It looked, in slow motion, effortless. Michael Saunders angled his body to the back corner of home plate in the sixth inning of Thursday's 3-2 Phillies win. His eyes locked onto Miami catcher J.T. Realmuto's glove. As Realmuto reached for Saunders, the veteran Phillies outfielder contorted. He scraped the plate with his left hand, just before Realmuto pressed his glove against Saunders' chest.
The Phillies have won six games in a row, and even the little things are beautiful right now. Yes, this is a young team still prone to mistakes. Yes, it is still April and the Phillies enjoyed a similar unexpected start to last season that soured before July.