The Philadelphia Phillies have entered spring training with a five-man rotation that looks much deeper and more formidable than at any point last season. The addition of left-handed starter Jesús Luzardo via trade added much-needed length behind fellow All-Star southpaws Cristopher Sánchez and Ranger Suárez. While a lot will depend on the health of the often-injured Luzardo, it's hard not to believe that this is a rotation that is vastly improved on paper when compared to last spring training.
With that being said, it's hard to make sense of what Phillies manager Rob Thomson and his coaching staff envision for rotation castoff Taijuan Walker. Following a brutal 2024 campaign that was riddled with injuries and ineffectiveness, it remains to be seen what type of role the veteran right-handed pitcher will have during the third year of a four-year, $72 million contract. While there's no such thing as having too much starting pitching, Walker's career-worst numbers in 2024 certainly left a bad taste in the mouths of Phillies fans.
Smoother, more athletic Taijuan Walker off to a good start in spring training
While Walker is certainly on the outside looking in for a rotation spot at the outset of spring training, and following a healthy offseason spent training and regaining his form, a major storyline to watch this spring will be seeing if the 32-year-old former All-Star was able to regain velocity, and his feel for secondary pitches during his offseason throwing program.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski was cautiously optimistic when describing Walker's first bullpen sessions in camp.
"His velocity was very sound, much better today than the beginning of last spring training, by a great deal," offered Dombroski." His overall movements on the mound ... I thought he looked so much smoother than he did last year, so much more athletic ... so those are the type of things we're looking to do. Command of his pitches on both sides of the plate, away from a right-handed hitter, which was not an easy thing for him to do last year."
Phillies camp is open. Taijuan Walker is throwing his first official bullpen of the spring. pic.twitter.com/miir5vc4Ww
— Jim Salisbury (@JimSalisbury215) February 12, 2025
While Walker hasn't been promised a rotation spot this time around, Dombrowski's comments prove that the team doesn't view Walker as a lost cause just yet. While surprising, there still remains hope that Walker can return to his previous All-Star form on the mound this season.
"I hope that he pitches like the Taijuan Walker that we've seen in the past, and then we'll have great problems and great conversations and see what happens," added Dombrowski." You can never have too much pitching, so somehow I have a feeling we'd figure it out. But good first day of spring training."
Following a down 2024 that saw Walker put up a dismal record of 3-7 and a concerning 7.10 ERA, the bar has been set pretty low for Walker entering year three of his contract. While Walker's initial bullpen sessions look promising, all eyes will be on Walker's first game action this spring and how he ultimately responds against opposing hitters with added velocity. At best, an improved Taijuan Walker certainly gives the Phillies added rotation depth and a stronger bullpen presence, at worst it will be another season of hoping for some kind of resolution with a pitcher that's likely on his last opportunity to turn things around in Philadelphia.