The Philadelphia Phillies made one minor roster change ahead of their game with the visiting Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday. Much to many fans' chagrin, they announced the reinstatement of right-handed reliever Joe Ross from the 15-day injured list. The corresponding move sees right-hander Seth Johnson optioned back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Ross originally went on the IL on July 22 (retroactive to July 21) with back spasms. It was a good break both for the 32-year-old Ross and Phillies fans who were getting weary of seeing him trot in from the bullpen.
Phillies activate disappointing veteran reliever Joe Ross from 15-day IL
Ross made two appearances with the IronPigs on his rehab assignment, tossing two scoreless innings. He gave up one hit and one walk and struck out four of the eight Triple-A batters he faced. Despite the small sample size of success in Allentown, you'd be hard-pressed to find many Phillies fans who will be excited to see the veteran back at Citizens Bank Park.
Signed to a one-year, $4 million free agent deal in the offseason, Ross has been just one of the many disappointing parts of Philadelphia's bullpen debacle this year. He's 2-1, with a 5.28 ERA and 1.51 WHIP in 44 1/3 innings, posting an underwhelming 34 strikeouts to go along with 16 walks.
Opposing batters are hitting an inflated .282 against Ross, well above the league average of .243. He has also allowed an alarmingly high 11.6 percent barrel rate, which is well above the 8.6 percent league average and easily a new career high for the former World Series champion.
Prior to tonight’s game against the Baltimore Orioles, the Phillies returned RHP Joe Ross from his rehab assignment with Lehigh Valley (AAA) and reinstated him from the 15-day injured list. To make room on the 26-man roster, RHP Seth Johnson was optioned to Lehigh Valley.
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 5, 2025
Johnson, who has had a few stints with the Phillies this season and was most recently recalled from the minors on July 4, has thrown 12 2/3 innings of relief. He has a 4.26 ERA and 1.18 WHIP with 17 strikeouts and four walks in his 10 games.
There's a strong argument to be made that Johnson should have kept his spot in the major league bullpen, especially over Ross. While Ross' 5.28 ERA is high, he has actually fared better (somehow) than his expected ERA of 6.10. Johnson , meanwhile, has a 2.20 xERA compared to his actual 4.26 mark.
Johnson did pitch two clean innings in Monday's big 13-3 win, striking out five of the seven batters he faced, so he wouldn't be available on Tuesday anyway. But now that he has been optioned, he can't be recalled for 15 days.
The Phillies have another veteran reliever who is now elgible to be recalled, but free agent signing David Robertson won't join the Phillies just yet. The right-hander needs more time to get up to game speed after a couple of rough Triple-A outings.
Either way, regardless of who's in the Phillies' bullpen, they need an overall better performance and more consistency. Everyone will have their fingers crossed that this short break will help Ross reset his season and contribute down the stretch.