Kyle Gibson hopes starting rotation can bring ‘some consistency’ to the Phillies

TAMPA, Fla. — Kyle Gibson’s goal ahead of his last spring training start against the Yankees on Monday was to get into the sixth inning, and he did just that. Facing a formidable lineup of Yankees bashers — including Aaron Judge, DJ LeMahieu, Anthony Rizzo, and Giancarlo Stanton — Gibson allowed two earned runs, no walks, and struck out four in the Phillies’ 5-2 loss to New York.

He felt good throughout his outing, and believes he and his other rotation mates have been able to get stretched out a bit, even in a shortened spring training.

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“We kind of knew once we saw where Ranger [Suárez] and Zack [Wheeler] were going to be, it’s really just a couple of times through the rotation, and then we’ll be set up and ready to go,” Gibson said. “Even during the year, there’s going to be times where we look right and left and say, whoever it is, we need you to go six or seven today.

“And you know that as a starting pitcher, you can read the situation and read the room. It’s important for us to get the season started off well, have a couple of good outings, keep the bullpen fresh. I’m a big believer in the rotation bringing some consistency to the team. That’s what our job is.”

Seranthony Domínguez gave up a three-home run to Judge, but Phillies manager Joe Girardi thought his stuff looked good. Baseball savant’s numbers backed that up; Domínguez was back in his usual territory, throwing 95-96 mph, four-seam fastballs.

Odúbel Herrera, who was diagnosed with a mild oblique strain earlier in camp, is progressing well, according to Girardi. He’s hitting, running, and throwing, and has taken regular batting practice. Girardi made the point that Herrera hasn’t had a spring training yet, so he could still be out for a while to build himself up.

Left-handed reliever Ryan Sherriff, who has biceps tendinitis, is not expected to be ready for opening day. Girardi said he has been shut down.

Right-handed reliever Connor Brogdon is scheduled to pitch on Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Brogdon has seen a velocity dip in camp; normally he’s around the 96-mph range, and he has been hitting 92, 93 mph. He said he was feeling under the weather and missed a few days, but believes that he’ll be ready for opening day if the Phillies keep him on the 28-man roster.

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“I think it’s important,” Girardi said, when asked how much weight that outing will be given to Brogdon’s earning a spot on the roster.

Girardi informed infielder Ronald Torreyes, infielder Yairo Muñoz, and right-handed pitcher Dillon Maples on Sunday that they’d been reassigned to triple A.