Phillies: How does J.D. Hammer fit into team’s bullpen?
By John Town
How will J.D. Hammer fit into the Phillies bullpen after being called up to the major leagues for the first time Saturday?
The Phillies placed Pat Neshek on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a right shoulder strain and moved David Robertson to the 60-day injured list. In their place, the team called up reliever J.D. Hammer.
Hammer came to the team two years ago when they traded Neshek to the Rockies. It wasn’t a high profile deal as Hammer was the best prospect to come back in the trade.
Injuries limited Hammer to just 12 appearances last year, but he came back firing on the mound this year. In 13 games with Double-A Reading, he had a 1.77 ERA, 1.86 fielding-independent pitching, and 1.03 WHIP. He struck out 26 batters and walked just four in 20.1 innings.
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The team promoted Hammer to Triple-A Tuesday and made one scoreless two-inning appearance before his next promotion to the majors. His quick rise from Double-A to the majors this year mirrors Seranthony Dominguez’s last year. Will Hammer get as large of a role as quickly?
As one of the veteran relievers, Neshek has seen plenty of action in close games.
Ten of Neshek’s 19 appearances have come when the game is within two runs. Gabe Kapler has plenty of confidence in Neshek late in games as well, with nine appearances in the eighth inning and five in the ninth inning.
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While Neshek has been used late in close games, he has not performed well since the first two weeks of the season. Since April 8, Neshek has a 6.39 ERA, and opposing hitters have a .935 OPS against him. Hopefully, Hammer can provide the late-inning stability Neshek couldn’t.
Thankfully, unlike last year with Dominguez, there will not be nearly as much pressure on Hammer to stabilize the bullpen. Adam Morgan and Hector Neris both have ERA’s under 2.00 with Neris cementing himself as the closer once again. Vince Velasquez is emerging as another reliable option in relief, even if he wasn’t a fan of it at first.
Other young relievers have fleshed out the bullpen, and Hammer is yet another to join the group. They have filled in with various levels of success, so Hammer should have a chance to try his luck.
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Hammer can start in a less demanding spot, but if he starts to do well, he can very quickly fill a more prominent role. With all the injuries to the bullpen, Hammer now has a chance to make an impact and stick around for a whi