The Phillies announced that they have selected Bryse Wilson and recalled righty Seth Johnson. Left-hander Tanner Banks was optioned in a corresponding move. There was already one vacancy with righty Andrew Painter being optioned yesterday. The 40-man had a vacancy for Wilson with outfielder Adolis García being placed on the 60-day injured list last week.
Wilson, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in the offseason. He was released in June, perhaps after triggering an opt-out clause, but then re-signed with the club on a new minor league deal. It was reported yesterday that Wilson had triggered an upward mobility clause in that deal.
It’s understandable why the Phils would give him a roster spot. The back of their rotation has become an issue. They started the year with both Taijuan Walker and Andrew Painter in rotation spots. When Zack Wheeler was able to return from his surgery recovery, Walker was jettisoned. Painter held his spot but his struggles mounted. His outing yesterday bumped his earned run average for the year to 7.06, which led Philly to kick him to the minors.
The Phils have a strong front three in Wheeler, Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo. They aren’t getting good results from Aaron Nola but he’s not going anywhere due to his contract and his stature within the organization.
Wilson could be a candidate to fill Painter’s spot, at least for a while. Wilson has some big league track record, both as a starter and a reliever. He has appeared in 163 games, 57 of those being starts. He has logged 461 innings, allowing 4.82 earned runs per nine. His 16.6% strikeout rate isn’t strong but he has limited walks to a 7.5% pace.
This year, his results have been trending up. For the year as a whole, he has a 6.29 ERA in 54 1/3 Triple-A innings, but with most of the damage coming early on. He has a 3.94 ERA since the start of May, with a 24.1% strikeout rate, and his past three outings have been scoreless.
The Phils are reportedly searching the market for back-end starters. They have an off-day on Friday, so they may not need to decide on a fifth starter right away. For now, Wilson gives them a length option in the bullpen, but he could perhaps make a start next week if they don’t find any other options. Alan Rangel and Jean Cabrera are spot starter candidates on the 40-man, although Cabrera has a 9.39 ERA on the farm this year. If Wilson is nudged out of the club’s plans at any point, he is out of options.
Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images
