Who makes next start for Phillies: Spencer Howard or Vince Velasquez? Joe Girardi weighs in
From the moment Friday night’s game between the Phillies and Braves was rained out and changed to a doubleheader Sunday, the fans wanted Spencer Howard. It became apparent that the Phils would need a sixth starter and who better than Howard, the top pitching prospect in the organization who was already on the doorstep of the majors and probably would have been here on opening day if not for service time considerations.
Howard’s long-awaited debut finally came late Sunday afternoon. And after a couple of scoreless innings, the Braves welcomed him to the majors. Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuña Jr. took him deep, and Howard allowed four runs over 4⅔ innings. The Phillies lost the game 8-0, a few hours after falling to the Braves 5-2.
There are far greater sins than being beaten by two of baseball’s best. Given the circumstances – Howard hadn’t pitched against another actual team in months and his own throwing schedule was changed this week to accommodate the Sunday start – it wasn’t that bad. (The Phillies’ offense was much worse.)
“Spencer, for his first start, I thought he did pretty good,” manager Joe Girardi said. “He was able to throw strikes. The first two guys get on (in the first inning) and he’s able to not give up a run. He didn’t fall apart, which sometimes it’s tough to slow a young person’s mind down when it’s their first start or first year. I thought he handled it pretty well.”
Howard did not feel sharp. He added that he’d rather get hit on a day like today than on a day when he does feel sharp because that, after all, could be symbolic of a larger issue than being rusty and making a few mistakes against a strong lineup like the Braves.
“I wouldn’t say I felt sharp,” the 24-year-old rookie said. “Just a little out of sync with mechanics. Left a lot of balls over the plate and mistakes get hit in the big leagues. Overall, it was a decent day, awesome to compete again.”
It was obviously strange for Howard to debut with no fans or family members in the stands. Not how a little kid dreams about making his first start in The Show. Howard dreamt of pitching a shutout in his first start in front of mom and dad.
But it’s 2020, so c’est la vie.
“The cardboard cutouts actually made a difference, surprisingly,” Howard said. “Coming back in the summer camp when it was just the blue bleachers and then seeing the cardboard with the fan noises, it was OK actually. I wish all my friends could be here but I know they’re all watching and that’s all that matters.”
The question now becomes: Who makes the next start five days from now? Will it be Vince Velasquez, who allowed one run in four innings in Game 1 Sunday, or Howard?
“Right now, my plans are for Vinny to make that start,” Girardi said. “I have not talked to anyone. We’re going on a five-man rotation, Spencer came up and threw the second part of a doubleheader. I’ll sit down and talk to our coaches and (GM Matt Klentak and assistant GM Ned Rice) and we’ll make a decision.
“We didn’t come into today and say we were going to make a change in the rotation. We didn’t come out and say that. We said we’re going to evaluate every day what’s best for our team.”
It is possible the Phillies, with such a bad bullpen, could make Howard a multi-inning reliever. They wouldn’t use him as a closer but as a pitcher capable of picking up six, maybe even nine outs as a reliever when the situation calls for it. Long-term, Howard will be a starter. But given the struggles and lack of plus stuff in the Phillies’ bullpen, Howard could make a big impact as a multi-inning reliever in a short season if the Phillies go that route.
It seems unlikely, if only because the Phillies still have five more doubleheaders and will need a sixth starter again. But it’s on the table. Most everything is on the table until the Phillies find out a formula for a bullpen that has an 8.10 ERA with 44 hits allowed in 30 innings.
“It’s something that we’ve talked about,” Girardi said. “It’s something we will continue to talk about. What we do and how we have the best makeup of a pitching staff.”
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