⚡ In the most tense moment, Don Mattingly stated that the Phillies must avoid panicking so as not to lose their chance to come back from the deficit. ⚡
Chase Shugart allowed three runs on Monday. (Brendan Baldwin/Phillies Nation)
PHILADELPHIA — For the second time in two days, the Phillies called upon reliever Chase Shugart to pitch in a close game.
On Sunday in New York, Shugart entered with the Phillies up two runs in the sixth inning and allowed three earned runs. On Monday back home at Citizens Bank Park, the right-hander took the ball with the club down one in the top of the ninth and gave up three runs again.
After squandering an early five-run lead, the Phillies had clawed back within a run in the opener of a four-game home series
“I really didn’t feel like I had much of a choice, honestly, there,” interim manager Don Mattingly said of his decision to use Shugart. “I didn’t really feel like, where we’re at with everything, I could just keep chasing a win with another guy that’s (one of) our back-end guys and lose another one. I felt like we had to get through that with Shug.”
The Phillies (47-38) went up 5-0 versus Pirates starter Braxton Ashcraft before veteran right-hander Aaron Nola hit a wall in the fourth and fifth innings. In his 302nd start in a Phillies uniform, Nola gave up a two-run home run to Esmerlyn Valdez in the top of the fourth before being charged with six runs (five earned) in the fifth.
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Two Pirates runs had already come home when Nola exited with the bases loaded; reliever Seth Johnson walked one in, then got a run-scoring force out. Shortstop Trea Turner made a throwing error trying to turn a double play, sending home one more run.
“It was kind of a tough spot because of where our bullpen was at and how many innings they’ve thrown recently,” catcher J.T. Realmuto said. “I think (Nola) probably got left out there a little longer than he normally would have in that situation.”
Philadelphia was fresh off a wild 5-2 road trip that included four comeback wins and a lot of close action. Closer Jhoan Duran recorded three total saves against the Nationals and Mets. Duran, Orion Kerkering and José Alvarado all pitched in Sunday’s win, and using any of them while losing on Monday might have made them unavailable for Tuesday.
Lefty Kyle Backhus had thrown on Saturday and Sunday. Tim Mayza, the club’s most reliable left-hander out of the bullpen this season, already threw two scoreless innings by the time Shugart pitched. It’s felt a bit thin with Brad Keller, signed to be a setup man in the offseason, on the injured list and Tanner Banks, a breakout southpaw last year, in Triple-A after a poor start to the season.
“We have been in there a little bit more than you’d want to be,” Mattingly said. “But again, you are where you are at different points of the season and different little sections of time when you have to use guys. So probably we’ve had to use it a little more than we wanted to, but it’s nothing that everybody doesn’t go through. We needed to get through it tonight doing what we did.”
At the same time, the Phillies could have gone to Jonathan Bowlan, who last pitched Saturday and had two days of rest before that appearance. While the 6-foot-6 right-hander hasn’t been perfect with a 3.70 ERA, he’s had an impressive June and has been a higher-leverage option. He certainly has been throwing the ball better than Shugart. But Mattingly felt like the Phillies have “been beating (Bowlan) up, too.”
As the team put up two runs in the bottom of the eighth to cut the deficit to 8-7, Shugart and Duran warmed up in the bullpen. It seemed like Duran would have pitched if the Phillies tied the game or took the lead. When they didn’t, Shugart toed the rubber.
He got two quick outs, gave up a bloop single, walked a batter and surrendered a three-run homer to Endy Rodríguez. Shugart had moments earlier in the year, such as the day he picked up two wins in a doubleheader, and looked good in a mopup role, but it hasn’t been as sharp lately. He now has a 4.97 ERA in 26 appearances.
Perhaps it was the right choice. The Phillies did not score in the bottom of the ninth, so it could have been a wasted bullet to use Duran, Bowlan or another reliever. Or perhaps it would have been a different game if the Phillies had managed to keep it at one run.
“It just felt like we had to not chase it tonight,” Mattingly said. “We needed the guys that got their outs to get their outs. We needed Mayz tonight. Obviously, we didn’t want to go into the ‘pen that early, but it was one of those — you can’t always continue to chase it. I know we’ve come from behind, but I don’t feel like every game over the course of the season I can chase down in games — down three, down two, down one.”
Maybe it could make sense for the Phillies to bring in a fresh arm for Tuesday night. Both Shugart and Johnson can be optioned to Triple-A, and the team likes its bullpen depth in the upper minor leagues. Banks, Nolan Hoffman and Alex McFarlane are all minor-league relievers on the 40-man roster who have spent time on the big-league roster this year (and so is Max Lazar, who is not yet eligible to come back up unless it’s for an injury). The Phillies also have an open 40-man slot, which could be used on a reliever like Lou Trivino if the team indeed decides to make a move.
Whether that happens or not, Mattingly doesn’t seem to think that the bullpen usage has been too out of the ordinary. He wants to balance his aggressiveness with an eye on the overall health of the unit and the club. Sometimes, he won’t go all out with his biggest and best arms in pursuit of one regular-season win.
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“At some point, we’re going to have to use the other guys,” Mattingly said. “They’re going to have to get their outs, and we still have a long way to go.”
