Phillies Starting Rotation Ready to Meet High Expectations This Season

The Philadelphia Phillies' starting rotation is carrying immense expectations coming into a season in which it's World Series or bust.

Mar 4, 2025; Clearwater, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) walks off the field against the New York Yankees in the first inning during spring training at BayCare Ballpark. | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

With Opening Day nearly here for the Philadelphia Phillies, the franchise will be excited to get back on the field in 2025. 

After a solid offseason, the Phillies will once again be a contender in the National League. Last year, the team suffered a frustrating early exit from the postseason. However, the organization did a nice job addressing some needs this winter to improve the team. 

While they likely could have done a bit more to improve the lineup, this is a team that will be leaning on their starting rotation and perhaps their bullpen after the addition of former All-Star closer Jordan Romano. 

There is once again a lot to like about the Phillies going into the season, and they have been able to avoid anything too crazy happening this spring like some other teams have had to deal with. 

Being mostly healthy going into the new campaign is certainly a great way to start out, and the team has performed well in spring training too. 

Todd Zolecki of MLB.com recently wrote about the biggest takeaway from spring training for the Phillies being the starting rotation possibly living up to the hype. 

“Everybody is looking ready to take on the best in the NL. And don’t forget: top prospect Andrew Painter could be joining the team midsummer," he wrote.

Aside from the back issues of Ranger Suarez, the starting rotation appears to be in excellent shape heading into the campaign. While Suarez will be missing some time, Philadelphia does have a former All-Star to fill in for him. 

Taijuan Walker might not have had a good campaign in 2024, which resulted in them trading for Jesus Luzardo, but the veteran right-hander looks like a completely different pitcher this spring. 

If Walker can pitch well enough to start the year, the Phillies will have a plethora of starters once Suarez is back. 

Furthermore, their top prospect, Andrew Painter, seems destined to join the team at some point this year. 

With some high-end talent at the top of the rotation, led by Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and Christopher Sanchez, the unit for the Phillies might be able to live up to the hype. Those three might be all able to make the All-Star team in 2025, which would be a fantastic accomplishment.

Their main competition in terms of starting pitching will be the Los Angeles Dodgers this campaign, but Philadelphia might have the talent to compete with them in that area. 

Overall, there is plenty to like about what the unit looks like for the franchise.