Phillies 5th Starter Controversy: The Great Debate of 2024

Philadelphia sports fans thrive on controversy. The backup quarterback is the most popular guy in town. Eagles fans have debated Carson Wentz versus Nick Foles, Michael Vick versus Kevin Kolb, and Donovan McNabb versus pretty much anyone behind him.

The fifth starter for the Phillies doesn’t usually draw as much scrutiny. Spencer Turnbull and Taijuan Walker have changed that narrative in 2024.

A slow ramp-up during spring training pushed Walker to the injured list to begin the 2024 season. The Phillies expected him to spend some time in AAA through the month of April regaining his velocity, but the veteran right-hander will make his final minor league start on Sunday.

The Phillies signed Walker to a lucrative four-year, $72 million contract entering the 2023 season.

He posted a 4.38 ERA in 172 ⅔ innings in his first season in Philadelphia, but he lost favor down the stretch. Walker did not make an appearance during the postseason, and he directed his frustration unwisely on social media.

While the 31-year-old didn’t finish 2023 on the best terms, he logically warrants a spot in the starting rotation with a sub-4.00 career ERA and 194 MLB starts.  

What’s the problem then?

The Phillies signed Spencer Turnbull on a one-year deal worth $2 million on Feb. 14. They didn’t expect him to begin the season in the starting rotation, but the absence of Taijuan Walker forced the former Detroit Tiger into an expanded role.

Turnbull has sparkled in four starts. He’s allowed just three earned runs in 22 innings pitched. His hot streak reached a new level when he took a no-hitter into the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox on Friday night. 

The right-hander has mixed off-speed pitches well to complement a fastball in the low 90s. He’s posted a 1.23 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP (MLB average in 2023: 1.30).

Could the hot start from Spencer Turnbull force a fifth starter controversy in Philadelphia? Rob Thomson said after Turnbull’s gem on Friday that the Phillies haven’t made a decision about what will happen when Taijuan Walker returns.

As much fun as quarterback controversies are, they don’t translate to the fifth starter role in baseball. Thomson spoke during the offseason about his plan for the Phillies starting rotation in 2024.

MLB starting pitchers also need to conserve their stamina over a 162-game season. Spencer Turnbull hasn’t pitched in a full-time role the past three seasons.

The promising start from Turnbull doesn’t mean he has the durability to supplant Walker and stay in the rotation the rest of the regular season. He could play a role in the bullpen as the longman. He could be a spot starter. The Phillies could even use a six-man rotation.

Jayson Stark spoke on The Best Show Ever about the possibility of the Phillies taking two trips through the rotation with six starters. The schedule includes 12 games in 12 days from Turnbull’s last start until the next day off on May 2. 

Walker could join the rotation and make it easy for Thomson to use the stopgap solution.

If Stark’s hypothetical scenario plays out, the Phillies would most likely send Turnbull to the bullpen as the longman beginning May 3. He likely would have made six starts and eclipsed his 2023 total of 31 innings at that point.

Stark cited the 54 million remaining reasons why the Phillies would like Taijuan Walker to rejoin the rotation.

The Phillies have plenty of off-days throughout the month of May leading up to their trip to London to face the New York Mets on June 8 and 9.

If they suffer injuries to any starting pitchers during that time span, Thomson’s estimation of using eight or nine starters then starts to look more accurate. MLB teams don’t usually stay fully healthy for long periods of the season.

It's conceivable that Turnbull spends a few weeks in the bullpen and moves right back into the rotation because of other circumstances.

Both pitchers will have plenty of opportunity to prove themselves in the meantime. Sports radio hosts will also have plenty of opportunities to debate who deserves that fifth starter role for the rest of the season.

The crop of MLB players from the Philadelphia area has grown during the 21st century. Powerhouse local high school and AAU programs, especially in South Jersey and the Philadelphia Catholic League, send players to the highest levels with seeming regularity.

Older players include Negro Leagues star Roy Campanella and Phillies record holder Del Ennis. “Mr. October” even hailed from the Philadelphia area. His prime came long before baseball’s most prominent Eagles fan Mike Trout stole the attention as the best local baseball player. 

Go back further in baseball history to enjoy classic names like Sparrow Morton, Buster Hoover, Oyster Burns, Horace Helmbold, Lefty Hoerst, Heinie Kappel, and Patsy O’Rourke. Everyone enjoys a great old school baseball name.

Honorable mentions to the all-time local roster include local broadcasters Ben Davis and the late, great John Marzano.

The official MLB website and the legendary TedSilary.com helped provide the archives to choose the starting lineup. It includes a roster of the starting nine (including a designated hitter), a five-man starting rotation, a closer, and a memorable Little League middle-relief pitcher for good measure.

The city of Philadelphia has an unthinkable pick between two of the best managers in baseball history. How do you choose between Tommy Lasorda and Joe McCarthy?

97.5 The Fanatic has put together a comprehensive list of rosters of the best local players in major professional sports.

