How Bad are the Phillies’ Bats?

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PhilliesBatHow bad are the Phillies’ bats? After the Memorial Day game against the Red Sox, they looked bad enough that I thought we were also commemorating the memory of the Phillies from the past six years.

They seem like they swing at every first pitch, see less pitches than any other team, never get a walk or extra base hit, and ground into more double plays than the opposition.  Here’s how they stack up:

WALKS: Only MLB teams with less Walks than Phillies (129) are: Marlins (123), Royals (122), Brewers (122), White Sox (121), Cubs (116).  League Average is: 155.

SWINGING AT FIRST PITCH: Phillies swing at first pitches 28% of the time, which ranks 12th in MLB.  The league average is 26% of the time.  The teams swinging most at first pitches are: Braves, Reds and Padres at 32%.

PITCHES PER PLATE APPEARANCE: Phillies see 3.81 pitches per plate appearance, which ranks 19th in MLB.  The league average is 3.85.  Giants are the worst at 3.73.  Red Sox are the best at 4.09.

GROUND INTO DOUBLE PLAYS: The Phillies have ground into 43 double plays, which ranks as 9th most in MLB.  39 is the League Average.  The Angels have hit the most at 56. The Mets have hit into the least double plays at 22.

EXTRA BASE HITS: The Phillies rank 21st in MLB with 133 extra base hits.  The league average is: 147. Baltimore leads the league with 188 and Miami is a league worst with 100.

The lack of walks is the most glaring problem. However, when you combine all these stats, it seems to be the perfect storm of batting ineptitude.