Phillies make pair of roster moves prior to Sunday's series finale against the Twins

The Philadelphia Phillies announced that they have recalled right-handed reliever Luis Ortiz from Triple-A Lehigh Valley and optioned Yunior Marte to make room on the 26-man roster.

Marte has been inconsistent to say the least to this point in the season. Overall the right-hander has a 5.14 ERA in 35 innings pitched on the season. Marte has been back-and-forth between Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia at different times throughout the campaign. He has shown glimpses of promise, however. In June, the right-hander struck out eleven batters in 9 1/3 innings pitched while allowing 3 runs. The reason for making the move has been his pitching in August thus far. This month Marte has a 5.40 ERA and a whopping 2.20 WHIP to accompany. The number of baserunners that he has allowed has contributed to the number of runs scored against him.

Ortiz on the other hand— while not dominant— has been effective in his time in the Majors this season. Through 16 innings logged the right-hander has a 3.94 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. While he does not possess the strikeout ability that Marte possesses, Ortiz has more consistent command and has not allowed quite as many baserunners.

Ortiz has spent more time at Lehigh Valley to this point in the season and there he has shown a knack for limiting baserunners. Through 31 innings, he has a 1.03 WHIP despite a higher 4.06 ERA.

Neither reliever will typically be used in high leverage situations. The bullpen is short an arm currently since the Phillies are going with the six-man rotation since the addition of Michael Lorenzen at the trade deadline. It is imperative for the Phillies to keep the bullpen fresh since many of the relievers will be used more frequently. In all likelihood the Phillies will make more bullpen moves as the season progresses. The bullpen should get a big boost when José Alvarado returns from his injury as well.