Was It a Mistake For Philadelphia Phillies to Sign Walker and Let Eflin Walk?
There's zero question that the Philadelphia Phillies could have a great pitching rotation. Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and recently returned Ranger Suarez will arguably be the reliable guys on the mound. Matt Strahm will be... okay. But a big concern for the squad is Taijuan Walker.
Walker signed a big offseason contract for a four-year, $72 million deal. In 2022 he was great with the New York Mets. He had one of the best seasons of his career.
The righty started 29 games, he posted a 3.49 ERA, 2.6 bWAR, and a 1.19 WHIP in 157 innings pitched, striking out 132 batters while walking 45.
So far through 2023 with the Phillies, it's not going as planned. As much as they'd like him to be an ace, he's really more of a joker. Wednesday's 7-4 series loss to the San Francisco Giants showed he might still be dealing with his early season struggles.
By the bottom of the first, Walker got the Phillies in a 4-0 hole. He gave up four runs on four hits and two walks for 40 pitches. Manager Rob Thompson yanked him immediately. Six relievers were needed to end the pain.
But who might not have put the Phillies in this kind of position? Zach Eflin.
Now granted, before everyone is up in arms, Eflin is not the health-reliable choice that Walker is for the rotation. Remember he was sidelined in 2022 after 13 starts before his knees became a big problem and he was out until the postseason.
Eflin was never going to be the starting ace the Phillies needed but putting him at the fourth or fifth spot in the rotation would've been better. During the 2022 postseason in his 6.1 innings in the NLCS and World Series, he struck out seven, walked one, and prevented even a single earned run from scoring. Well done.
Walker, while not having the knees of an old man, just gave up four runs in half an inning. Hmm.
Eflin would've been more cost-effective, as a mid-rotation guy he would take a one or two-year deal. He was a reliable reliever.
Instead, Walker is going to be a slow-motion disaster.
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