Philadelphia Phillies Rare Approach to Pitching is Paying Off

The Philadelphia Phillies have adopted a mindset opposite that of their NL rivals.

Apr 16, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Ranger Suarez / Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies raised eyebrows when they allowed their star pitcher, Ranger Suarez, to throw a complete game.

It's something that used to happen all the time, but is now becoming a rarity. With the rise of pitcher injuries and analytics, teams have begun to shy away from long outings.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale highlighted this trend and showed how different teams are handling it.

Earlier this week, the Pittsburgh Pirates pulled rookie Jared Jones after a dominant 57 pitches against the New York Mets. It's also not just exclusive to how they're handling pitchers in the majors.

Pitching phenom, former No.1 overall selection Paul Skenes has been tearing the minor leagues up. He has not yet given up a run, yet has also not reached four innings in a single outing.

That's met with a polar opposite approach in Philadelphia. Suarez just pitched the third complete game of the season.

Nightengale included a funny response about the complete game from a baseball executive in his article:

“You know, it’s ok to let a guy go nine innings. It’s legal," said the executive.

The Phillies lead the league in innings pitched from their starters with almost 35 more than the last place Milwaukee Brewers.

The Pirates aren't as restrictive with all of their pitchers, as they have just five less innings pitched than Philadelphia as a whole, but it's clear that they are being extra cautious with their young stars.

The Phillies aren't seeing a lot of negative repercussions from letting their best pitchers pitch, though, which could lend this method some merit in a growingly nervous league.

Not only does Philadelphia lead the league in innings pitched from their starters, their rotation is second in ERA. Obviously, the two go hand-in-hand, but when the Phillies arms are on they will stay out there. That isn't a given anymore.