The Phillies brought out their new trend of playing small ball. After a Bryce Harper double, Alec Bohm moved him over on a flyout and Nick Castellanos drove him in. You only need one run when you’re down by five.
Walker’s day was done after three innings and a change seems warranted. He carries a 6.26 ERA and hasn’t had a quality start in his last ten. It seems difficult to throw him out there every fifth day when the team is in an elongated bad stretch of play.
The offense shut down for most of the game as Tyler Gilbert, Max Lazar, José Alvarado, and Tanner Banks tried to shave off innings. Gilbert allowed the only run for the group, an RBI double by Paul DeJong.
They did close the gap to three, forcing the Royals to use their closer Lucas Erceg. After Harper, Bohm, and Castellanos singles to load the bases and a wild pitch to make it 7-3, Bryson Stott hit a sacrifice fly to make it 7-4.
Brandon Marsh had three great swings tonight. The single back in the third, a deep flyball to center field that’s a home run in 21 other ballparks, and a 109.4 mph double to right field to leadoff the ninth. Hays, Schwarber, and Turner all retired quickly after that.
Ranger Suárez will be activated off the injured-list tomorrow for his first start in over a month. He’s probably not going to throw a complete game but crazier things have happened. After that there’s rumblings of a bullpen game on Sunday.
They really needed Walker to look competent tonight. It didn’t happen.
After a bad series against the Atlanta Braves, the Phillies laid a dud in the opening game against the Kansas City Royals.
Taijuan Walker was tasked to stop the bleeding and the wound grew bigger. He should’ve had a one-two-three inning in the first if not for a Trea Turner fumble at shortstop but he didn’t.
Instead, it was an infield single that the Royals capitalized on. Salvador Perez crushed a sweeper down the left-field line to score Vinny Pasquantino from first.
The bottom of the Phillies order began to show some life in the top of the third. JT Realmuto led off the inning with a hustle double to left field. Brandon Marsh took a hanging changeup into right field to put runners at the corners.
Austin Hays makes his return known with a bloop single to left field to tie the game. However, the star players at the top of the lineup couldn’t finish the job. Kyle Schwarber struck out and Trea Turner did the one thing worse than a strikeout, a double play.
Michael Massey took a single into right field and moved to second on a ground ball by Witt. After three straight balls, Pasquantino got the green light and pulled a fastball into right field to give the Royals the lead.
It only got worse, Walker hung another sweeper to Perez that was launched to make it 4-1. He gave up another two-run homer to Hunter Renfroe after a MJ Melendez single.
Something is clearly off with Taijuan Walker, and it's not just a blister on his finger.
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