Aug 18, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Taijuan Walker (99) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Just when you thought you had seen the last of Taijuan Walker in a Phillies uniform this year, he's going to become a denizen of the bullpen.
I guess roughly $39 million was a little bit too much green to swallow.
Rather than designate Walker for assignment, or release him altogether, the Phillies will bury him in the bullpen, only to be used if a game is out of hand and innings are needed, and hope that with the right offseason program, he can return a better pitcher in 2025.
"He's not the same guy that he was."
Rob Thomson explains why he's moving Taijuan Walker to the Phillies' bullpen: pic.twitter.com/hhlyhtNNMz
It's one heck of choice by the Phillies, who don't view Walker as a sunk cost - yet.
The Phillies believe that the weighted ball program that they started with Walker when he was on the I.L. with a blister needs longer to work. They believe his velocity, which only rose by a tick despite all that work, will be vastly improved with an entire offseason and spring training.
"We didn't have enough time," Thomson said. "That program's a long program and we sort of cut the program off early. I think if he has a full offseason of that program, we have a better chance of seeing some improvement."
And the Phillies believe that's all that's needed - some improvement.
If Walker is going to be a starter, he needs to eat innings and just keep the team in the game. That's not asking much. It's what he was tasked with doing in most of the 2023 season, and for the most part, accomplished it. He made 31 starts and tossed 172 2/3 innings in 2023. His 4.38 ERA and 1.309 WHIP were acceptable for a No. 5 starter. That's all the Phillies needed from Walker. Maybe not the innings total - because he was on the I.L. at the beginning of the season and then again in the middle of the summer. But, if he the rest of the numbers could have been similar, and if he could get a little more swing and miss, he'd have been fine.
But things got so bad that he became the first Phillie to allow 13 hits and have zero strikeouts in a game Wednesday since Blix Donnelly in 1948.
Somehow, they think going through the motions with him again will bring that back. They may be delusional, or maybe they'll prove the rest of us wrong and a year from now we'll all be writing the best comeback story we've seen in quite some time. Time will tell.
In the short term, the Phillies have to fill that No. 5 spot in the rotation. Although they can skip it and kick the can down the road - like they are with Walker - they would prefer to use the built-in off days in the schedule to protect their other four starters and continue to give them each an extra day of rest. As such, they will recall a pitcher to pitch Tuesday in Toronto.
Rob Thomson on Tyler Phillips:
“He was fantastic…he was just calm as can be.”
pic.twitter.com/ycm4DuPrFy
The likely choice is Tyler Phillips, who has already pitched with some success at this level. Recent waiver claim Kyle Tyler will be on regular rest and could also be an option. However, it seems like later in the month, the Phillies will turn back to Kolby Allard to make the final three starts of the month in that spot.
Thomson mentioned that Allard is the guy who has pitched the best, but he can't be recalled until September 10, meaning Phillips or Tyler will have to start against Toronto and Miami.
But all of this debate and consternation could have been alleviated if Walker could have just been adequate for eight starts or so. But he couldn't. Why?
"I don't know, to be perfectly honest," Thomson said.
Neither do we, Rob. Neither. Do. We.
