A pair of Phillies comebacks were not enough as the offense continued to struggle at the plate. José Berríos tied his career-high in strikeouts, despite allowing three runs, handing the Phils their third straight loss.
The Phillies added two new players to the roster for Wednesday’s series finale in Toronto, selecting the contract of third baseman Will Toffey from Triple A and calling up right-hander Bubby Rossman from Double A.
Reliever Michael Kelly was optioned to Triple A Lehigh Valley to make room for Toffey. Rossman was added as a substitute player for Kyle Gibson, whose spot the Phillies were able to fill Wednesday. Gibson was one of four unvaccinated Phillies placed on MLB’s restricted list ahead of the two-game series in Toronto because of Canadian policy which requires a COVID-19 vaccination for entry.
Substitute players are not subject to options or waivers and can be freely sent down after the series. The Phillies called up two on Tuesday — catcher Rafael Marchan and reliever Nick Duron — for J.T. Realmuto and Alec Bohm. They were unable to replace Aaron Nola in the series because he started Monday.
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Duron and Rossman made their MLB debuts in Wednesday night's 8-2 loss to the Blue Jays. Duron pitched a scoreless sixth inning and Rossman allowed a pair of runs in the eighth on Teoscar Hernandez' second home run of the game.
The 27-year-old Toffey has been a hot hitter for the IronPigs, batting .372 in 20 games before the call-up. The Phillies acquired him from the Giants in late March for Luke Williams.
Rossman, 30, has a 3.32 ERA for Reading this season with 48 strikeouts in 40⅔ innings. He signed with the Phillies in November after playing in Mexico, Canada and several independent leagues in a quest to make it to the majors. For much more on his unique journey, check out this profile from January.
Toffey, Marchan, Duron and Rossman were all sent back to the minor leagues after Wednesday's game.
MLB
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