The Phillies’ bullpen has not been great this year, and they could be looking to make changes even before the trade deadline. Veteran pitcher Joe Ross could be out the door soon.
The Phillies’ bullpen has a 4.50 ERA on the year, which is the sixth-worst mark in the big leagues. They were hit hard by the suspension of their closer José Alvarado, but that is not the sole reason for their struggles. Ross signed a one-year deal with the Phillies in the offseason, but he has struggled, and FanSided’s Zachary Rotman predicted the Phillies would dump him before the trade deadline.
Ross was supposed to provide the team with a length option out of the bullpen, but in 34 1/3 innings of work, he has a 4.98 ERA. He has given up 19 earned runs and has issued 13 walks.
Ross was once a World Series champion with the Washington Nationals. Last season for the Milwaukee Brewers, he had a 3.77 ERA in 25 games. He has a 4.24 career ERA, and the Phillies simply need better options out of the bullpen. They are in a tight division race with the New York Mets.
The Phillies should be able to find a better long relief option than Ross at the trade deadline, but they may not want to wait that long. Ross is struggling despite not being used in leverage spots.
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“Ross is presumably still in town because he’s making $4 million, and the rest of the bullpen is far from stellar,” wrote Rotman. “Even with the bullpen’s shortcomings, Ross has been used almost exclusively in low-leverage situations, and he’s been worth -0.2 fWAR. His negative fWAR shows that he’s been worse than a replacement-level player. We’ve already seen the Phillies part with a pitcher they badly wanted to see thrive in Philadelphia in Carlos Hernandez. It wouldn’t be surprising if they did the same with Ross sooner rather than later.”
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