The Phillies have flaws. That’s no secret. The last two games have exposed a couple of them.
Andrew Painter and Aaron Nola have combined to pitch just seven innings the last two games, both losses. That puts pressure on a bullpen. And speaking of the bullpen, the Phillies sent one left-hander, Tanner Banks, to the minors on Thursday while another, Jose Alvarado, saw his ERA swell to 6.58.
Oh, did we mention that right-handed hitting outfielder Adolis Garcia will have surgery on a torn lat muscle next week and is out for the season?
Dave Dombrowski could have a long to-do list when the trade season starts heating up next month. The Phillies, who suffered a 6-4 loss to the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park on Thursday night, have needs.
In the rotation. In the bullpen. In the outfield.
After getting pounded by Miami in a 12-4 loss Wednesday, Painter was sent to the Triple A to find the life and location on his fastball. The Phils aren’t sure who will take his spot in the rotation Tuesday night in Washington. Meanwhile, it was Nola’s turn to take the ball Thursday night. He wasn’t bad, but he wasn’t particularly sharp, either. Overall, his stuff was up. That was a good thing. He hit 95 mph on the gun. But the right-hander ran a high pitch count (97) and lasted just five innings. He gave up seven hits. Juan Soto took him deep in the first and third innings. Nola finally walked the slugger in the fifth.
Soto’s homer in the first inning came on a 1-2 cutter with two outs after Nola had gotten ahead 0-2 but couldn’t put Soto away. He then allowed a single and an RBI double on a ball that right fielder Brandon Marsh tracked poorly.
It was a 3-3 game entering the top of the seventh when Alvarado was tagged for three two-out runs. He allowed a leadoff single to Carson Benge before a two-out stolen base, a wild pitch and a single by pinch hitter Eric Wagaman gave the Mets the lead. Before Alvarado could get out of the inning, Marcus Semien survived a two-strike foul tip that J.T. Realmuto almost hung on to and tripled home two runs to give the Mets a three-run lead.
Alvarado, the Phils’ top lefty setup man, has allowed four runs in his last two outings. In addition to his high ERA, he has allowed 35 hits in 26 innings and opponents are batting .315 against him.
“The ball is coming out good,” manager Don Mattingly. “It’s not like the velo is down. He just has to put it in good spots.”
Alvarado’s fastball topped out at 99.6 mph.
“I’m happy I’m throwing strikes,” he said. “I’m in the strike zone more than I used to be. But hitters are confident they can hit against me. They see a lot of 100 mph pitches at this level. It’s not surprising anymore.”
The bullpen is already without right-handed setup man Brad Keller, who is out with elbow inflammation. He isn’t expected to be out long, but he’s also been inconsistent in his first year with the club. Bullpen could be an eventual trade deadline item for Dombrowski. On the plus side, right-hander Seth Johnson came up from Triple A on Thursday and looked good. He pitched a perfect sixth inning and struck out two with triple-digit stuff. With limited trade chips, it would be huge for the Phillies if someone from within the system, like Johnson, could step up and help fill a need.
As for starting pitching, Painter’s struggles and his yet unfilled rotation spot, as well as Nola’s inconsistency, have prompted Dombrowski to seek help at the back end of the rotation. It’s not easy to find.
“Most clubs that I talk to don’t have starting pitching depth,” he said before the game.
Dombrowski chose to focus on the positive.
“We’ve got four that match up with most in baseball and we think (Painter) will be back and help us,” he said.
Those four are Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler, Jesus Luzardo and Nola.
“It’s tough for us to top our top three at this point and if Nola throws like he’s capable of throwing,” Dombrowski said.
The Phillies are 27-13 when the top three that Dombrowski mentioned – Sanchez, Wheeler and Luzardo – start. They are 13-22 when anybody else starts.
Nola hasn’t made it past the fifth inning in his last four starts — he’s done it just once in his last eight — and has a season ERA of 5.71. The bullpen has been taxed the last two days but it will receive a break Friday as the three-game series against the Mets takes a break to accommodate a World Cup game at Lincoln Financial Field. When the series resumes Saturday, the Phillies will send Sanchez to the mound. Wheeler goes on Sunday.
One day after stroking three hits, Trea Turner was hit on the right calf by a pitch from Mets starter Sean Manaea in the first inning. He ended up leaving the game in the third inning with what was called a contusion. Afterward, Turner said he believed he’d be good to go Saturday night.
The Phillies turned Turner’s plunking into their first run when Alec Bohm smacked a two-run single. The Phils missed a chance to put more runs on the board when they wasted a leadoff triple from Edmundo Sosa in the second. Bohm doubled home a run with two outs in the third and newcomer Derek Hill tied the game with a single in the fourth before Alvarado let it get away in the seventh. The Phils rallied for a run in the ninth and brought Kyle Schwarber, the potential winning, to the plate with two outs. Schwarber hit it hard but right at right fielder Brett Baty. Game over.
Bohm is up to 41 RBIs, one more than Bryce Harper, and two less than Schwarber, the team leader.
It took until mid-June and Game 75 of the season for the Phillies to see the Mets. Maybe the weekend will go a little better for the local nine.
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