When diagnosing what went wrong for the Philadelphia Phillies last season, it's easy to point the blame in a few key areas that set the team astray from making good on the promise of a World Series title. We could look at a rotation that lacked the kind of depth needed to compete at a high level consistently, or a stubborn approach to lineup construction that failed to account for the weaknesses of a few key hitters versus left-handed pitching.
While those are all valid places to start, last year's bullpen-by-committee approach was a costly mistake that was equal parts confusing and frustrating.
After major bullpen arms like Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez left town via free agency, offseason additions like right-handers Jeff Ross and Jordan Romano will be tasked with filling the void and contributing solid innings out of the bullpen for Phillies manager Rob Thomson this season. The major question that remains with this team heading into the new season is less about talent and more about structure. Did the Phillies learn a valuable lesson on better utilizing its bullpen after some frustrating results last summer?
Rob Thomson says Phillies will go with familiar bullpen approach to start the season
Sometimes old habits die hard. That's the impression many Phillies fans were treated to recently when Thomson was a guest on The Phillies Show podcast with Todd Zolecki, Jim Salisbury and Ruben Amaro Jr. When asked by the trio how he plans to utilize his bullpen in late-inning situations this season, Topper was non-committal on the idea of naming a closer ahead of the season.
"It looks like probably the same formula, unless somebody really steps up and and looks like 'Okay, he can take down the ninth,' said Thomson. "We have enough left-handed opportunities and right-handed options to fill from the sixth to the eighth, and this guy can get both left- and right-handers out and go with it.
"But we've had a lot of success with the way we've handled the bullpen in the last couple years. So to start the season, especially, I think we'll go bullpen-by- or closer-by-committee, however you want to call that, just play the pockets and play the innings accordingly."
Topper's comments leave some wiggle room for the former All-Star closer Romano to claim the ninth-inning role with a bounce-back performance, but the eye-opening comment comes with claims that the closer-by-committee approach was a success at all.
While Hoffman was the most consistent pitcher in that role, it had negative results on hard-tossing left-hander José Alvarado. He put together a dismal stretch of performances prior to the MLB trade deadline, resulting in a costly deal that sent two young pitching prospects to the Los Angeles Angels for Estévez that now looks to be among the worst deals of Dave Dombrowski's tenure.
While a lot could happen between now and when the season starts, it's concerning that the dynamics of the bullpen remain a major question mark. This year could be the last chance this team has with an aging veteran core to make it far in the postseason, with looming free agent decisions surrounding Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto soon to follow. Competitive windows open and close all the time in MLB; let's hope the operative word this season is competitive.
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