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Phillies Bullpen Notes: Brogdon, Jones, Bellatti, Norwood

The Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen has underwent some changes in the first few weeks of the season. How have they fared?

Author:
Lauren Amour
Apr 27, 2022 12:00 PM EDT

The Philadelphia Phillies began the 2022 season with relievers Connor Brogdon and Damon Jones on their Opening Day roster. Brogdon, who's been a staple in the Phillies' bullpen since 2020, and Jones, who made his major league debut last season, ran into some early trouble in April. They were both optioned to Triple-A on the 14th.

The Phillies announced on Tuesday that the left-hander Jones had been recalled from Triple-A, and fellow lefty reliever Bailey Falter had been optioned to Lehigh Valley. The move indicates that Philadelphia was impressed by Jones' progress, while Falter is reportedly going to be stretched out as a starter, per Matt Gelb.

The move also implies that Brogdon still needs more time, and the club is satisfied with what relievers Andrew Bellatti and James Norwood have shown hus far.

Connor Brogdon

The 27-year-old experienced a concerning dip in his velocity during spring training, and that continued to affect him as the regular season began. In just three games with the big league club in 2022, Brogdon posted a 9.00 ERA with only one strikeout in three appearances.

With the IronPigs, Brogdon has yet to allow a run in 2.2 innings, while striking out five and walking three. The young reliever is working on regaining his command, finding better location on his pitches, and working to increase his velocity during his bout in the minors.

Ideally, Philadelphia would like to have the Brogdon back that was quite effective at the major league level. In 65 appearances since 2020, Brogdon has been one of the better options out of the Phillies' bullpen, posting a 3.52 ERA and a 8.7 strikeouts per nine to a 3.0 BB/9 in 69 innings.

Damon Jones

Jones had yet to let a run cross the plate in three appearances with Lehigh Valley. In three innings, the left-hander allowed just a hit, a walk, and struck out four.

Jones made his major league debut with the Phillies last season after five seasons in the minor leagues and a stint in the Arizona Fall League in 2021. However, the 27-year-old only pitched 0.1 innings, and surrendered a hit and two walks before being sent down again.Still, he remained on the Phillies 40-man roster.

Upon being recalled on April 26, Jones appeared in his first major league game since April 13 on Tuesday night against the Rockies, and he ran into a bit of trouble. Jones needed 18 pitches to finish out the ninth inning, while allowing a hit, a run and a walk.

Andrew Bellatti

Not even the Phillies expected Andrew Bellatti to be pitching meaningful innings for the club in April. But lo and behold, here he is.

The 30-year-old has struggled to stay at the major league level since being drafted in the 12th round of the 2009 MLB Draft. He's been a part of the Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins organizations before signing a minor league contract with the Phillies in Nov. 2021.

After a solid spring, Bellatti was promoted on April 14 from Lehigh Valley. In five games, he's allowed two hits, a run, a walk, and struck out seven. His slider and four-seam fastball have been effective thus far, and the Phillies hope he can keep up his newfound success.

James Norwood

Norwood, acquired from the San Diego Padres by Philadelphia via trade on March 30, has also settled in quite nicely.

Following his reinstatement from the bereavement list on April 14, the 28-year-old has appeared in five games, pitching to a 3.86 ERA and collecting three strikeouts and walking two through 4.2 innings.

His pitch arsenal features a split-finger fastball, four-seamer, and sinker. They have all supplied the Phillies with outs in the late innings.