Rogers stifles Phils in latest stop on NL East revenge tour

PHILADELPHIA -- The National League East revenge tour carried on Wednesday afternoon for Trevor Rogers, who continued his remarkable bounceback season by carving through another former division rival from his time with the Marlins.

Rogers again delivered a stellar start to help guide the Orioles to a 5-1 win over the Phillies in the series finale at Citizens Bank Park. The 27-year-old left-hander allowed only one run over six innings while scattering eight hits and two walks and striking out six.

With his eighth quality start of the year, Rogers kept his ERA at 1.44 -- the second lowest by a Baltimore pitcher after 10 starts in a season in team history (since 1954), behind only Hall of Famer Hoyt Wilhelm (0.83 in ‘59).

“Couldn’t tell you how many times they stuck it to me when I was in Miami,” Rogers said of the NL East-leading Phillies. “To go six solid innings with one-run baseball and get out of some tough jams and really give our team a chance ... this was huge for me.”

During Rogers’ time with Miami (2020-24), he frequently struggled against Philadelphia, going 1-6 with a 6.71 ERA over 11 starts. He also had a 5.57 ERA in nine starts against Atlanta during that span.

This year, Rogers was tremendous against both the Braves (6 2/3 scoreless innings on July 6) and the Phillies. He also tossed 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball against the Marlins on July 12, giving him a 0.93 ERA against NL East teams.

“It’s kind of like icing on the cake. They’ve had my number for a while, and finally, just a little bit of payback,” Rogers said. “It’s really good for me personally and something that I’ll continue to build off of.”

It’s a perfect example of how much better Rogers has been this season than late in his Marlins tenure, which ended when he was dealt to the Orioles at the 2024 Trade Deadline. After posting a 7.11 ERA in four starts for Baltimore last August -- and then getting optioned to Triple-A Norfolk -- he has been greatly improved since returning to the big leagues in May.

Rogers was the star of the O’s 2-4 road trip, as he previously took a complete-game loss with eight innings of one-run ball on Friday vs. the Cubs at Wrigley Field. His stuff wasn’t as dominant Wednesday, but he continually escaped jams, stranding eight baserunners (including at least one in every inning he pitched).

Is this improved version of Rogers -- one reminiscent of his 2021 All-Star form who could potentially slot into the upper half of the Orioles’ 2026 rotation -- the one interim manager Tony Mansolino is expecting to see every time out at this point?

“I hope so. We’re starting to expect that,” Mansolino said. “We’re watching him every day kind of get back to the profile and the guy that he was. The way this level is and the way this division is, it’s really hard. We are incredibly optimistic about him, but we also know we’ve got a long way to go -- and we’re going to need him to do the same thing next year.”

The O’s offense rallied for four runs in the fourth against Phillies left-hander Ranger Suárez. Jeremiah Jackson hit an RBI double -- the first RBI and the first extra-base hit of his six-game MLB career -- then Coby Mayo blasted a three-run homer that traveled a Statcast-projected 421 feet to left field.

That’s more than enough support for Rogers these days, and the Orioles knew it. Mayo thought Rogers was capable of such results when they were teammates at Triple-A Norfolk in April and May.

“I’ve been saying it all year, in Triple-A, he looked really, really good, and there were just a few things that he wanted to clean up before he got up here,” Mayo said. “He's done a lot better than I think a lot of people thought he could, and maybe even himself. Maybe he’s surprised himself. But he’s a really good pitcher, and when he’s on the mound, you know we’re going to get a good outing."

Even if the wins and losses don’t matter for Baltimore (52-63) down the stretch, there’s a good opportunity for players to build positive momentum toward next season. And for Rogers, he’ll have an opportunity over the next two months to tie together quite a year.

“No one wanted us to be in this situation at this point of the year. I know every single guy in there didn’t want this to be the outcome breaking camp,” Rogers said. “But this is where we’re at, so really just got to continue to stay together, keep playing hard, because I know if we start heading in the wrong direction, it's going to be a long two months, and I know no one in that clubhouse wants that. ...

“We’re going to keep competing, keep battling, until that Game 162.”