Connor Brogdon looking to step up when the Phillies need him most

NEW YORK — Connor Brogdon stepped to the mound for the Phillies to start the Yankees’ seventh inning. Brogdon allowed an infield single followed by a flyout and a double play, then returned to the mound for a 1-2-3 eighth inning in the Phillies’ eventual 4-1 win on Tuesday.

This is notable because it’s not something Brogdon does often. Last season, the 28-year-old reliever gave the Phillies just two outings of two innings or more, and both came in the playoffs. He gave them just two two-inning games in 2021. He gave them just one in 2020, his rookie season.

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Entering spring training, the Phillies looked to left-hander Matt Strahm as a reliever who could provide some length. Strahm can face righties and lefties effectively. Assistant pitching coach Brian Kaplan calls Strahm’s fastball “platoon neutral.” But with Ranger Suárez on the injured list with a left elbow strain, Strahm, who has some experience starting and went four shutout innings in Tuesday’s win, filled Suárez’s spot in the rotation.

This is where Brogdon comes in. He profiles similarly to Strahm, in that there isn’t much of a difference in his right-left splits. Righties and lefties both bat .229 against him in his career. Lefties have a .644 OPS in 210 at-bats and righties have a .708 OPS in 231 at-bats.

“I think it’s just important that you have a pitch mix that works against both sides of the plate,” Kaplan said. “When you go multiple innings, you’re obviously going to see both-handed hitters typically in most lineups. It’s about being confident you can get both sides of the plate out, and Brogdon has always shown the ability to do that. I think he’s a really strong piece for that, because he can get those types of hitters out.”

Brogdon throws three pitches: a cutter, changeup, and four-seam fastball. On Tuesday, he threw his whole arsenal at the middle of the Yankees’ lineup to keep them off-balance. It worked. He also saw his velocity tick up a bit. He hit 96 mph on his four-seam fastball.

Brogdon said he has been working on some mechanical tweaks with pitching coach Caleb Cotham. He is now stepping his left foot slightly more forward, which helps to turn his shoulder straight toward the plate. When Brogdon’s feet are even, his shoulder tends to open up.

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One outing is a small sample size, but he’s optimistic that the tweak will help him, not just in keeping velocity up, but also in allowing him to pitch more innings — which the Phillies could certainly use right now.

“I want to pick up as many innings as I can pick up,” Brogdon said. “I’m trying to help the club as much as I can. We’re a little bit thin in the starting pitching right now. Give Strahm one or two more outings and maybe we won’t be so thin. But yeah, I’m aware that sometimes we’re going to need a couple of extra innings.”