Mick Abel has been openly discussed as being one of the team’s top, if not the top, trade chips the team has in its holster. Come the trade deadline, his step forward and first round pedigree, coupled with a pretty full cupboard in the starting rotation at the major league level, meant that Abel was the guy people were using as a lead piece when it came to crafting trade packages to upgrade the current roster.
That might be changing.
Added to the rotation for the time being, Abel made a second straight strong start for the Phillies, further entrenching himself among the opening five and coming close to breaking a team record. His 5 1⁄3 innings were solid enough for the Phillies to have a chance, but the offense was unable to break through for more than a lone run before Jordan Romano made a single bad pitch.
It was a pretty good pitching duel between Abel and Jose Berrios for a lot of the game. The Phillies were able to break through first in the second inning when Nick Castellanos hit a vintage home run to the right field, a solo shot, that gave the team the lead for a while.
Abel was able to make it stick, trying to will the offense into more runs. They had a chance in the fifth inning when they loaded the bases with one out and the top of the lineup coming up, but Berrios was able to pop up Bryson Stott for the second out and get Trea Turner to fly to right to end the threat with nary a runner crossing the plate.
In the sixth, the Blue Jays got their first run when Abel allowed a single to Andres Gimenez, then sent him scampering to second on a wild pitch to Bo Bichette. With one out already, Bichette hit a triple to center that, frankly, should have been caught by Brandon Marsh, but was not.
With a right-hander at the plate, Brandon Marsh was shaded slightly towards right field vs. Bo Bichette.
Bichette lines one into left-center field, just out of the reach of a sliding Marsh, who had to go a long way to make the play.
BIchette’s triple has an xBA of .150 pic.twitter.com/TvXQaZzMeZ
— Shaun Nestor (@shaun_nestor) June 5, 2025
Tough play, yes, but one that has to be made. Abel was replaced right after this for Orion Kerkering, who then got two big outs of his own to end that sixth inning.
The bullpens took turns getting some big outs from the lineups before Jordan Romano came into the ninth to keep the game tied. Facing Bichette, Romano threw a pitch that deflected back to J.T. Realmuto behind the plate and caused cringes, uncomfortable seat shifting and probably a few tears around the fanbase as Realmuto took the ball in a sensitive area, necessitating a removal from the game. Was that delay an issue for Romano? Maybe, but he got Bichette to pop out before giving up a single and steal of second to Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. to put a runner in scoring position. Addison Barger struck out for the second out to bring up Alejandro Kirk. Romano got a few strikes on him, but couldn’t put him away, extending the at bat before Romano made a pretty bad pitch that Kirk hit it hard for a game winning single.
Yes, Romano made a bad pitch and paid for it, but the offense also only scored one run despite opportunities to score more. That play by Marsh probably should have been made, allowing the first Toronto run to score. It was just frustrating loss that maybe could have been avoided.
You just really hope for Realmuto to be ok because…..yikes.