The Philadelphia Phillies started the second half of the regular season on a sour note, dropping two out of three games to the New York Mets this weekend.

The Phillies lost the first game on Thursday evening, 4-1, at Citizens Bank Park. But they would get back into the win column on Saturday afternoon, taking down the Mets, 6-1. All that was left was winning the rubber match on Sunday afternoon, but the Mets had other ideas, as they clobbered Alan Rangel for five earned runs in a 6-1 win.

Meanwhile, the Phillies’ bats had no answer for Mets starter Nolan McLean, who struck out 10 and only gave up two hits and two walks across six innings. This was not the way Philadelphia wanted to kick things off post-All-Star break after going 5-4 on their nine-game road trip.

Needless to say, the Phillies have some questions to answer between now and the MLB trade deadline on August 3. Do they try to acquire a starter pitcher to fortify the backend of the rotation? Or do the Phillies put their resources towards finding a reliever and a right-handed bat?

In our latest notebook, we’ll discuss the starting-rotation issues, the team’s interest in Mets reliever Luke Weaver, and a minor- league call-up to bolster the bullpen.

Report: Phillies to promote Alex McFarlane from Double-A Reading

On Monday, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reported that the Phillies are calling up right-handed reliever Alex McFarlane from Double-A Reading. McFarlane is already on the 40-man roster, so the team will need to make a corresponding move to get him officially on the 26-man roster.

Phillies fans have been clamoring for this promotion ever since it was announced last week that Brad Keller tore his UCL in his right elbow.

Word started to circulate about McFarlane’s potential promotion on Sunday night as his teammate, Gage Wood, reposted the report from @minor_league_news on Instagram.

McFarlane, the 17th prospect in the Phillies’ system, per MLB Pipeline, has been excellent at Double-A Reading this season. The 25-year-old flame-throwing hurler owns a 2.06 ERA and 12 saves in 32 appearances out of the bullpen. McFarlane has racked up 47 strikeouts, while only allowing 23 hits, 18 walks, and two home runs in 35 innings.


This is technically McFarlane’s second time getting promoted to Philadelphia, with the first coming on April 24. But he was sent back down to the minors on April 25. The Phillies are hoping the youngster can give the bullpen a shot in the arm, as he possesses electrifying stuff.

The backend of the Phillies’ rotation is starting to become a huge issue

There’s no other way to say this right now. The Phillies don’t have a fifth starter, and their fourth starter, Aaron Nola, is looking like the guy we saw last season.

We can spend a lot of time talking about Nola’s troubles on the mound this season. But let’s discuss the fifth starter, or lack thereof, for the Phillies. Coming into the season, Philadelphia was hoping that rookie Andrew Painter would solidify himself as the fifth starter. For a brief period, Painter was the fourth starter, and Taijuan Walker held down the fifth spot until Zack Wheeler returned.

However, the Walker experience didn’t go to plan, and the Phillies ultimately cut ties with him. When Wheeler returned from the IL, the Phils put Painter in the fifth spot. The rookie struggled mightily on the mound, posting a 1-8 record and 7.06 ERA in 14 games (12 starts).

It got to the point where the Phillies tried to use an opener for a couple of Painter’s starts, but that seemingly did not help the rookie hurler. Philadelphia sent Painter down to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on June 17. Since then, Philadelphia has had a revolving door at the fifth starter spot, and to no avail; it hasn’t worked.

In fact, according to Cole Weintraub of NBC Sports Philadelphia, the fifth spot in the Phillies’ rotation this season has a 1-15 record and a 6.85 ERA. No matter who is on the mound, Painter, Rangel, or insert reliever here, it’s been a disaster.

If the Phillies want to try to remedy this issue by the trade deadline, a few starters who could be on their radar are Trevor Rogers (Baltimore Orioles), Brady Singer (Cincinnati Reds), and Dustin May (St. Louis Cardinals).

Phillies are eyeing Mets reliever Luke Weaver ahead of deadline

We mentioned it earlier, but getting a quality reliever before the trade deadline might be the Phillies’ top priority with Keller likely to miss the rest of the season with a torn UCL in his right elbow. Keller was signed to a two-year, $22 million contract in the offseason with the idea that he’d be the setup man in the eighth inning behind closer Jhoan Duran.

But now that’s out the window, and the Phillies will need to find someone else to bolster a bullpen that has an ERA of 4.26, which ranks 19th in the majors. One reliever on Philadelphia’s radar is Luke Weaver of the Mets. On Sunday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that the Phillies “would love to acquire” Weaver, “but the price tag may be high.”

Weaver is having an outstanding season out of the bullpen for the Mets (2.03 ERA, 43 strikeouts in 40 innings, three home runs allowed), and could be one of the top relievers on the market if New York decides to move him.

At the same time, the 33-year-old reliever is under contract for next season at $12 million, so the Mets don’t have to trade him. The Phillies don’t have the best farm system compared to other teams, which could hinder what they do at the deadline.

Phillies announce starting rotation for Dodgers series

After losing to the Mets on Sunday, the Phillies will get right back at it on Monday night, starting a three-game set against the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. These two teams played each other earlier this season in LA, where the Dodgers won two out of three.

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, the Phillies are listed as the favorites (-130) to win the series over the Dodgers (+105).

Here are the probable pitchers for Dodgers-Phillies:

Monday, July 20, 7:10 p.m. ET (ESPN): Emmet Sheehan (4-6, 4.81 ERA) vs. Cristopher Sanchez (11-4, 2.62 ERA)

Tuesday, July 21, 6:40 p.m. ET (NBC Sports Philadelphia): Eric Lauer (4-5, 4.81 ERA) vs. Zack Wheeler (10-1, 2.13 ERA)

Wednesday, July 22, 6:40 p.m. ET (NBC Sports Philadelphia): Justin Wrobleski (10-2, 2.69 ERA) vs. Aaron Nola (3-7, 5.68 ERA)

[Photo courtesy of @MLBPipeline on Twitter/X]