The Philadelphia Phillies have the best record in baseball and a comfortable nine-game lead in the NL East. While the team is loaded with weapons, the Phillies boast one of MLB’s best starting rotations. However, one of those starters will be on the shelf for a couple weeks as Philadelphia has placed Ranger Suarez on the 15-day injured list.
Suarez is dealing with lower back soreness. But, Phillies’ manager Rob Thomson doesn’t believe the injury to be serious, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki on X. The Phillies hope Suarez can return when he’s eligible. Thomson even brought up the pitcher being back in time for the team’s series against the Arizona Diamondbacks August 8-11.
Suarez was forced to sit out the All-Star game due to a back issue. However, Thomson pointed out that this injury is not thought to be related. The previous back soreness was on the pitcher’s right side and the current ailment is on his left, per Zolecki.
A bit of a rest might be the best thing for Suarez at the moment. The Phillies hope in addition to healing his aching back, the break might help the pitcher return to form.
Suarez’s start to the 2024 season was a revelation. The veteran lefty had performed well at times over his seven-year career but Suarez was putting it all together for the Phillies over the first three months of this season.
The scorching hot start Suarez got off to included a 10-1 record, a 1.77 ERA (second best in MLB), 0.88 WHIP (first), .185 batting average against (fifth), 2.48 WPA (second), 2.8 fWAR (second) and 91 strikeouts in 86.1 innings through June 15.
Phillies’ starter Ranger Suarez could return from injured list soon
The remarkable performance helped propel the Phillies to the best record in baseball and a sizable lead in the NL East. It also earned Suarez a spot in his first career All-Star game as he was one of three Phillies’ starters selected to the Midsummer Classic. Including relievers, five Phillies’ pitchers and an MLB-best eight total players represented Philadelphia in the 2024 All-Star game.
In mid June, Suarez was the betting favorite to win the National League Cy Young Award over Phillies’ teammate Zack Wheeler. Unfortunately, the 28-year-old hurler couldn’t sustain the eye-popping stats he produced over the season's first three months.
Since June 15, Suarez has been among the worst pitchers in baseball. In six starts since the middle of June Suarez has a 0-4 record, a 5.73 ERA (73rd out of 78 qualified starters in MLB), 1.55 WHIP (74th), .305 batting average against (77th), -0.79 WPA (75th), 0.4 fWAR (46th) and 25 strikeouts in 33 innings.
The Phillies still boast the best record in baseball at 64-39 entering play on Saturday. Philadelphia also easily has the best run differential in MLB at +107 as the team has only allowed 394 runs – the third lowest total. However, the Phillies have gone just 2-5 since returning from the All-Star break and they’ve lost seven of their last 10 games. Perhaps a brief stint on the IL will rejuvenate Suarez and help prepare him for a strong second half and postseason run.
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