The Philadelphia Phillies dominated baseball before the 2024 All-Star Break, posting MLB’s best record. Then they cooled off considerably — but that second-half slide isn’t dampening expectations for 2025.
MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince is all-in on the Phillies, picking them to win it all in his bold predictions for the 2025 season.
“If the Phillies stay healthy, they have as good a pitching staff as exists in this league,” Castrovince writes. “And when the lineup is on one of its heaters and making good swing decisions, it’s a mash unit.”
It’s a prediction that might surprise some fans who watched Philadelphia stumble to a .500 record after the break before getting bounced by the Mets in the NLDS. But there’s solid reasoning behind the optimism.
The way Castrovince sees it, there’s a sense of urgency building in Philadelphia that could fuel a championship run.
“It’s not just the average age on the Phillies’ roster that’s creeping up there. Dave Dombrowski is (presumably) not going to do this forever, and he has a chance to become the first chief executive to win the World Series with three different franchises,” he notes. “Owner John Middleton is 70 and will leave no stone unturned in giving this devoted fan base the parade it wants. That’s going to matter at the Trade Deadline.”
The Phillies currently hold the fifth-shortest World Series odds at 10-1, according to ESPN Bet. That feels about right for a team with elite pitching and a lineup that can absolutely explode when firing on all cylinders.
Castrovince closes with the sentence that’ll have Phillies fans dreaming all winter: “This is the year Bryce Harper and the boys get their ring.”
What about the competition?
Mets, Juan Soto predicted to stupefy fans in 2025
The Phillies will face stiff competition in their own division, with the Mets and Braves both looking formidable. But Philly’s combination of veteran leadership, pitching depth, and front office aggression might finally be the right mix to bring a championship back to the City of Brotherly Love for the first time since 2008.
