Dave Dombrowski and the Phillies have some decisions to make.
September starts tomorrow, and with it comes MLB roster expansion. Gone are the days where teams can bring up their entire 40 man roster in the final month of the regular season.
Now, all teams must carry 28 players, with a cap of 14 pitchers. They won’t be able to add an unlimited depth of pitching, instead they will need to make strategic moves to best prepare themselves for the stretch run.
The Phillies already has 13 pitchers and 13 fielders on their active roster. Let’s look at the options they have available to bolster their roster for their final playoff push.
Pitching problems?
After another tough outing this past Wednesday vs. the Astros, manager Rob Thomson made the decision to move veteran starting pitcher, Taijuan Walker, to the bullpen. Walker has a 6.50 ERA and 6.30 FIP on the season, and the Phillies have lost the last nine games that he has started. With upcoming off days, they do have flexibility to call up a reliever for the time being.
Before yesterday’s game, Thomson confirmed that José Alvarado would be returning to the club – just four days after being added to the restricted list and leaving the club to deal with a personal matter. The Phillies skipper also confirmed he would likely be activated on Sunday, which is when rosters expand. While it may seem obvious this would be the pitching move the team makes, they make still shuffle some players around.
If they want to stick with a five man rotation and not take advantage of off days, they could turn to Tyler Phillips once again. If Phillips were to be called up, they would likely send down Yunior Marte. The electric reliever has shown flashes of great stuff, but last night he surrendered a run, threw a wild pitch, and if not for some luck – would’ve allowed another run on a second wild pitch. Kolby Allard could be an option later in the month, but was just optioned on August 26. He can’t be recalled within 15 days, unless someone on the major league roster gets injured.
Players like Tyler Gilbert and Michael Mercado aren’t stretched out enough to start, so they wouldn’t be viable options for the Phillies needs. They do have an option of bringing up recently acquired Seth Johnson, but he has not yet made his major league debut.
With the division and No. 1 seed race getting tighter, that doesn’t seem like a move the club would want to make. It may be as simple as Alvarado is the guy, and the rest will play out in a few weeks when a fifth starter is needed.
Phillies bench depth
Traditionally, the Phillies do not use a lot of mix-and-matching in their lineup each day and the players where they do, are all set in their spots. Therefore, they would likely consider flexibility for those dealing with nagging injuries.
To ensure J.T. Realmuto stays as healthy as possible after undergoing surgery on his meniscus earlier this season, fans might hope to see Rafael Marchán – the backup catcher who had success during his time in the majors earlier this season. However, he was placed on the Triple-A injured list just yesterday.
That leaves minimal options on the 40-man roster. With Alec Bohm and Bryce Harper both currently dealing with nagging injuries, someone with flexibility to play first and/or third would be the best option to start. That leaves Buddy Kennedy and Kody Clemens, with Clemens being the most likely choice. Clemens has played every infield position in the majors (all but shortstop in 2024), and even saw some time in left field.
Clemens seems like the clear best option for the Phillies, adding positional versatility as well as adding a left-handed bat off the bench that isn’t the backup catcher.
My prediction would be that Clemens is the only position player we see added, barring any injuries, and Alvarado is the only pitching move we see to start the month. I would also expect Allard and Phillips both to see at least one more appearance prior to the end of the season.
