Do the Phillies even like baseball?
Examining the line between professionalism and tight-assery
Let’s examine a few facts, then engage in some informed speculation.
Exhibit One is this recent quote from NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Ben Davis regarding the Phillies’ professionalism:
Note that Davis believes this Phillies club is not just professional, but somehow uniquely professional, at least in his personal experience.
He was offering simple praise, but what exactly does this professionalism entail? And are we sure it’s not too much of a good thing?
Bear with me as we turn to Exhibit Two, this September 2025 quote from Phillies-turned-Marlins pitcher Tyler Phillips:
They [the Marlins] let me by myself. Nobody over there [the Phillies] told me that I couldn't be myself, but it's kind of ... you're walking on eggshells. You’ve got a lot of vets in the clubhouse. So they didn’t tell me what to do, but it’s kind of like going to a new job and not knowing what you can do, what you can say, what you can't say. Kind of speak when you're spoken to. Here, I [can] just be myself, have some fun on the mound.
Exhibit Three is a story from Jean Segura about Bryce Harper kicking him out of the Phillies’ clubhouse. Segura was on a loud phone call, with guys on the other end clowning around:
Everyone has their pet peeves. The takeaway here, though, is that different players can have different ideas regarding acceptable/professional behavior. Harper probably believes that he was enforcing professionalism in the clubhouse, while Segura probably believes that the superstar’s reaction was unwarranted.
Exhibit Four: Edmundo Sosa feeling the need to apologize for slamming his bat and helmet after a July 2025 strikeout:
Obviously, that wasn’t OK. That’s not who I am, that’s not who I want to be on the field. After that, I talked a little with Harp and he called me out a little. He said, ‘Hey, that's not you. That's not how we do it here.’ And talking to him helped me calm down a little and refocus on what we should be doing next.
Sosa hit a home run in his next at-bat. Maybe Harper’s words helped the super-utility player focus.
But also… “That’s not how we do it here.”
First of all, it is very much how they do it here sometimes. More importantly, maybe not every player can conform to an emotionless standard of “professionalism.” Everyone is wired differently.
That brings us to Exhibit Five: Alec Bohm, bat slammer extraordinaire.
“He needs to improve things, not his performance, let’s just say that,” Fox’s A.J. Pierzynski said of Bohm during the 2024 offseason. “There’s some people around that organization that aren’t huge fans of the way he acts sometimes ... There are some people that have said he needs to basically grow up a little bit.”
Does he, though? When a player performs well, we often admire his intensity. Then that same intensity can get labeled as immaturity when things go sideways.
Bohm catches a lot of heat from Phillies fans, often deservedly so. He is struggling terribly this season. But nobody doubts his passion, and that’s because of traits that are apparently disfavored by his organization.
I now submit to the jury the aforementioned informed speculation: The Phillies are professionals to a fault. Their clubhouse culture has moved beyond mere professionalism and ventured into tight-assery. And it hurts their performance.
Aside from a few moments, where is the fun with this team in 2026?
Here’s a chart for the visual learners:
There’s a culture in any organization, baseball-related or otherwise. Nobody wants to seem unprofessional. But there’s a tipping point somewhere, and the anecdotes above paint a portrait of a club that takes itself much too seriously. Veteran leadership that is well-intentioned and respected, but also has guys “walking on eggshells,” in Phillips’ words, or unable to present their authentic selves, as the Segura, Sosa, and Bohm examples suggest.
Sure, these stories are cherry-picked. But most observers of this team would say that these players rarely look like they’re having fun.
Also, if I really wanted to cherry-pick I would show you this:
A common joke during the Phillies’ 2022 run to the World Series was that the team was powered by vibes and friendship. “Daycare” members were dumping water and trash on everyone. DJ Garrett Stubbs was in the prime of his music career. Expectations were low, the 87-win team was playing with house money, and everyone seemed relaxed.
Good vibes alone can’t win a championship, we learned that year. But it’s still very possible that bad vibes can prevent one. It seems impossible for the Phillies to perform their best when they’re not relaxed, and they rarely seem relaxed. We’ve heard countless times over the past several seasons that the group is “playing tight,” or “pressing.” That they’re “doing too much,” or that they “just need to relax and play the game.”
And when we keep hearing the same thing, it’s fair to wonder whether there’s something about the organization’s culture that makes the players tighten up. Something that makes them all press, even while they tell each other to get loose.
We saw it when the magic ran out and things got serious in Game Four of the 2022 World Series. We saw it in 2023 when they blew a golden opportunity against the Diamondbacks. We saw it in extra innings in 2025 against the Dodgers. And we’re seeing it now.
Some of this, of course, is about losing. Nobody has fun losing. An 8-10 record is not fun.
But it feels deeper than that with these players. When things are going well, we can see them feeding off of each other’s success, erupting for huge offensive innings. And when things go poorly, we can see them spiral, feeding off of each other’s tension.
That feeling—that something is just off—was a big part of fans’ desires to see significant changes to a 2025 roster that was pretty successful (before running into the team from L.A., at least). Nobody doubted that the Phillies had talent; the concern was that an injection of fresh energy was needed. Something similar to the juice that Harrison Bader’s arrival provided last season.
Maybe the team’s rookies can provide a similar spark. Maybe the veterans can lighten up. Maybe firing a coach or two would give the players a jolt, and maybe the front office can locate that psychiatrist from Ted Lasso.
Or maybe this is just how it will be.
A dog.
Hey look at this dog. Butt-naked in the grass, just enjoying the sunshine.
Be the dog, Phillies.
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Thank you for reading and go Phils!
God I hope people in the Phillies org see this because they need to; vibes have been off for a while now and it feels like they’re barely enjoying themselves.
Great article, John!
Really well written piece about an issue that we can all see but it can be hard to put into words