Mets, Nationals Have Gifted Phillies Their Championship Contender

PHILADELPHIA, PA — The names are ridiculous. Taken alone, and filled out with any replacement-level players from around the league, they'd be a playoff contender.

They are the players the Phillies have stolen, outright, from two of their biggest competitors: the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets.

And while the Nats are in a rebuilding phase and currently sit in last place in the NL East, the Mets, with the highest payroll in MLB history, sit not far ahead in 4th.

Take a look:

Former Nationals that became free agents and were signed by Phillies:

• Kyle Schwarber
• Trea Turner
• Bryce Harper

Former Mets that became free agents and were signed by Phillies:

• Zack Wheeler
• Taijuan Walker

Former Marlins traded to the Phillies

• J.T. Realmuto

It's well known by now that all five of these signings were shrewd moves by the Phillies. Harper's record contract looks like an underpay a few years later, both due to his performance and how much more money good, but inferior players have earned in their respective megacontracts. Wheeler, now a perennial Cy Young candidate, was an absolute steal. Schwarber led the NL in home runs last year. Turner's overall numbers since he came to Philly aren't in line with his career numbers, but he's in his prime and he's been playing at that typically high level since the end of May. Walker has been arguably the hottest pitcher in baseball the past month, with perhaps the exception of teammate Ranger Suarez.

As for Realmuto? Once vaunted prospect Sixto Sanchez hasn't played in an MLB game since 2020 as he deals with all the injury issues scouts warned about during his time in the Phillies system. And Jorge Alfaro is long gone from the Marlins radar.

It's common knowledge that the Phillies poached these individual players from two (three) of their biggest rivals, but it's not acknowledged often enough the collective missed chances of their foes and the collective benefits reaped by the Fightins.

And while it's hardly unprecedented in baseball for a player to go from one division rival to another, there is nothing even close to analogous in recent history: six players that rivals didn't want to hold on to, that were instead picked up by the same in-division team, en route to that same team building a National League pennant-winning and contending roster.

With the Mets and Nationals in the NL East basement, the surging Phillies are currently sitting in possession of the second Wild Card spot. They've won 11 road games in a row, the most in their history since 1947, and as they proved a year ago, all they need to do is get to the postseason.