The Phillies came into tonight’s game in a bit of a pickle. After the doubleheader on Thursday against the Atlanta Braves, the bullpen could’ve used some length from Taijuan Walker.
The problem, however, was that Walker had not pitched since May 21 against the Colorado Rockies. Given the circumstances, it was not realistic to believe he could give them enough length.
Walker showed some of that rust early in the first with inconsistent command of his cutter. Brice Turang took one over the middle of the plate down the right field line for a leadoff double.