The Philadelphia Phillies have an opportunity to put their road woes behind them with a homestand at Citizens Bank Park. They got a good start in their series-opening contest versus the red-hot San Francisco Giants. Unfortunately, the good fortune didn’t last long.
After the struggling Phillies offense struck first and put up three runs in the bottom of the first inning, Taijuan Walker had an opportunity to continue his solid start to the season. Unfortunately, the Giants responded with six runs of their own during the top of the second.
Taijuan Walker’s nightmare of a second inning was reminiscent of his 2024 season
Walker gave up a double to left fielder Heliot Ramos followed by a walk to first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. Designated hitter Wilmer Flores continued his solid start to 2025 with an RBI single. The Giants scored their second run of the inning due to a throwing error by Walker during catcher Patrick Bailey's at-bat.
Next, Tyler Fitzgerald made things go from bad to worse for Philadelphia as the second baseman belted a three-run home run, putting San Francisco ahead 5-3. The visitors got their final run of the inning thanks to shortstop Willy Adames' solo home run to give them a three-run lead.
"Tyler's started to put together a few better at-bats"
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) April 14, 2025
You don't say 🤔 pic.twitter.com/N1KWrfNYGw
Walker pitched five innings, surrendered six hits, and six runs (four of them earned), and one walk in addition to the two home runs. He had five strikeouts. It was reminiscent of his rough 2024 season when he pitched to a 7.10 ERA.
With Aaron Nola off to another slow start and Zack Wheeler coming off two consecutive struggling performances, Walker's latest outing didn’t come at an ideal time for Philadelphia. Ranger Suárez is rehabbing in the minors. Walker’s future in the rotation is in question once the left-hander is ready to make his season debut off of the IL.
Unless another injury occurs to a starting pitcher, Walker looks to be headed to the bullpen. It is disappointing considering the optimism manager Rob Thomson, pitching coach Caleb Cotham, and the veteran must have had going into this start based on his previous two performances.
San Francisco has had a heck of a start to the year with an 11-4 record heading into the series opener versus Philadelphia. Still, Walker's latest outing will raise previous concerns some of the fanbase has had with him in the rotation.