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If the Los Angeles Dodgers are supposed to waltz to another National League pennant, the Philadelphia Phillies didn't seem to get the memo.
The Phillies are now 7-2 after taking two out of three from the Dodgers over the weekend, in part thanks to a scorching start from Edmundo Sosa.
In six games, Sosa is 11-20 with four doubles and a walk. He started on Sunday against the Dodgers, getting two hits and legging out a fielders choice in the seventh inning that brought in the winning run. He has caught his manager's attention.
“We've got to really look at this because so far, it's real,” Rob Thomson said, per NBC Sports' Corey Seidman. “He has two hits every game. He's played great at third, great at short, he did well in center field yesterday. We've really got to get into the lab and try to figure out some stuff to get him into the lineup.”
One idea that Seidman pointed out was to get him into the lineup more against left-handed pitching, where Sosa has a career .773 OPS (.696 vs. righties). The Phillies are off on Monday but face lefty Chris Sale and the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.
In the meantime, Sosa has earned the admiration of his teammates. Nick Castellanos summed him up in one word after seeing Sosa jump back into the box and knock in a run after hitting the ground when a fastball came flying at his head.
“Stud,” Castellanos said. “You see how eager he was to get back in the box after that. You can’t teach that.”
It seems in line with what Thomson said he already knew about his team.
“Someone asked me at the start of the series, what's it going to tell you about your club? Well, I pretty much know our club, and they're grinders, they're fighters,” Thomson said. “That's who they are.”