Wendle grew up in Chester County before attending West Chester University. He’s put together a solid major league career as a reliable infielder for four different teams. He finished fourth in voting for the AL Rookie of the Year and made an All-Star appearance in 2021. Wendle was born in Wilmington, DE.

Phillies fans have been calling for Mike Trout to return “home” since he broke out as the AL Rookie of the Year in 2012. The pride of Millville, NJ has won three AL MVP Awards with the Los Angeles Angels, and his statistical prime was as good as any major leaguer in the history of the game. He won three MVP awards in six seasons from 2014-2019.

Catch Mike Trout as a celebrity fan at Eagles home games.

Mr. October was one of the best playoff performers in MLB history. Jackson won five World Series and made 14 All-Star appearances in 21 major league seasons, most notably with the Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees. He entered the Hall of Fame in 1993. Jackson was born in Abington, PA.

Goldschmidt established himself as one of the hardest-hitting sluggers of the 2010s. The first baseman spent eight years with the Arizona Diamondbacks before moving to the St. Louis Cardinals in his 30s.

He won his first National League MVP with the St. Louis Cardinals after previously finishing sixth or higher in voting five times. He was born in Wilmington, DE.

Mike Piazza grew up in Phoenixville, PA. The Los Angeles Dodgers found an all-time steal in the 62nd round of the 1988 MLB Draft.

He built the basis of his Hall of Fame resume in seven seasons with the Dodgers and eight with the New York Mets. He was the best offensive catcher in the league during the 1990s and early 2000s.

Roy Campanella spent eight seasons in the Negro Leagues before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier and later 10 seasons in the majors. He won three MVP Awards and a World Series ring with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Before he played professional baseball, he attended Simon Gratz High School in North Philadelphia. Campanella's name consistently comes up as a pioneer for African-American baseball players.

Seemingly every time you see a graphic flash across the screen on a Phillies broadcast, you see the name Del Ennis. He sits in the top 10 in franchise history in home runs, hits, RBIs, games played, and many other major statistical categories.

Ennis played 11 of his 14 MLB seasons for the Phillies in the 1940s and 1950s. He grew up in the Olney section of Philadelphia.

The pool of third basemen isn’t very deep, so a Gold Glover at first base would need to make the transition. Christian Walker grew up in Norristown and attended the former Kennedy-Kenrick before his MLB career began.

Phillies fans remember his contributions to the NLCS upset in 2023. Walker was a key piece of the National League champion Arizona Diamondbacks.

The utility infielder isn’t the most accomplished baseball player in this hypothetical lineup. However, he earned a spot with a respectable career as a journeyman who recognized his role and mastered it.

Phil Gosselin became a high school star at local powerhouse Malvern Prep. He dropped one of the best feel-good lines in Philly sports history after a bases-clearing double early in his first season with the Phillies in 2019.

Every soul in South Jersey seems to have a connection to Zac Gallen or his family members. The Arizona Diamondbacks ace has flirted with an NL Cy Young Award in the prime years of his career.

His role with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023 sticks in the heads of Phillies fans. Gallen was the top starter for an Arizona team that stunned the Phillies in the NLCS.

The Phillies acquired Jamie Moyer in 2006 as a veteran deadline acquisition at age 43. He remarkably pitched in parts of five seasons into his late 40s and even pitched for the Colorado Rockies at age 49.

The Souderton, PA native and Saint Joseph’s University graduate became one of the feel-good stories of the 2008 World Series as the local kid who returned home to win the title. He famously dug up the mound at Citizens Bank Park after the Game 6 clincher.

Kennett Square native Herb Pennock broke into the majors with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1912. He played 22 seasons for the A’s, Yankees, and Red Sox. His 241-162 career record earned him the nod for the Hall of Fame.

He passed away in 1948 at the young age of 53.

Mark Gubicza spent the better part of the 1980s in the starting rotation for the Kansas City Royals. He won 132 games over a 14-year MLB career. He grew up in Philadelphia and attended Penn Charter.

Gubicza came to the Royals just after they faced the Phillies in the World Series in 1980.

Walters pitched in parts of five seasons with the Phillies to begin his MLB career. He moved on for his most successful years with the Cincinnati Reds. He won the NL MVP Award in 1939. Walters grew up in Abington and attended Germantown High School.

Philadelphia will always celebrate a graduate of Father Judge and Temple University. Joe Kerrigan spent only four seasons in major league bullpens.

Kerrigan returned to Philadelphia for a stint as the Phillies pitching coach in 2003 and 2004. He managed Larry Bowa's staff well during his short tenure.

She didn’t make it to the major leagues. We’re aware. However, Mo’ne Davis surprisingly took the sports world by storm during the 2014 Little League World Series. The memorable novelty of a Little League team playing just off South Street deserved acknowledgment in a look back at local baseball history.

McCarthy won seven World Series in 16 seasons from 1931-1946 as the skipper for the Bronx Bombers. The Yankees must’ve thought highly of him if they ignored interest from Babe Ruth to become their manager. The decision certainly paid off.

He grew up playing baseball in Germantown.