Johan Rojas gets picked off, Connor Brogdon gives up grand slam in Phillies’ 10-inning loss to Reds
The pinch runner Rojas got picked off in the eighth inning of a tie game, and things got worse from there for the Phillies, who have lost three of four to open the season.
One night after Johan Rojas used his speed to aid the Phillies in a victory, they thought he would be able to do it again.
Not so fast.
Rojas took his turn on the bench Monday night in the Phillies’ outfield rotation after starting — and going hitless — in the season’s first three games. But the young center fielder entered as a pinch-runner at second base in the eighth inning of a tie game against the Reds.
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And he got picked off with one out and J.T. Realmuto at the plate.
Oops.
Two innings later, with the automatic runner on second base to start the 10th, the Reds broke it open on Spencer Steer’s grand slam against embattled reliever Connor Brogdon, and the Phillies lost, 6-3, their third setback in four games.
Back to Brogdon momentarily. About Rojas: Reds closer Alexis Díaz nabbed him with an inside move to second base that manager Rob Thomson said the Phillies hadn’t seen previously from Díaz.
Chalk it up as a mistake by an aggressive 23-year-old who is trying to make an impact while he implements changes to his swing.
Surely, though, it’s a mistake that can’t happen for a winning ballclub, right?
“It can’t,” Thomson said. “But it’s youth. We’ll talk to him.”
The Phillies were also 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position. They were held scoreless from the first inning, when Alec Bohm cued a two-out, two-run double inside the first-base bag and down the right-field line, until the 10th when Turner hit a ball off reliever Tejay Antone’s foot to score Bryson Stott.
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Bryce Harper returned to the lineup after flipping over a railing and into the first-base camera well in pursuit of a foul ball Saturday and getting a scheduled day off Sunday. (The Phillies are taking steps to raise the railing.)
Harper came to the plate as the tying run in the 10th inning and swung through a 93 mph fastball from Antone to end the game. He finished 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. He’s 0-for-11 with five whiffs overall.
And then there was Brogdon, Thomson’s choice in the 10th inning because Gregory Soto and Seranthony Domínguez pitched the previous two days. Brogdon threw seven consecutive balls, got a derisive cheer when he finally landed a strike, then gave up Steer’s slam.
It continued a two-year cliff dive that has been difficult to watch. Remember what Brogdon did in the 2022 World Series? Four scoreless innings over three games against the Astros, striking out seven of 14 batters.
“It feels like a long time ago at this point,” said Brogdon, who got sent to triple A last June with a 4.03 ERA and didn’t return and has allowed seven runs on three hits (two homers) and six walks in two innings so far. “It’s been a long, tough run.”
Brogdon said he has worried about his mechanics while he’s on the mound. It has messed with his confidence, and it’s unclear, even to him, how quickly he can get it back.
“I’m out there thinking about every single step of my delivery at times,” he said. “Not every pitch. But there are pitches where I’m thinking of every single step I go through in my delivery. I’m just kind of scrambled out there right now.”
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Brogdon is out of minor-league options. The Phillies probably can’t hide him in the bullpen until Orion Kerkering is eligible to come off the injured list April 9. Michael Mercado is the only healthy reliever on the 40-man roster who isn’t in the big leagues. They could move Brogdon off the roster and add José Ruiz or maybe Andrew Bellatti.
Obscured by the late-inning issues, Cristopher Sánchez made his first start and twirled a gem for five innings before giving up two runs in the sixth.
Sánchez mixed his signature changeup, sinker, and slider to pile up eight strikeouts. He benefited from an overturned call on a play at the plate in the first inning. Jonathan India was called out after choosing not to slide on a high throw from center fielder Brandon Marsh.
After fielding a grounder and lobbing the ball to first base to end the inning, Sánchez stepped to the dugout and pumped his fist, an uncommon show of emotion for the typically staid left-hander.
“He’s confident,” Thomson said. “He’s got his chest out.”
Rightfully so. A year ago, Sánchez was getting over a triceps strain and struggling to throw strikes in triple A. Now, he’s a full-fledged starter in the one of the best rotations in baseball.
But Sánchez is also the Phillies’ biggest pitching curiosity. If, at age 27, he can keep improving, there will be a lot less pressure to shop for another starter before the trade deadline in the summer and instead focus on other potential needs.