The Philadelphia Phillies emerging need may be addressed before the July 30 trade deadline. In recent games, it has become clear that starting pitching might be necessary. With Taijuan Walker and Spencer Turnbull out due to injury, the fifth starting spot has rotated. After Michael Mercado initially held the spot, Tyler Phillips became the Phillies’ fifth starter for now. Phillies manager Rob Thomson stated that Phillips will remain in the starting rotation. Aaron Nola is scheduled to start the Phillies first game after the All-Star break. Cristopher Sánchez and Phillips are scheduled to start the other games in the series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
In four games this season, including two starts, Mercado has shown potential with a 1-2 record, a 9.26 ERA, and eight strikeouts. Phillips, in two games this season, including one start, has also shown promise with a 1-0 record, a 4.50 ERA, and 12 strikeouts. While not perfect, their performances indicate a potential for growth and improvement. It would not be surprising to see Mercado optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley during the All-Star break, given the uncertainty with the rotation. Zack Wheeler was supposed to start on July 14 but that did not happen due to a back issue and Ranger Suárez has struggled since J.T. Realmuto went on the injured list on June 11.
Phillies Emerging Need
Walker Underperforming This Season
So far this season, Walker has not pitched as well as he did last year. In 10 starts this season, Walker has a 3-3 record with a 5.60 ERA and 43 strikeouts. Walker has a 73 ERA+ and a 5.78 FIP this season. For comparison, Walker had a 15-6 record with a 4.38 ERA and 138 strikeouts in 31 starts last season. Walker had a 99 ERA+ and a 4.53 FIP last season. Last season, Walker had a 2.5 bWAR and a -0.3 bWAR this season. However, Walker has a better BB9 and SO9 rate this season than last. However, Walker has a worse H9 and HR9 rate this season than last. It does not help that other teams are unwilling to take on his contract in a trade.
Turnbull Likely To See Innings Limit
Currently, Turnbull is having a career-best year. In 17 games, including seven starts, Turnbull has a 3-0 record with a 2.65 ERA and 58 strikeouts. Turnbull has a 155 ERA+ and a 3.84 FIP this season. This is currently the best ERA and the best ERA+ Turnbull has had in a season in the majors. Turnbull also has the career-best H9 and SO9 rates at the moment. However, Turnbull has pitched more innings this season than in three of his five major league seasons. In addition, Turnbull has not pitched more than 57 innings in a season since 2019. While Turnbull has been a great offseason signing, it is still being determined how many more innings he can pitch in the regular season.
Potential Solutions For The Phillies Emerging Need
There are many ways the Phillies emerging need could be addressed. One way is rotating pitchers from Triple-A until Walker and Turnbull come back. The Phillies currently have five pitchers at Triple-A already on the 40-man roster. It is worth noting that the Phillies will probably go to a six-man rotation sometime in August. There is a stretch starting on August 13 that runs through September 1, where the Phillies play 19 games. The lone off day in that span is on August 19. Adding someone at the July 30 trade deadline, similar to the trade for Michael Lorenzen last year, could be a possibility. Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Zack Littell would be a good fit for that role if it is filled by a trade.
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