomson doesn’t see as clear a path with the lineup to keep it balanced.

Still, as pointed out earlier, it’s the Marlins in August. This is a time that going off-script in an effort to jump start players makes sense.

Here’s just one sample of a lineup that could work for tonight, although there are other combinations too:

  1. Schwarber DH
  2. Bohm 3B
  3. Harper 1B
  4. Castellanos RF
  5. Stott 2B
  6. Realmuto C
  7. Turner SS
  8. Stevenson LF
  9. Rojas CF

I can see flipping Castellanos and Bohm and or Realmuto and Turner as well. It would be a different look and feel.

Because right now, any look or any feeling would be better than what the Phillies are experiencing by doing the same thing every night.