After a brutal string of appearances, the Philadelphia Phillies have optioned struggling reliever Orion Kerkering to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski explained the move before their series finale against the New York Mets.
“He’s been struggling for a while,” said Dombrowski on NBC Sports Philadelphia. “It’s been an extended period, unfortunately. He hadn’t pitched much. When I say that, it’s been a while, but he hadn’t pitched much lately.”
Kerkering had a 3.70 ERA and 3.57 FIP through August 17. In the subsequent nine appearances, the right-hander has allowed runs in eight of them. That stretch includes 15 runs allowed in 9.1 innings with 10 strikeouts and eight walks.
At the time of his demotion, Kerkering has a 4.97 ERA and a 4.17 FIP.
Dave Dombrowski Explains Phillies Decision to Option Orion Kerkering
Orion Kerkering had been dealing with a minor case of turf toe. He’s only pitched three times since September 4, including a back-to-back during the Mets series. However, the lack of usage likely points to a trust issue with sending him out there rather than an injury.
With that in mind, the Phillies decided to bring up a fresh arm before the series finale. Max Lazar was recalled from Lehigh Valley to take Kerkering’s roster spot.
With the recent struggles, the decision to demote Kerkering is as much to give him a breather as it was to grab a fresh arm. The Phillies still need to clinch a postseason spot, even with FanGraphs Playoff Odds giving them a 96.5% chance of getting in.
“It looks like he needs a break to get away from here, himself. If it were the regular season, we would have optioned him out to just go pitch. We could use the extra arm. Lazar has been throwing good for us. So we could use an extra arm at this point.”
Dombrowski admitted they’re down a reliever in the bullpen with Jonathan Bowlan’s injury. The 29-year-old is dealing with a groin issue, and a stint on the 15-day injured list would knock him out of the Wild Card Series. So they will roster him through the injury instead to have him available.
The season will end for Lehigh Valley, so Kerkering isn’t likely going to pitch again with them. Unless he’s replacing an injured player, the right-hander won’t be eligible for a recall until October 5.
What’s Next for Orion Kerkering?
Dombrowski said that the Phillies will have a minicamp at Lehigh Valley that starts on Thursday. That will allow them to keep Kerkering and other Phillies pitchers warm during their postseason run.
Unless there’s an injury over the next 15 days, Kerkering will be ineligible to pitch in both the Wild Card Series and the National League Division Series. Best-case scenario, they could activate him for the Championship Series if they advance that far.
But unless that situation comes to pass, Kerkering has likely thrown his last pitch for the Phillies in 2026.
Phillies President Dave Dombrowski Addresses Orion Kerkering’s Demotion