‘It just wasn’t good’: Walker’s woes in KC continue as Phillies lose Game 1 of series Originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

KANSAS CITY – It’s not often that the Phillies are in Kansas City.

The last time they came to Missouri in the regular season was 1,930 days ago – on May 12, 2019.

Andrew McCutchen was the first hitter and the bottom of the lineup consisted of Odubel Herrera, Cesar Hernandez, Maikel Franco and Nick Williams. Gabe Kapler was the manager. It was a .500 season. There was no hope or expectations for the club at the time.

Times have certainly changed.

From the beginning this season, the Phillies have had the “World Series or bust” mentality ingrained in their minds. They had one of the hottest starts in club history, had the best team in the league with eight All-Stars, had the most lethal combination of starting lineup and bullpen arms in the league, every night they went out and found new ways to win games…but it feels like it’s all fading away.

Fast.

And on Friday evening it continued at Kauffman Stadium.

Taijuan Walker collapsed and put the Phillies in a slump they could not recover from. They lost the first game of the series to the Royals 7-2, have lost four of their last five games, and can return home with a .500 record at best if they win the next two games.

In his third start since returning from the injured list, Walker ended his night early after the third inning and 78 pitches, including 47 strikes. He now has a 6.26 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP.

The right-handed pitcher allowed eight hits and six runs in the Royals’ two appearances. Friday also marked the fifth time this season that Walker allowed multiple home runs in a start.

“It just wasn’t good,” Walker said after the game. “He didn’t throw the right pitches and the right counts, still got behind and allowed the home run ball.”

“It just hasn’t been going well lately. More than anything, I want to help the team as much as I can. Obviously, I feel like we’re not playing particularly well, but for me, it would be nice if I could help the team get back on its feet and I just haven’t really done that. So it’s frustrating.”

We keep saying they can do it. They’ve given us no reason to doubt it. After all, the club has been at the top of the NL East since May 3.

But Kyle Schwarber’s three-home run night in Los Angeles was to be the turning point.

Schwarber’s grand slam against the Marlins was supposed to be the turning point.

The turning point was supposed to be Weston Wilson’s cycle success against the Nationals.

Christopher Sanchez’s one-run complete game against the Nationals was supposed to be the turning point.

At some point you have to stop and think… did you miss the turn?

Nobody wants to see this team fail — as a whole or as individuals. You want the stars to step up for heroic moments, you want the rookies to earn their place in the lineup, you want the players who have been struggling to switch gears and find something that works for them. They want that, too.

Brandon Marsh hasn’t had a great series against the Braves. Despite scoring the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly on Wednesday, Marsh struck out five times and got on base just once with a walk. It was reassuring to see him score a run in his first at-bat of the new series and get an extra-base hit in the ninth inning.

“I thought it was good,” manager Rob Thomson said of Marsh’s approach. “He used the field, played the ball straight three times I think, especially the last one… He stayed balanced, didn’t move his head, used the field.”

Austin Hays returned from two weeks on the injured list due to a strained left hamstring and hit a single after a base hit to left in his first at-bat in just his 11th game with the Phillies.

JT Realmuto had a two-hit, one-run night. Bryce Harper had his first extra-base hit in 10 days. Nick Castellanos had two singles. Alec Bohm and Bryson Stott each had a base hit.

The Phillies were able to score two more runs in the eighth inning, with Harper scoring on a wild pitch from Kris Bubic and Bohm scoring on a sacrifice fly from Stott.

“I was encouraged by our batting tonight,” Thomson said. “I thought they were much better. I didn’t think we chased as much, not nearly as much as we did last night. We used the whole field, we moved runners.”

It just wasn’t enough.

There are still 34 games left this season and the clock is ticking louder by the day.

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