Jun 7, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Taijuan Walker (99) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
PITTSBURGH - While all the focus was on what went wrong in another loss by the Phillies to the Pirates on Saturday - their eighth defeat in their last nine contests - there was a positive that sort of flew under the radar.
Taijuan Walker pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Yes, it was one relief appearance, and only his second since being shifted back there on a more permanent basis last week.
But it was notable as it was the first time coming into a one-run game in the late innings.
Walker ended up walking a couple batters, but he got through the inning without allowing any hard contact - two lazy fly balls to right field and a ground out to shortstop.
Putting up a zero on the scoreboard is all a reliever is asked to do - and he did it. In fact, he's done it in three of the four games he's pitched in relief for the Phillies this season, and has allowed just two earned runs in eight innings out of the bullpen.
But two of those appearances last month were bulk inning outings, throwing three innings each time.
The last two were one-inning outings. The one in Toronto came in the fifth inning with the team down by eight runs. So, there was very low leverage there.
On Saturday, it was a one-run game. In the eighth inning.
For Walker, it doesn't matter.
"It's an inning. It doesn't matter the inning or what the score is, I just got to get three outs, right now," he said.
It's the right mentality. And although Walker still sees himself as a starter - and his salary would indicate the same - he has bought into this shift into the bullpen.
The highest paid relievers in MLB this season:
Josh Hader- $19 Million
Edwin Diaz- $18.3 Million
Taijuan Walker- $18 Million
Raisel Iglesias- $16 Million
Ryan Pressly- $14.1 Millionpic.twitter.com/shIWzFI9FM
"His attitude has been great," manager Rob Thomson said.
Thomson also praised the fact that he has mostly thrown strikes - despite the two walks to two veteran hitters - Andrew McCutchen and Bryan Reynolds.
Walker's fastball is back to 93 mph. With more time in the bullpen and figuring out the best way to prepare to pitch, there's a thought that could even go up another tick or two on the radar.
Walker said figuring out that routine is the toughest adjustment, and he's been leaning on guys like Matt Strahm and Joe Ross - both former starters who converted to being relievers in the majors - to get a sense for the best way to make the transition smoother and faster.
"I'm used to having an hour-and-a-half to warm up and get ready and have a bullpen and about 25 or 30 pitches before starts," Walker said. "Now, I have to learn to ease into it."
Walker said he found that if he tries to warm up too fast in the bullpen, he can get a little out of breath. So, it's a matter of figuring out the balance. What can he start to do to get loose before he has to come into the game so that his warmup pitches are to get hot and not just to get loose.
It's one of the reasons the Phillies are a little reluctant to ask him to go back-to-back days yet, although it's possible that that happens soon.
"He pitched (in Toronto on Thursday) and we gave him off the next day," Thomson said. "When I went to him yesterday, he said he felt good and he could have pitched (Friday).
"He said he was a little more stiff (Sunday) than he was the first time, but he also threw more pitches. So, yeah, he's recovering pretty good."
Thomson also said the plan is to keep Walker having his full arsenal available for now - he has six pitches he can throw - rather than asking him to become a two-pitch pitcher.
Taijuan Walker?! pic.twitter.com/OOvPz2OjMp
Walker likes having those options.
"I like to have them all in my back pocket," Walker said. "I was talking to J.T. (Realmuto) about it yesterday. Against Reynolds, when it was a 3-2 count, I thought about dumping a curveball in there because it's one of my pitches. I don't practice it a lot, but I got it in my back pocket. Having all those pitches gives me an advantage because batters can't sit on one or two pitches in one inning."
Thomson agrees, but said usually relievers don't have the same luxury as starters to work on their pitches between appearances.
"Usually the problem is that if a reliever has too many pitches, one or two of them they aren't going to be able to throw for strikes," Thomson said. "That's why they keep it to a minimum. And they are not like starters who can have a bullpen session between outings where they can work on all of their pitches. So we just try to simply it.
"(That said), I do like (Walker's) slider and I do like his cutter because he can command the cutter. It's a nice pitch for him when he's behind in the count and can get an out by getting it up on the end of the bat or for a jam shot."
All told, the Phillies truly do think there's a chance for Walker to be a successful reliever for them. While time will be the ultimate determinant, the very early returns are positive - something a bullpen without a lot of positivity could use about now.
