Phillies' Former Pitcher Wisely Seen as Top Disappointment in Baseball This Year

Who has been one of the biggest disappointments in baseball this year?

May 26, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Philadelphia Phillies hat and glove on the bench against the Atlanta Braves in the seventh inning at Truist Park. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies are attempting to build some momentum following a horrible start to the season. As expected with the struggles, some of their players have been major disappointments. 

It was a horrible stretch to start the year for the Phillies. With a 10-game losing streak early on, Philadelphia had a (9-19) record in the first 28 games. These struggles resulted in their manager, Rob Thomson, getting fired, and the team replaced him with Don Mattingly. 

While it was Thomson who took a bulk of the blame, there have been notable areas of the team that have struggled. The offense, in particular, should take a lot of the blame. Their inability to hit against left-handed pitching has been a real Achilles heel for the team so far. 

Furthermore, the starting rotation has a lot of talent, but even this unit has had some really poor outings. One of the pitchers who struggled is no longer with the team, and his short stint this season was one of the biggest disappointments early on. 

Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report recently wrote about the biggest busts so far this season. For the Phillies, their former starter Taijuan Walker made the list. 

Walker Undoubtedly a Top Disappointment 

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Taijuan Walker | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Following a horrible start to the season with some struggles in years past, Philadelphia elected to part ways with the veteran right-hander. Walker started the campaign (1-4) with a 9.17 ERA. Due to the impending return of Zack Wheeler at the time, Walker was going to be removed from the rotation regardless, and the team elected to just part ways. 

While there have been plenty of disappointments this year around baseball, Walker has to be one of the top ones. The right-hander has had success in his career and was serviceable for the Phillies last year when injuries hit their rotation hard. 

As a free agent, it wouldn’t be overly surprising if he lands somewhere if a need for pitching arises. However, with some really terrible performances in recent years, it will be interesting to see who needs him. 

For the Phillies, the rotation has a lot of talent and should still be considered the strength of the team. Wheeler has been back and doesn’t look like he has missed a beat this year. That is very encouraging, considering the severity of his injury and how much time he missed. Even though Walker has been a major disappointment, the team still has time to turn things around without him.