Phillies’ bullpen falters in Game 1 loss to Dodgers – NBC Sports Philadelphia

After the MLB Trade Deadline late July, Phillies fans felt pretty good about their bullpen.

But that confidence took a hit Saturday night in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Dodgers.

Entering August, it seemed like the ‘pen was the deepest it had been in years. President of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, added 17-year veteran David Robertson, who carried a 2.91 career ERA, and flamethrower Jhoan Duran, acquired in a deal that cost two of the organization’s top five prospects.

Robertson looked sharp early, posting a 1.17 ERA in his first nine outings with Philadelphia. But by September, the cracks began to show. Robertson allowed seven earned runs across his final 10 innings (6.30 ERA), and Orion Kerkering also stumbled down the stretch, giving up runs in four of his final six appearances.

The right-handers in middle-relief looked shaky, and on Saturday, those late-season concerns resurfaced.

After Cristopher Sánchez allowed a two-out, two-run double to Enrique Hernández in the sixth, Rob Thomson turned to Robertson to stop the bleeding. The veteran did just that — inducing a soft groundout from Max Muncy to end the frame.

The way that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts constructed his lineup to face Sánchez offered an opportunity for extreme length at the bottom of the order.

He batted Andy Pages (.272/27/86) in the eight hole and catcher Ben Rortvedt ninth. In the fifth inning, the Dodgers pinch hit Will Smith (.296/17/61) for Rortvedt setting up the trio of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernández.

Thomson’s decision to bring Robertson back out for the seventh proved costly.

Robertson allowed a leadoff single to Pages, then plunked Smith three pitches later, putting two on with nobody out for Ohtani. That’s when Thomson went to Matt Strahm.

“I wanted to make sure we had a lefty on Ohtani,” Thomson said postgame. “If you bring in another righty, he’s got to face Ohtani. Robbie didn’t throw that many pitches and he was good to go.”

Strahm retired Ohtani and Betts, but with two outs, Hernández crushed a back-breaking three-run homer to right-center. It was all the Dodgers needed in a 5-3 win.

Strahm was blunt afterward: “I feel like I got gut-punched. Missed on two pitches, and one of them got damaged.”

Robertson, who shouldered the loss, echoed the frustration. “I had extra time to warm up tonight, and just didn’t make good pitches.”

The Dodgers’ bullpen, which had been shaky in the Wild Card round, looked far steadier in Game 1. After Ohtani’s six innings, the Dodgers skipper called on Tyler Glasnow and Roki Sasaki to get eight of the final nine outs — both starters now repurposed as high-leverage arms.

It’s a contrast to how the Phillies approached their own bullpen. Before the game, Thomson mentioned Ranger Suárez would be available out of relief. And recently, Thomson discussed seasoned postseason veteran Walker Buehler as an option. With Robertson struggling at the end of the regular season, a clean inning from Suárez or even Buehler might’ve been the better move.

Obviously, a lot of this analysis is in hindsight. But when the manager himself admits he planned for Ohtani vs. Strahm, it raises the question of whether Strahm should’ve started the inning rather than inheriting runners.

Especially when Pages swatted 24 homers and Smith posted a .923 OPS against righties this season. While neither is no slouch against southpaws, Strahm beginning the seventh would have made sense too.

At the end of the day, the Phillies collected just five hits and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Beating a lineup like Los Angeles requires more than one early blow.

Game 1 doesn’t decide a series, but it showed exactly what the Phillies will need to fix if they plan on moving on.

Red October coverage on NBC Sports Philadelphia is sponsored by Toyota.