Lost in the euphoria of the Philadelphia Phillies’ 6-5 win over the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday was the stellar performance by relief pitcher Luis Ortiz.
In a stocked bullpen filled with the likes of Gregory Soto, Seranthony Dominguez, Craig Kimbrel and Jose Alvarado, Ortiz has quietly been terrific all season.
Ortiz was a huge reason why the Phillies were able to rally for the one-run victory.
After Taijuan Walker left with right forearm tightness in four innings, Ortiz came in and threw two scoreless innings. In the process, he lowered his ERA to a miniscule 1.29.
“I came in and just tried to do my job, get outs,” Ortiz told reporters. “Dominguez doing his job. Kimbrel coming in right now and always shutting the door, then you’ve got Alvy – one of the best in the game – coming down and getting it done.”
Phillies relief pitchers have given up just three runs over 32 innings with no home runs allowed.
Quietly, Ortiz has filled a major role. It doesn’t matter the situation. Ortiz is always ready to pitch. And he’s doing his job at an extremely high level.
Wednesday’s game was another example.
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