The Taijuan Walker situation continues to frustrate Phillies supporters.
When the Philadelphia Phillies signed Taijuan Walker to a four-year contract worth $72 million ahead of the 2023 season, they expected him to be a pillar in the center of their rotation. The first year of the contract was a disappointment, as Walker did not appear in a single postseason game after a disappointing regular season. Year two has been significantly worse.
Walker missed the first month of the season due to injury and never really got going, earning a 6.50 ERA in 14 starts before Rob Thomson finally decided to transfer him to the bullpen.
Walker had three appearances, pitching poorly in two of them. Despite this, Thomson put him back in the rotation to start Thursday’s series opener against Walker’s former team, the New York Mets. It’s reasonable to say that the decision went as well as Phillies fans hoped.
Taijuan Walker gets predictably shelled in return to rotation
Walker gave up eight runs, all earned, in 3.1 innings of work. He surrendered six hits, three walks, and only two strikeouts while giving up four home runs. Walker has now allowed a staggering 24 home runs in just 83 innings of work.
On paper, reintroducing Walker into the rotation made little sense. He labored as a starter all season before being sent to the bullpen, struggled in relief, and was then called back up against one of baseball’s hottest teams. What did the Phillies truly expect to happen?
In Thomson’s defense, starting Walker over anyone else might have made more sense. Walker had pitched brilliantly against the Mets just five days before, throwing three vital shutout innings in relief, and who else could he turn to?
Kolby Allard was just shelled by the Mets in the game Walker played in. Seth Johnson, who took the ball six days earlier, was demoted to Triple-A after getting pummeled in his MLB debut. Tyler Phillips was thrown down after being rocked on the previous turn. The Phillies simply lack a fifth starter, particularly with Spencer Turnbull out, for which fans can directly blame Dave Dombrowski.
