The Phillies finally have a ‘true closer’ in Jhoan Duran, and that solidifies the rest of the bullpen

CLEARWATER, Fla. — After Jhoan Duran finished his throwing program in the Baycare Ballpark outfield, he didn’t head straight for the mound, where he was scheduled to throw live batting practice.

First, he stopped by the empty bullpen.

Duran wanted to reenact the jog he will make every time he comes in to close games for the Phillies this season, to help get in the right head space for facing hitters the first time all spring.

“That’s what I do in the game,” Duran said. “So I wanted to go in live, too.”

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It was shortly before noon on a clear Florida day, so Duran wasn’t accompanied by his traditional light show, flames, or crawling spiders on the video board. But it didn’t really matter, because Duran got the results he was looking for on the mound with the 17 pitches he threw.

“I feel good,” he said. “My command is there. I feel it’s there. My breaking ball pitches are moving good. So that’s good.”

The last time Duran had jogged from bullpen to mound, in Game 4 of the National League Division Series, things had not gone so according to plan.

With the Phillies protecting a 1-0 lead over the Dodgers, manager Rob Thomson called on his closer with two runners on in the seventh inning. He intentionally walked Shohei Ohtani to load the bases for the more advantageous right-on-right matchup against Mookie Betts. But Duran issued his first career bases-loaded walk after Betts held off on an elevated fastball, which tied the game.

After the Phillies were later eliminated in extras, Duran said he didn’t dwell on the walk or the game at all over the winter. He has learned to have a short memory.

“I don’t think about it too much,” he said. “Because that’s the past. I learned in the minor leagues, if you throw one inning and you do it bad, the next day, you think about that, you don’t throw good that day. So if I do it bad, I forget. I’m ready for the next day. That’s me.”

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With 2025 in the rearview, Duran said the number of outings he has each spring can vary, and will depend on how he feels. He doesn’t have the added complication that some of his teammates have, of factoring in preparation for the World Baseball Classic, which will start pool play in under two weeks.

He was asked to pitch for the Dominican Republic, but opted not to participate. He wanted to focus on being ready for the regular season instead.

When he does make that jog for the first time with the lights, it will also mark the Phillies’ first time starting a season with a bona fide closer under Thomson. And having a dedicated ninth-inning pitcher will also impact how the manager deploys the rest of the bullpen this year.

Thomson is leaning toward having designated roles for his other high-leverage arms, rather than just piecing things together based on matchups. Lefty José Alvarado and righty Brad Keller are both potential setup men for Duran.

“When you have a true closer like Duran, that’s the way you should set it up,” Thomson said. “And especially when we have the type of arms that we have. But again, if you give a guy a fifth- or sixth-inning role, and the seventh- and eighth-inning guys aren’t available, well, they’re going to have to pitch in the seventh or eighth.”

In any case, Thomson likes his options.

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“I think it’s probably the best group of arms we’ve had here since I’ve been here,” he said.

Keller signed a two-year, $22 million deal with the Phillies this winter after a breakout season as a Cubs reliever last year. He and Duran coincided in the Diamondbacks organization as minor leaguers between 2015 and 2018. At the time, they were also both starters.

Now their careers have taken them to the back end of the Phillies’ bullpen.

“I think that’s what makes a fun bullpen, right?” Keller said on a recent episode of Phillies Extra, the Inquirer’s baseball interview show. “All different backgrounds, all different personalities, and just all come together, just be a bunch of grinders and a bunch of dogs down there. That’s kind of the mentality that a bullpen takes over. And it’s so fun getting to know these guys and watching.”

Duran is excited for the unit that is shaping up. Also in the group are returning lefty Tanner Banks and righty Orion Kerkering, plus newcomer Jonathan Bowlan, a righty acquired from the Royals in exchange for Matt Strahm. There are several contenders in camp for the final two spots, including Rule 5 pick Zach McCambley and sidearmer Kyle Backhus.

“We talk a lot together, we practice together too, more and more times,” Duran said. “And it’s great, these guys in the bullpen; great arms, great talent. We have everything in the bullpen.”