The Philadelphia Phillies have placed All-Star lefty Ranger Suárez on the 15-day injured list due to lower back soreness. The 28-year-old pitcher, who started the season 9-1 and earned his first NL All-Star selection, currently has a 10-5 record with a 2.87 ERA through 20 starts. He’s pitched 119 1/3 innings so far, on track to surpass last year’s 125 innings and his career high of 155 1/3 in 2022.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson expressed hope that Suárez could return during the series against Arizona from August 8-11. Suárez experienced new tightness in his back on Friday, different from the previous injury that kept him out of the All-Star Game. Thomson noted that Suárez’s attempt to work through it in a bullpen session failed, leading to the decision to give him some rest.
The Phillies have backdated Suárez’s IL stint to Wednesday. After a strong start to the season, they’ve hit a rough patch, entering Saturday’s game against Cleveland with a 64-39 record but having lost seven of their last ten games.
To fill the gap, the Phillies have recalled left-hander Koby Allard from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to start Sunday’s game. Allard, who pitched in just four games for Atlanta last season, has a career 9-24 record with a 6.10 ERA over parts of six major league seasons.
In addition to Suárez, the Phillies are also without right-handers Taijuan Walker and Spencer Turnbull due to finger and lat issues, respectively. Thomson doesn’t anticipate Walker’s return before Suárez is eligible to come off the IL, but he views Suárez’s time off as a potential benefit, hoping he’ll be stronger for the remainder of the season.
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