Alec Bohm homers off Jacob deGrom on opening day to pace Phillies' offense
Big opening day for Alec Bohm, who might be in for a more powerful year originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The same thing happened a decade ago, the last time the Phillies opened their season in Texas.
They jumped out to a six-run lead on the Rangers before giving it all away in a 14-10 loss.
A heck of a lot has changed since then. That team had Jimmy, Chase, Ryan and Cliff. This one has Trea, J.T., Kyle and eventually Bryce.
Just like Cliff Lee in 2014, Aaron Nola was unable to protect a giant lead in Texas Thursday afternoon. The Phillies actually haven't beaten the Rangers since that game, losing 10 in a row.
Despite starting 0-1, they still performed as advertised offensively.
They had six extra-base hits against Jacob deGrom, the most he's ever allowed.
Four players had multiple hits and five had an extra-base hit.
Trea Turner showed off his speed, Alec Bohm showed off his evolving power and J.T. Realmuto had a solid all-around game.
"I thought we did a great job early on, especially scoring in multiple innings," Turner said. "Kept the pressure on and put good at-bats together.
"Top to bottom, we all contributed in multiple innings and it was kind of relentless. Unfortunately, we didn't get the job done but I felt like there were a lot of positives today."
Bohm had a big spring with four doubles and four homers after showing up with significantly more muscle. He said he didn't change much about his offseason routine, he's just a 6-foot-5 man growing into his body. On opening day, he homered and doubled off of deGrom in a three-hit afternoon.
Beyond the improving defense, Bohm took steps forward at the plate last season when he hit .280 in 631 plate appearances. The sort of power teams typically expect from a corner infielder or No. 3 overall pick hasn't materialized yet, but it's possible it comes this year. He wouldn't be the first highly touted player to hit his stride in his age-27 season.
"He started off the spring really good and then he went through some fatigue toward the middle to end, but it looks like he's fresh now," manager Rob Thomson said.
Bohm hit seventh on opening day. Thomson alternated righties and lefties in the top eight lineup spots, which had something to do with it. Bohm will hit higher against left-handers and will also rise against righties if he continues to produce runs.
"He's been putting the work in and he had a great day," Turner said of his infield mate. "Just the at-bats in general were really impressive, some two-strike hitting, hitting the ball the other way. We're going to need him this year and that was a big game from him. It was pretty cool."
