Nearly a month into the 2025 season, the Philadelphia Phillies appear to be following a pattern in all of their losses. Either the offense is lifeless and struggles big time with runners in scoring position, or the starting pitching falters, leaving way for the bullpen to do the same.
Wednesday night's 11-4 loss to the San Francisco Giants was nothing different. All three of those instances occurred. Their bats went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Aaron Nola struggled with six earned runs over 6 1/3 innings, raising his ERA to 6.65 and dropping him to 0-4. The bullpen attempted to limit Nola's mess but failed, bringing focus to what has been the team's most glaring issue so far.
Over the remainder of the season, Phillies fans should feel confident in the team's offense capitalizing with runners in scoring position more times than not, as these slumps happen to every team at some point. They are seasoned veterans with reliable track records, as is Nola. He's being paid far too much to not break out of his current funk. This then leaves their bullpen.
Fans should be most concerned about the shakiness of the arms coming out of the bullpen, as the depth looks much thinner than originally anticipated. Which relievers in particular do Phillies fans trust the least right now?
Which Phillies relievers can't be trusted right now?
Joe Ross, RHP
Out of the four names on this list, Joe Ross has struggled the most. He's also being paid the most, with $4 million being owed to him in 2025. In 7 2/3 innings pitched so far heading into Friday's action, Ross has amassed a 9.39 ERA, the highest of anybody in the bullpen.
He has unexpectedly been thrown into high-leverage situations on multiple occasions, and has blown two saves, including allowing a walk-off home run to the Atlanta Braves' Marcell Ozuna in the extra-inning loss on April 10. Ross got shelled the hardest of anybody out of the bullpen on Wednesday, with four earned runs on four hits in his one inning of work.
The 31-year-old joined Jordan Romano as the offseason additions to the Phillies' bullpen, and Romano's trust has grown slightly after tweaking his delivery, according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. The Phillies brought Ross on as a long reliever who could start when needed, similar to Spencer Turnbull (who remains a free agent). Maybe they should have stuck with Turnbull, as he had proven success with the team despite his injury history.
José Ruiz, RHP
No Phillies reliever returning from the 2024 team has been more disappointing than José Ruiz. He had bounced around the league, from the San Diego Padres to the Chicago White Sox to the Arizona Diamondbacks, before having a career resurgence with the Phillies last year. Ruiz recorded a respectable 3.71 ERA in 51 innings in 2024, before earning a one-year contract to stay in Philadelphia.
Perhaps his performance last season was too good to be true, and the trust he received from Phillies fans going into the season has waned. He just has not been able to miss bats, allowing eight hits and striking out four in 6 1/3 innings. His ERA has ballooned up to 7.11, making him one of four Phillies relievers with an ERA of 6.00 or higher in a bullpen with a putrid 4.84 ERA.
Tanner Banks, LHP
Tanner Banks makes up one of three lefties in the bullpen, joining Matt Strahm and José Alvarado. Although those two can have their shaky moments, they are far more reliable than Banks. He deserves credit for holding his own so far this season with a 3.38 ERA in eight innings, though he is to be trusted in a middle-relief type of role, rather than pitching in high-leverage late game situations.
Sure, his numbers are solid so far, but Banks wouldn't be trusted by most Phillies fans to close a game (Alvarado, Strahm and maybe Orion Kerkering are the only trusted arms currently). He recently got tagged for two earned runs over two innings pitched in the opening game of the Giants series, in which San Francisco's Mike Yastrzemski crushed a two-run homer to put the game out of reach. Banks' inclusion on this list may be a controversial one, though the next name certainly isn't.
Carlos Hernández, RHP
No Phillies reliever has struggled more with command issues so far than Carlos Hernández. Acquired from the Kansas City Royals on March 23 via waivers, Hernández walked three batters in his most recent outing against the Giants. It was a scoreless two-inning appearance which lowered his season ERA from to 9.00 to 6.00. After making his Phillies debut on Opening Day, Hernández didn't make his next appearance until 11 games later on April 10, for good reason.
Hernández is far too shaky to be handed the ball in key situations, with the majority of his five appearances coming as a mop-up arm in blowouts. Four of his appearances have come within a week, and he's allowed a total of seven hits and six walks over six innings pitched. He allows far too much traffic on the base paths and his high-velocity pitches rarely end up where intended. Luckily for the Phillies and their fans, he is a long shot to remain on the roster into the summer.