The Phillies have their fifth starter, and we've seem to forgotten

PHILADELPHIA. PA - Questions have been raised as to who the Phillies 5th starter will be in the rotation come opening day. With names such as Andrew Painter, Mick Abel, Griff McGary, and even Noah Syndergaard being thrown around, everyone seems to be quickly forgetting one of the unsung heroes of the Phillies late-season rally. That being one Bailey Flater…

Following a late campaign injury to Zack Wheeler, and with the trade deadline long past, Falter was forced to step into a permanent rotation role as September approached. In light of his early season struggles fans, media, and Phillies staff weren’t precisely siked for Falters’ countermand. Up until late August, Falter had maintained an ERA mostly in the +5.00 range, occasionally dropping to 4.80-4.90. But with minimal options elsewhere, the Phils were forced to weather the storm with the young lefty and hope for the best.

In spite of the ill expectations and limited offensive help at times, Falter seemed to take a turn. In the first 18.1 innings of his return, he allowed just 5 runs on 12 hits. And as the calendar turned to September the southpaw began to take a new form, as he surrendered just 10 runs through 25.2 innings of work. Falter became a mainstay and a steady presence in the Phils rotation as injuries rattled the team through the final month of the season. It is reasonable to believe that without Falter, the Phillies may not have made the playoffs or even finished above .500.

Now obviously we cannot allow one month of great play to blind us from the fact that just a month before Falter was rotting away in AAA and coming off multiple unsuccessful long-relief appearances in the bigs. Many forget that before 2022, the Chino Hills California product was seen as no more than a middle-to-long relief project, but after a few shutdown starts for Lehigh Valley (AAA) some coaches and front office personnel thought a rotation spot could be a possibility for him.

Yet his production has proven to be on an upturn and considering the timetables on guys like Mick Abel, Andrew Painter, and Griff McGary who could all use a couple more months in the minors before the big call to the squad, it seems as though both Falter and the organization could benefit from a few months of opportunity.

It’s in situations like this that teams will need to weigh the risks and rewards of the decision. And the risks of calling a proven guy like Falter up are slim, while those of making the call for a top prospect like Andrew Painter can bode much higher. With Falter, you have a guy that you’ve seen perform at a high level before, plus another lefty which the Phils pitching staff severely lacks this year, both in the rotation and the bullpen. Also if Falter were to perform at a high level early in the year and some type of callup was still in place, a move back to the bullpen, a 6th starter role, or even a trade could be in place.

When looking at his final lines in 2022, Falter’s 3.86 ERA even after such a rancid start would look good in any team’s 5-hole. And considering the level of talent, the Phillies boast in the 1-4 spots even a 4.00 while not desirable, would still get them 50-60 wins at the all-star break. And while heeding the generational-type offense the Phils possess it shouldn’t all that much of an issue for them to overcome a couple run deficit every now and again. Though however, the matter shakes out It should be fun to see how Rob Thomson will constitute the Phillies rotation battle come spring training.