Story by
José Urquidy is here to help Phillies reach October even if he can't pitch in it
- Story by
- José Urquidy is here to help Phillies reach October even if he can't pitch in it
José Urquidy is here to help Phillies reach October even if he can't pitch in it originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
QUEENS, NY — The Phillies needed length almost immediately Friday night.
Advertisement
Tim Mayza , who had posted scoreless outings in 14 of his previous 15 appearances, allowed three runs in the first inning before departing with one out and the bases loaded.
That brought José Urquidy into the game.
About 24 hours earlier, he wasn't even in the organization.
The Phillies claimed the 31-year-old right-hander off waivers from the White Sox on Thursday. He arrived in New York that night, stretched out enough to give them bulk innings but with little time for the Phillies to know exactly what they had.
They found out quickly.
Urquidy gave them 4 2/3 innings without an earned run, struck out six and did not issue a walk.
Advertisement
It wasn't enough to erase the early deficit, as the Phillies fell to the Mets , 6-3, Friday night at Citi Field.
But the path Urquidy took to get there was almost as interesting as the outing itself.
He was still in Chicago when he learned Thursday afternoon that the Phillies had claimed him.
Urquidy had been with his family, trying to figure out what would come next after his time with the White Sox ended. Then the calls started coming.
Suddenly, he needed to throw. And catch a flight.
Urquidy found a baseball academy near the airport, took an Uber roughly 50 minutes to get there and squeezed in his throwing while keeping an eye on the clock.
Advertisement
"The academy was behind the airport," Urquidy said. "I was taking the time, watching the time, seeing my flight. It was a very crazy afternoon."
Then he changed, gathered his things and headed to the airport for a 5:55 p.m. flight.
"I made it," he said.
A day later, he was pitching with the bases loaded at Citi Field.
Don Mattingly knew before the game that Urquidy could give the Phillies bulk innings. With Jesús Luzardo sidelined and the Phillies once again operating without a traditional fifth starter, that alone carried value.
What Urquidy actually gave them exceeded that basic need.
Advertisement
"José was really good today," Mattingly said. "After that inning, it keeps us in the game. You get a run back right away, he throws some zeros and we creep back in."
Mattingly came away impressed by more than the results.
"It was fun to watch," he said. "Just because of the mix. It just seemed calm all day. No panic in the situation."
That calm showed up in the strike zone.
Urquidy came to the Phillies with a 5.28 ERA, but some of his underlying numbers painted a better picture. His walk rate was low, he generated chase and had shown an ability to avoid barrels, traits that have been part of his success across seven major-league seasons.
Advertisement
Those qualities showed up immediately against the Mets.
Working with a five-pitch repertoire, Urquidy got ahead of 14 of the 19 hitters he faced and threw 47 of his 64 pitches for strikes, a 73 percent rate.
He isn't overpowering, but the ride on his four-seam fastball and movement on his sinker helped open up the rest of his mix.
He also kept hitters from settling in.
Urquidy occasionally quick-pitched, varied his leg kick and changed his arm slot, something he said has long been part of how he disrupts timing.
The combination worked.
It also looked a lot like the type of rotation depth the Phillies spent much of the season trying to find behind Cristopher Sánchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesús Luzardo, before second-half turnarounds from Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter eased some of that burden.
Advertisement
They took another chance on a deceptive veteran in August with Nestor Cortes , but Cortes has made only three minor-league appearances since joining the organization and has not looked like the pitcher he once was.
The twist is that Cortes is postseason eligible.
Urquidy is not.
He learned that part after being claimed. This was the first time in his career he had been designated for assignment, and he said his agent had to explain how the postseason rules worked.
Urquidy understands his role now.
Help the Phillies get there.
"I'm here trying to help these guys to win, to be there in October," he said.
Advertisement
The Phillies' offense gave him little room to work with Friday.
Mets left-hander Zac Thornton limited Philadelphia for most of the night, with Edmundo Sosa and Derek Hill providing nearly all of the damage. Both homered and combined for four of the Phillies' six hits.
Sosa's homer cut the deficit to 3-2 before Orion Kerkering took the ball for the first time in six days.
His recent struggles continued.
Kerkering put two runners aboard before Juan Soto hit a two-out, two-run homer to extend New York's lead. It marked the seventh time in Kerkering's last eight appearances that he has allowed an earned run.
Advertisement
Kerkering called the last couple of months a "rough go" and acknowledged that both his mechanics and pitch usage have contributed.
His sweeper, the pitch that accelerated his rise to the majors, has been inconsistent.
"They're just seeing it a lot," Kerkering said. "I think maybe a factor is guys sitting on it more."
He described the issue as "a mix of everything" and said he has been working through it with the Phillies' pitching staff.
With only eight games remaining, Kerkering still believes there is enough time to find it.
"There's always time to move forward and forget about it," he said.
Advertisement
The Phillies will need that.
Hill added a solo homer later, but Philadelphia never got any closer.
They'll try to get back in the win column Saturday afternoon, when Andrew Painter faces former Calvary Christian Academy teammate Christian Scott .
The Phillies' magic number remains five.
And for at least the next week, they'll have Urquidy around to help them get there — even if the pitcher who showed up out of nowhere Friday can't follow them into October.
