Report: Phillies’ mega signing, got a humiliating collapse that ought to be the last straw.
For the stretch run, the Phillies need to make a move in the bullpen, and Marte—who has been under fire—isn’t the ideal choice.
Assuming the top six arms are locked in, the Philadelphia Phillies can really do anything about only a few bullpen places despite some of the recent troubles. One of the remaining relievers is in hot water following an embarrassing implosion in Saturday night’s 11-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Or he ought to be, anyway.
In the seventh inning, with the Phillies trailing the Diamondbacks 4-1 and hanging onto a sliver of hope, manager Rob Thomson turned to right-hander Yunior Marte out of the bullpen. If the Phillies believed they had a chance to tie the game, it was a dubious move from the start. It’s not like Marte has been Mr. Reliable.
Yunior Marte’s humiliating collapse ought to be the tipping point for the Phillies.
It turns out that Marte accomplished the exact opposite of what his squad required, as has been observed frequently lately. But this time, it was by far his biggest failure.
Marte onto the mound and immediately face-planted, figuratively speaking, instead of holding the Phillies’ unimpressive offense within striking distance. The reliever was blasted by the Diamondbacks batters for seven runs on six hits. Kevin Newman of Arizona, the second baseman, was hit by a non-competitive four-pitch walk to begin the terrible outing. After two home runs, one by Jake McCarthy for two runs and one by Corbin Carroll for three, things got out of control.
The D’backs lead had exploded to 11-1 by the time Thomson finally came out of the dugout to end the agony of Marte and any remaining Phillies supporters. And the inning still had just two outs.
It so happens that when the team makes its next round of roster movements, Marte’s substitute from Saturday might end up taking his spot in the bullpen. In his MLB debut, Max Lazar entered the game and used two pitches to close the inning, getting Newman to fly out on the pitch in his second at-bat.
After his last outing, Lazar—who had been promoted to the roster—saw Kolby Allard optioned to Triple-A. He tossed a scoreless eighth inning. He also struck out veteran slugger Joc Pederson with a high cutter for his first strikeout in Major League Baseball.
The Phillies cannot run Marte out there indefinitely, even with Lazar’s impressive debut. What little success the 29-year-old has enjoyed since rejoining the team on July 21 has been eclipsed by some genuinely awful performances.
His earned run average (ERA) is 15.26 after giving up 13 earned runs on 16 hits in 7 2/3 innings. He had a 3.13 WHIP after walking eight and striking out eight. The incident on Saturday has to be the tipping point. Marte cannot be a viable option in the closing stages if the Phillies are to break out of their current slump.
With a longer look, it’s impossible to predict how the 25-year-old Lazar will do in the majors. Surely, it can’t go any worse than what Marte has offered?
Lazar was signed as a free agent in the off-season and in 30 relief innings with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs, he recorded a 2.40 ERA, 28.5 percent strikeouts, and 7.3 percent walks. The Phillies must watch to see whether he can carry that over to the major leagues.
When Taijuan Walker gets back from the IL on Tuesday, it’s time to send Marte down and give Lazar a chance.
