As a team, the Philadelphia Phillies had an objectively successful year in 2023. They won 90 games, finished in the first Wild Card spot by six games, and though the outcome was not ideal, they appeared in a Game Seven in the NLCS.

That being said, it’s fair to say that the team and the fans will agree they’re disappointed with how the season ended and that it could have been better. A 162-game season inevitably has its ups and downs, but taking a step back and looking at the production of the individual players and the team reveals a great deal.

Each player goes into the start of the season with certain expectations from the team and for themselves. The bar is set at different levels for different players; the team can’t expect a player like Brandon Marsh to hit 40 home runs or a guy like Kyle Schwarber to win a Gold Glove.

But that being said, there are certain players coming into 2024 who should have their bar raised higher than it’s been in the past. Whether that’s because a particular player had a down year in 2023 or there’s just more that player can offer to the team, it’s time for the team to level set expectations.

The bulk of the roster is likely set, and so it will depend on the guys in the clubhouse to take their respective games to the next level if they want to bring home a World Series title.

Let’s take a look at some players whose bar should be raised for 2024.

Jake Cave, OF

Spoiler alert, they are both Jake Cave. Player A is Jake Cave in Triple-A and Player B is Jake Cave in the majors.

There’s clearly a stark difference between major league and Triple-A pitching, but seeing someone struggle so much against big league pitching and purely dominant Triple-A pitching is confounding. The Phillies have continued to give the 31-year-old outfielder chance after chance to bring his minor league magic to the majors, but it just didn’t happen in 2023.

The Phillies gave Cave a one-year deal worth $1 million this offseason, giving him, seemingly, one more opportunity to prove he can perform. Even though Cave is the fourth or even fifth outfielder on the depth chart, he needs to raise his performace in 2024 significantly.

The Phillies cannot afford to have a bench player who does not contribute with either his bat, speed, or glove. At this point, Cave is the dreaded Quad-A player, but hopefully, he comes out in 2024 swinging a hot bat. Otherwise, there’s a real possibility the Phillies will replace him with one of the many waiting prospects in the minors.

Seranthony Domínguez, RP

Seranthony Domínguez is one of the more successful home-grown players to have risen through the ranks in the Phillies organization. He signed as an amateur free agent with the Phillies in 2011 and has gradually built his reputation and repertoire to take on more responsibility in high-leverage situations.

His first year in the big leagues was in 2018 and he was absolutely stellar. Pitching to a 2.95 ERA with a .931 WHIP and a 2.85 FIP. In 2022, he had a 3.00 ERA, 1.137 WHIP, and a 3.09 FIP while taking on high-leverage situations and seemingly closing the door each time. In high- and medium-leverage situations batters hit just .194 and .130 against him, respectively.

Whether it was a nagging injury, runoff from the previous year’s workload or something else, the 29-year-old hard throwing righty was not the same in 2023.

In 2023, Domínguez had a 3.78 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and a 4.84 FIP. Hitters batted .241 and .304 against him in high and medium-leverage situations. Simply put, the Phillies need Domínguez to be a reliable arm out of the bullpen in high-leverage and late-inning situations.

This is a big year for Domínguez because he has a team option in 2025 and he’ll almost certainly be looking for a longer-term extension. Just as much as the team needs him to raise his bar in 2024, he should be looking to become the standout, consistent, dependable reliever everyone expects from him.

José Alvarado, RP

What a success story José Alvarado has been for this Phillies team. Since coming back up to the majors after a brief stint at Triple-A in 2022, Alvarado has absolutely dominated.

From June 16 of the 2022 season to the end of last year, he had an ERA of 1.22 with 64 strikeouts and just 12 walks in 37 innings. In 2023, over 41 1/3 innings, he had a 1.74 ERA, 64 strikeouts, and 18 walks. He has been the definition of dependable for the Phillies in so many high-leverage and late-inning situations. He’s been Rob Thomson’s go-to guy to put out fires whenever it’s been needed.

During his Triple-A stint, he adjusted to almost exclusively throwing just his sinker and cutter. Since then, he’s been able to keep walks to a minimum and the strikeouts high, keeping runners off the bases and the threats at bay. In high- and medium-leverage situations, batters are hitting just .200 and .191 against him with on-base percentages of .307 and .227. In 2023, his ERA in the ninth inning was a minuscule 0.75, surrendering just five walks while striking out 17.

The Phillies need Alvarado big time in 2024, and it’s time for him to raise his bar. At the time of writing this, the Phillies haven’t signed a bonafide closer to be the undisputed ninth-inning guy. That guy should be Alvarado. He has surely earned the opportunity to be the full time closer for the 2024 team.

Taijuan Walker, SP

Taijuan Walker didn’t have the greatest first year as the newest member of the Phillies rotation in 2023. During the offseason last year, he was signed to a four-year deal worth $72 million. Sure, the free agent pitcher market was white-hot, but Walker didn’t live up to expectations typically reserved for a guy making $18 million a year.

He ended the regular season with a 4.38 ERA, 1.308 WHIP, and 4.53 FIP which was arguably his worst season since 2021 with the Mets or 2015 with the Mariners. To his dismay, Walker didn’t make one single pitch in the 2023 postseason. Rob Thomson simply just didn’t trust him to start a game or even come in for mop-up duty in games that were out of hand. Taking a step back, the fact that a pitcher making $18 million a year was unable to contribute in the playoffs is a bad look.

Walker also had significant issues in the early innings of his starts. His ERA in the first inning was a lofty 7.04 and tapered down towards 4.60 in the fourth inning. If he can figure out how to get off to faster starts and limit damage in the early innings, he can have a season that everyone would be extremely excited about.

Walker is slated to be the fourth pitcher in the Phillies rotation behind Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and Ranger Suárez and just in front of Cristopher Sánchez, but his spot may be in jeopardy if the Phillies make a surprise move to add another arm to the rotation.

In order for the Phillies to keep pace with the Atlanta Braves and other top NL teams, they will need to get the most out of their veterans and high-cost players. It’s time to raise the bar for the 11-year veteran.

Aaron Nola, SP

Right or wrong, when a player gets a new contract, it comes with new, and bigger, expectations. This offseason, the 30-year-old right-hander signed a seven-year, $172 million contract to stay with the Phillies. Even before the new deal, fans were calling for Nola to be better, but now the calls will be louder than ever.

2023 was a tumultuous season for Nola to say the least. He just couldn’t find any consistency and, statistically, had one of the worst seasons of his career. Over 193 2/3 innings, he had a 4.46 ERA, 1.151 WHIP, and 4.03 FIP. According to FanGraphs, his 3.9 fWAR would have him ranked 15th in the league behind Jordan Montgomery and just ahead of Kyle Bradish. He surrendered a career-high 32 home runs and had his lowest SO/9 rate at 9.4 since his rookie year in 2015.

With his new contract, Nola will make the 11th most in the MLB among active starting pitchers in 2024. And making $24.5 million a year means he’ll be depended on to be a top-tier starter. His 2023 performance won’t cut it if the Phillies want to take the next step. The Phillies are hoping that now with a long-term contract secured, Nola settles in and finds more of the magic from 2018 when he came in third in Cy Young voting, was an All-Star, and even garnered MVP votes.

Nola has been a lightning rod for conversation on whether he is an “ace” or if the Phillies should extend him. Now that the Phillies gave him a contract, it’s time for the bar to finally be raised in 2024.

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