Max Kepler has a chance to be Phillies’ cult hero

It’s early, but Max Kepler is off to a strong start as a Philadelphia Phillie. 

He’s 4-for-11 with three walks and three extra-base hits. He homered in the eighth inning of the Phillies’ 6-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Monday in the home opener.

The day was a whirlwind for Kepler. Monday’s opener was the first time in his nearly decade-long big league career that he played a home game outside of Target Field in Minnesota. The Phillies mic’d him up for the “lead-off walk,” an annual tradition where fans greet players as they enter the field through the center field gate. 

“That was wild. Kind of want to do it again,” Kepler said as he looked into the camera. 

That’s not guaranteed. He’s signed to only a one-year contract. But the Phillies could be in for a really great year. 

The team is due to hit on a less flashy offensive addition. In the Dave Dombrowski era, the Phillies have signed veteran bench bats Josh Harrison and Whit Merrifield to one-year deals. Austin Hays was acquired at last year’s deadline to shore up the outfield. All three produced negative WAR. 

This isn’t saying much because WAR is not a cumulative stat like base hits or home runs, but if Kepler’s Phillies career were to somehow end today, he would be way ahead of all three as far as production goes. He is tied with Edmundo Sosa for the team lead with 0.3 FanGraphs wins above replacement.

Not a bad first impression. 

“It’s a feeling of that acceptance when you’re seeking to make that good impression on a new team,” Kepler said after the game. “But I know we have a lot of work ahead of us.” 

Kepler’s signing was met with confusion. He was a left-handed bat. The Phillies needed a righty. He was signed to play left field. He never played an inning of left field in his major league career. There were questions about his track record, and why he never quite met the high expectations set for him in Minnesota. He’s also had trouble staying healthy.

But Kepler is so far benefiting from having a clean slate. Phillies fans are not as acquainted with his flaws the way Twins fans were. They don’t have to be.

It might be a perfect match. Phillies fans in the offseason were begging for a change to the lineup after a second straight season-ending slump that led to a premature playoff exit. An Alec Bohm trade never came to fruition. Some of their bigger bats are on large contracts and can’t be forced out. It led to the Phillies bringing back the same lineup, with Kepler being the only new addition. 

But while many focused on how he doesn’t balance the lineup from a handedness perspective, Kepler has early on shown an approach that complements the aggressive tendencies of players like Bohm and Nick Castellanos, two hitters around him in the order. His career-high on-base percentage is only .336, but he’s up to .500 on the young season. He has shown a willingness to take a pitch or two, and not chase a pitch out of the zone. 

“I always try to play small ball,” Kepler said. 

Teammates also say he is fitting in well in the clubhouse.

“He’s a guy that’s relaxed,” Schwarber said. “He’s talking to everyone. He’s having a good time. That’s what this is about here. We want to make it a welcoming clubhouse, welcoming group. At the end of the day, we’re here to win baseball games. He’s all about that.”

Fans still feel a strong connection to the familiar faces that make up the Phillies lineup. It’s why most of the 81 home games at Citizens Bank Park this year will be sold out. It also doesn’t hurt that the Phillies have a top-three pitching staff and are expected to be one of the six teams in the National League playoff field. 

But it’s all about winning a World Series. Behind that excitement is a layer of frustration, skepticism and maybe a little bit of boredom with the current group. 

Kepler represents an infusion of newness. Thanks to his hot start, fans have already begun latching on to him. 

When he returned to left field for the top of the ninth after hitting his first home run with the Phillies, the fans loudly chanted “Kepler, Kepler.” It took a minute, but he saluted them back. 

“Vibrant. Thriving with energy,” Kepler said when asked to describe the atmosphere at Citizens Bank Park. “Even when we weren’t putting the balls in play in those first five or six innings, you could tell that there was something brewing. I always prefer to play in a place that is buzzing like this than a place that is just crickets.” 

There are six months left for this to all go wrong. Maybe it doesn’t, and the Phillies have something here.