Justin De Fratus (above) has allowed 7-of-9 (77.8 percent) inherited runners to score this season. Jake Diekman has allowed 7-of-11 (63.6 percent). They have the two highest percentages in baseball among pitchers with eight or more inherited runners.
By Sam Bush
If there was one thing that was certain as the Phils broke spring training to start the 2015 season it was this bit of conventional wisdom:
Thank God for the bullpen. At least we know that’s solid.
So much for the CW, which is wrong so often I wonder why anyone pays attention to it.
The bullpen allowed three runs in Monday’s 6-3 loss to the Mets at Citi Field. Left-hander Elvis Araujo got a huge inning-ending double play in the fifth inning. But after he allowed a single to Daniel Murphy in the sixth, Phillies right-hander Justin De Fratus walked Michael Cuddyer on four pitches before Wilmer Flores hit a 3-1 fastball over the wall in left field for a three-run home run.
“It was tough to find the strike zone today,” De Fratus said. “It was just a freak day.
“I watched the video [of Flores’ homer run]. I mean, I’m trying to get it down and away. I think I got it away enough, but it’s such a predictable count. I think at that moment, I hadn’t thrown any secondary pitch for a strike yet. Flores, he did what he should with that pitch. He should barrel it. He should hit it hard, and he did, and it got over the wall.”
The Phillies’ bullpen has the highest WHIP in baseball at 1.52. It also has allowed 21-of-41 inherited runners (51.2 percent) to score, which is the highest mark in the Majors. The average bullpen entered the day having allowed 30.6 percent of inherited runners to score. No other bullpen had allowed more than 45.1 percent to score.
“Yeah, that’s been a problem for us,” Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. “A lot of the same. A lack of establishing the strike zone out of the ‘pen. And quality pitches when they’re pitching behind in the count.”
De Fratus has allowed 7-of-9 (77.8 percent) inherited runners to score this season. Phillies left-hander Jake Diekman has allowed 7-of-11 (63.6 percent). They have the two highest percentages in baseball among pitchers with eight or more inherited runners.
That is a considerable change from the past. De Fratus had allowed 27-of-84 inherited runners (32.1 percent) to score before the season. Diekman had allowed 21-of-75 (28.0 percent). That is more in line with the 28.7 percent big league average from 2012-14.
“I don’t know if that is really attributed to anything,” De Fratus said. “It’s just a matter of sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The game plan hasn’t changed. I’m still out there trying to go in and pound the strike zone. It didn’t happen today. It’s just one of those days. My arm wasn’t catching up like it usually does. That’s really all it was.”
