Phillies Need Pitcher To Find More Consistency Going Forward

The Philadelphia Phillies need one of their key starters to be more consistent going forward.

Apr 29, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies interim manager Don Mattingly before a game against the San Francisco Giants at Citizens Bank Park. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Following a great last 10 games, the Philadelphia Phillies came into Friday night looking to build some more momentum for the team against the Colorado Rockies. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. 

Coming into their matchup on Friday against the Rockies, the Phillies had to like their chances of picking up another win and setting the tone for the series. Philadelphia was the winner of eight of its 10 games, and things were going pretty well. 

The starting rotation and the bullpen were finding their stride, and the offense was also much-improved compared to the start of the year. Even though this might not be a perfect roster, the team was beating the teams that they were supposed to beat.

After firing Rob Thomson, they earned their first sweep of the season against the San Francisco Giants. They followed that with series wins against the Miami Marlins and the Athletics, creating quite a bit of momentum. 

With the Rockies not being the most talented team and Jesus Luzardo on the mound, Philadelphia figured to be in a good position to win on Friday. Unfortunately, Luzardo has been inconsistent this season, and he had one of his bad starts. 

Phillies Need Consistency From Luzardo

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

After signing a big contract extension with Philadelphia over the winter, expectations were high for Luzardo this season. The southpaw was really impressive for the team in 2025 and performed like one of their best pitchers. Overall, he totaled a 15-7 record and 3.92 ERA. With 216 strikeouts in 183.2 innings pitched, the left-hander was able to create a lot of swings and misses. 

Unfortunately, he has not had that same level of success overall this year and has been extremely inconsistent. Overall, he has totaled a 3-3 record and 5.98 ERA. While he is still getting a lot of strikeouts, when hitters are making contact, they are scoring runs against him this year. 

In the no-decision against the Rockies, he allowed six runs in three innings pitched, and while he struck out six batters, it was another poor outing. Coming off two really strong performances against the Giants and the Marlins, it was disappointing to see regression from the southpaw on Friday night. 

The Phillies are going to be a team that relies on their starting rotation heavily this year, with some question marks in the lineup. With that being said, they need Luzardo to be more consistent going forward.