The Phillies have moved right-hander Jerad Eickhoff from the starting rotation to the bullpen, manager Gabe Kapler told reporters Tuesday (Twitter link via Matt Breen of Philly.com). The Phils have not yet determined who’ll start in his place, but Kapler ruled out top prospect Adonis Medina as an option, Breen notes.
Eickhoff, 28, made an impressive return to the Phillies’ rotation earlier this year after some prolonged injury troubles, pitching to a 1.50 ERA through his first five games of the season. Since that time, he’s been tagged for 27 runs in 27 1/3 innings while yielding a sky-high 16 home runs (five in his most recent outing). Injuries limited Eickhoff to just 5 1/3 innings in 2018 and a total of 133 1/3 innings from 2017-18, but he did give the Phillies 197 innings of 3.65 ERA ball back in 2016. If Eickhoff’s struggles continue in relief, he does have minor league options remaining.
Rotation alternatives in the big league bullpen include Ranger Suarez and Vince Velasquez, while Triple-A hurlers Cole Irvin, Enyel De Los Santos and Drew Anderson are all on the 40-man roster as well. The Phillies could also explore the idea of utilizing an opener or even look for another option outside the organization.
It’s been a rough year for Phillies starters, as Nick Pivetta has been inconsistent while neither Aaron Nola nor Jake Arrieta has pitched to expectations. Nola and Arrieta, in particular, have seen their struggles coincide with those of Eickhoff. The Phillies still have a 15-13 record over the past month despite their ineffective rotation, but the Braves have substantially closed the gap in what is now a tied division by playing at a 17-9 pace over that same stretch. Philadelphia is widely expected to be aggressive on the trade market this winter, and the rotation looks to be an increasingly logical target area for general manager Matt Klentak and his staff.
id just option him. id rather have him as depth then in the pen, unless it’s only until we get some guys back.
Yeah his blistering 88 mph out of the pen as an over the top righty doesn’t sound good
Except that the pen is hurting right now. Maybe that makes sense when we get some people back but right now the pen hasn’t been good either
He should be moved to AAA
16 homers allowed in his last 27 1/3 innings??? Was he actually pitching to batters, or were they hitting off of a tee?
Three HR to the first three batters yesterday. The Phillie pen didn’t do much better.
Phils need some help big time with the SP. Arrieta and Nola have been at best disappointing.
Were not going deep in October with this rotation.
Phillies are very loyal to him, but honestly, I have not seen much of the good stuff that they see. 0-7 start to the 2017 season; spent much of 2018 on the then-DL/IL (now), I agree with Brian that there is no deep post-season (if we even get there) with this rotation. Arrieta is not Arrieta, Nola is having a good, but not great year, etc. But even so, Nola is not Nola. Something has to give as the Braves are too good to not make trades.
I am not complaining about the offense since there are injuries.
you gotta look at the whole picture going back to 2015-16.. 2..65 ERA over 8 starts in 2015, and 3.65 ERA over 33 starts in 2016. the injury issues that held him out of 2018 were nagging him in 2017. he came back as a completely reinvented pitcher in 2019, and his offerings were so different that hitters didn’t know what do (first five starts) until they adjusted (last several starts). he has the ceiling of a mid-rotation piece but something is clearly not working right now.
Give Toronto a call, Philly. You fleeced them on Halladay. I’m sure you can do it again for Giles and Stroman.
I didn’t realize it had gotten so bleak. I was really happy for him/the team when he made his return.
Phils are gonna wait till Robertson, Neshak, & Hunter come back mid/late June before pulling a trade off. I’m not saying they’re the answer, just saying that’s what I think they’re doing.