Between injuries and inconsistent pitching, Taijuan Walker has struggled mightily as the third consistent starter they could count on alongside Zack Wheeler and Aaron Nola. And in what is now becoming a crowded rotation, he figured to be the odd man out. However, with this latest adjustment, he could be what unlocks the Philadelphia Phillies to surpass the New York Mets as the best team of the NL East, and a step behind the Los Angeles Dodgers as the best of the National League. All it took was moving Walker to the bullpen.
After an up-and-down first season with Philly in 2023, Walker had an injury-riddled 2024 where he only pitched 83.2 innings, but those were bad: his velocity was down, and his off-speed wasn't in sync, which led him to struggle to the tune of a 7.10 ERA the few times he was out there. Despite that, Walker was afforded the opportunity to start games, only because Ranger Suárez was dealing with a back injury. However, his most recent outing shows that the Phillies might've found a solution to avoid a roster crunch down the line, while also solving their biggest problem.
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Moving Taijuan Walker to the bullpen makes Phillies' rotation mix clearer and helps their struggling relievers
Walker showed promise that he could be primed for a turnaround season in Spring Training, and he's certainly looked good as a starter. But, given how elite their newest addition, Jesús Luzardo, has looked, paired with the consistent force of Wheeler, the continued brilliance of Christopher Sánchez, and the return of Suárez (an All-Star last season), the point where there will be no space for him in the rotation has come. Making him a reliever now allows him to get acclimated to the role for the summer and the stretch run of the season, at a time where the Phillies need it more than ever.
His three innings pitched on Wednesday in his first relief appearance of the season, only allowing one hit and striking out seven in a 7-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, was the best outing any Phillies reliever has had this year. After having the 14th-best bullpen ERA in last year's regular season at 3.94, that unit fell apart in the postseason, allowing 16 earned runs in 20 innings (11.37), and this season now has the 23rd bullpen ERA at 4.66. The Phillies allowed Jeff Hoffman, who prior to his most recent outings against the Los Angeles Angels had allowed just two runs over his first 16 innings with the Toronto Blue Jays, to walk and replaciedhim with Jordan Romano, who has a 10.22 ERA.
Outside of Matt Strahm and Jose Alvarado, Philly doesn't have any consistent arms to back up their starters, but Walker could change that equation. Of course, he has to be on board with the move, something he doesn't seem to be 100% on at the moment. This is something the Phillies tried in the past, making him a reliever at the end of last season. While the results weren't that great, in all five of his appearances he allowed at least three hits, and in four of the five he gave up at least two runs, it was some of the best he looked in 2024. And, in that role, he doesn't set the team back from the start of the game, and it gives the Phillies the chance to use their better arms.
While discussions about whether Walker's four-year, $72 million contract is a good or bad deal can certainly be had, and him not becoming a consistent starter is an argument against it, if he can revitalize this bad bullpen and be a difference maker, he could turn the narrative of his time in Philadelphia around.