Here are 25 bold predictions for the 2025 Philadelphia Phillies from 94WIP Midday Show host Joe Giglio.
1. The Trea Turner leadoff experiment won’t work.
2. Kyle Schwarber will lead the NL in home runs, slugging 46 in the final year of his contract.
3. Bryce Harper will finish sixth in NL MVP voting, joining Shohei Ohtani, Corbin Carroll, Juan Soto, Elly De La Cruz and Mookie Betts atop the ballot.
4. Zack Wheeler (third) and Cristopher Sanchez (fifth) will each finish top five in NL Cy Young voting. The final tally: Michael King, Paul Skenes, Wheeler, Brandon Pfaadt, Sanchez.
5. Aaron Nola's strikeout rate and strikeout-to-walk ratio will continue to decline as innings pile up on his right arm. While not quite "sound the alarms!" on his long-term contract, the righty will fully settle in as a mid-rotation guy, and no longer the top-of-the-rotation arm he was just a few years ago. Luckily, Cristopher Sanchez is ready to become a No. 2.
6. Max Kepler will start out hot, eliciting 2009 Raul Ibanez comparisons. But a good April will be forgotten by mid-summer when we'll all be calling for an outfielder (or two) by the trade deadline.
7. Joe Ross will be the new Spencer Turnbull, and a fan favorite within six weeks.
8. Orion Kerkering will be the Phillies primary closer by mid-May.
9. Rob Thomson will be on the hot seat before Memorial Day.
10. Bryson Stott will bounce back in a big way.
11. The Phillies will DFA Taijuan Walker in June, signaling the end of one of the worst contracts in franchise history.
12. Thomson will finally do what should have been done long ago: Deploy the best outfield defense late in games with leads.
13. The bullpen will be a year long adventure, at least until the trade deadline.
14. The Phillies and J.T. Realmuto will agree on a contract extension during the All Star break.
15. Alec Bohm will regress, losing his spot in the middle of the order and leading to trade rumors once again.
16. The kids (Andrew Painter, Aidan Miller) will arrive in July and August, respectively, to save the season.
17. Old friend Rhys Hoskins will become a legitimate trade option at the deadline. Hoskins will be the sentimental choice. Mike Trout will be the hot-button topic. But Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be the apple of everyone's eye after Bryce Harper volunteered to go back to the outfield.
18. But the actual trade deadline blockbuster is with the Cardinals: Bohm, Nick Castellanos, Moises Chance and Justin Crawford out, Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan and Ryan Helsley in.
19. Painter’s usage will be the biggest debate in the city. Starter? Reliever? Fireman out of the pen? Innings cap?
20. No Phillies player will play 150 games due to a combination of age (five regulars 32 or older), injury, and the team prioritizing rest for the long haul.
21. The Phillies will win 89 games.
22. The Phillies won't repeat as NL East champions, instead making the playoffs as the final wild card team by edging out the Brewers, Cubs and Padres down the stretch of the season.
23. NL East order of finish: Mets, Braves, Phillies, Nationals, Marlins
24. NL playoff teams: Dodgers, Reds, Mets, Diamondbacks, Braves, Phillies
25. The Phillies will go down to Terry Francona's Reds in 3 games in the NL Wild Card, signaling the end of an era. A younger, re-tooled roster will emerge for 2026.