3 Phillies players who won't finish the month of August on the big-league roster
The edges of the Phillies roster will see more shuffling before we hit the home stretch of the season.
Now that the dust has settled from the trade deadline, the Philadelphia Phillies have their roster set for the stretch run to the postseason. Well, kind of.
Despite their struggles since the All-Star break, the Phillies are still in an ideal position with less than eight weeks left in the season. After winning three of four heading into Thursday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, their lead in the NL East sat at 7.5 games.
They're still the team to beat. With a stacked roster the Phillies have minimal moving parts to worry about. Barring any more injuries to the core star players, it's primarily on the peripheries of the active 26-man roster that the front office, and the fans, will be focused.
3 Phillies players who won't finish the month of August on the big-league roster
The Phillies are still waiting for pitchers Taijuan Walker, Ranger Suárez and Spencer Turnbull to return from the injured list. There are some questions about how the rotation will look through August, especially with the six-man plan eventually being implemented — when they finally have enough healthy starters.
The bullpen could also see some fluctuation, at least in a couple of spots. The top six relief arms appear to be set for the next two months after the additions of Carlos Estévez and Tanner Banks at the deadline.
Which of the edge-of-the-roster players do the coaching staff and front office see as expendable and replaceable with the Phillies hoping to cruise into the National League Division Series?
Kolby Allard won't finish the month of August on the big-league roster
Kolby Allard will likely be the first Phillies pitcher to head to Lehigh Valley in August. The left-hander got the call to the Phillies on July 27, when ailing starter Ranger Suárez went on the 15-day IL. Signed as a free agent in January, Allard still has a MiLB option available, and the Phillies will surely use it soon.
Thursday's start against the Arizona Diamondbacks was probably his last. Once the Phillies reinstate Walker, the 26-year-old is the most likely roster casualty.
In his three games (two starts) with the Phillies so far, Allard has a 3.46 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. In 13 innings, he allowed five runs on 14 hits with eight strikeouts and a pair of walks.
The rehabbing Walker is due back soon. He was supposed to make his return on Sunday in Arizona, but that got pushed back after rain postponed his Triple-A rehab outing this week. The veteran should line up to start when the Phillies return home to face the Miami Marlins on Aug. 13.
Tyler Phillips won't finish the month of August on the big-league roster
The next pitcher who could wind up crunched out of a rotation spot is rookie starter Tyler Phillips. While the Phillies plan to employ a six-man rotation at some point this month, Phillips could find himself back in Triple-A if they decide to go with just five starters when Suárez returns.
After bursting onto the scene with a record-breaking relief debut against the Atlanta Braves on July 7, the 26-year-old strung together some impressive starts until he ran into a brick wall in Seattle.
Before his start in Seattle, Phillips had a 1.80 ERA over 25 innings of work across four appearances (three starts). His string of success included a rousing complete-game shutout of the Cleveland Guardians.
Unfortunately, his fourth start against the Mariners went in the opposite direction. They clobbered him for eight runs on five hits in just 1 2/3 innings. The forgettable outing included three home runs, three walks and just one strikeout.
He turned in a gutsy start in his most recent outing against the Dodgers (subscription required), per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Alex Coffey. He held the NL West leaders to four runs on six hits while striking out three over five innings. However, it still might not be enough to secure his spot in the rotation when everyone is healthy.
Phillips should get the first crack at the sixth rotation spot, and deservedly so. We'll just have to see how long it lasts.
Yunior Marte won't finish the month of August on the big-league roster
Reliever Yunior Marte might be the odd man out in the bullpen, depending on how the dominos fall, if Turnbull returns from the injured list before the end of the month. According to The Athletic's Matt Gelb, Turnbull will be relegated to the bullpen for the rest of the season.
With one MiLB option remaining, Marte is the obvious choice to head back to Triple-A. Since returning to the Phillies bullpen at the end of June, the right-hander has a 7.20 ERA in 10 innings. While he has logged nine strikeouts, he has also issued eight walks — not what you want coming out of the bullpen.
On the season, Marte has a 4.63 ERA and an ugly 1.67 WHIP in 23 1/3 innings. Now that Seranthony Domínguez is gone, Marte holds the conspicuous honor of having the highest ERA among Phillies relievers with a minimum of 20 innings pitched.
It's not like he has just been unlucky, either, as his 5.80 xERA and 4.71 FIP indicate. He does have the lowest average exit velocity against out of the bullpen, but his chase rate, whiff rate and walk rate have all regressed this season.
While counterpart José Ruiz has also struggled since the beginning of July, he's out of options, which should make the Phillies' decision on who to move a bit easier.
manual