The Philadelphia Phillies were the best team in baseball over the first half of the season. The Phillies sent an MLB-best eight players to the All-Star game, including three starters for the first time in four decades. However, the team has backslid since returning from the All-Star break, going just 15-20.

But the Phillies picked up a huge win in the team’s series opener against the Houston Astros on Monday. Bryce Harper played the hero for Philadelphia, whacking a walk-off RBI single in the 10th to send the fans home happy. Despite getting the game winner, Harper turned the attention on Phillies' starter Zack Wheeler. “Really good team over there and obviously wanted to start this week off good. Wheels threw the crap out of it,” Harper said per Corey Seidman of NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Wheeler came up with a quality start against a tough Astros team that had slugger Yordan Alvarez back in the lineup after he was sidelined by neck pain over the last three games. Wheeler went six innings and allowed two runs on six hits and two walks. He struck out six batters.

Harper was also quick to point out the contributions of the Phillies’ relievers. “The bullpen did their job. Just a really good, hard-fought win right there,” he said via NBC Sports Philadelphia. The bullpen was terrific as four relievers went four innings and didn’t surrender a single run on just two hits and one walk.

Bryce Harper delivers a walk-off win for the Phillies

Aug 23, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) at bat against the Kansas City Royals in the first inning at Kauffman Stadium.
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
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Of course, Harper deserves some love too. The two-time MVP went 2-3 with two walks, a double, a single, one run scored and the game winning RBI in extra innings. It was a welcome stat line for the struggling Harper.

Over the first half of the season, the 13-year veteran was firing on all cylinders. At the All-Star break, Harper was slashing .301/.403/.579 for an excellent .983 OPS. He had a walk rate of 14.8 percent and a strikeout rate of 21.3 percent. However, after returning from the All-Star break, the eight-time All-Star lost his way. Since July 18, entering play on Monday Harper was slashing just .210/.264/.384 with a .648 OPS. His walk rate dropped to just 6.1 percent while his strikeouts increased to 23 percent.

It wasn’t just Harper who struggled. The entire Phillies team experienced a major drop-off in the second half. Here are the team’s offensive rankings from before and after the All-Star break: batting average (from third to seventh), home runs (sixth to 22nd), BB% (fourth to 27th), OPS (third to 15th), WPA (fourth to 21st) and fWAR (fourth to 15th).

The significant regression dropped the Phillies down to the fourth spot in the most recent MLB Power Rankings. Yet despite the second-half struggles, Philadelphia still has the third-best record in baseball and a 6.5 game lead over the second-place Atlanta Braves in the NL East.

The Phillies have now won three straight. If the offense can rebound and the rotation gets healthy with Ranger Suarez’s return from injury, the Phillies could once again be the team to beat in the National League. And maybe even the best team in baseball.