The Phillies have reinstated reigning National League MVP Bryce Harper from the 60-day injured list, tweets Matt Gelb of The Athletic. Infielder/outfielder Yairo Munoz was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to open a spot on the active roster, while fellow outfielder Simon Muzziotti was recalled from Triple-A and placed directly on the 60-day injured list in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Philadelphia also recalled southpaw Bailey Falter from Lehigh Valley to start tonight’s game.
Harper is hitting cleanup in today’s Phillies lineup and serving as their designated hitter — a role he figures to occupy down the stretch as he continues to nurse a ligament tear in his throwing elbow. That, of course, is not the injury that’s held Harper out for the past two months. Harper was playing through the elbow issue and serving as a highly productive DH before suffering a fractured thumb upon being hit by a pitch. He required surgery to address the issue and has been out of action since June.
The Phils weathered that absence extremely well, and they find themselves in strong playoff position as a result. Philadelphia heads into tonight’s game with a 70-55 record that places them firmly in possession of the National League’s second Wild Card spot. They’ll now welcome back Harper, owner of a massive .318/.385/.599 showing through 275 plate appearances, to the lineup for the season’s final five weeks. The aforementioned elbow ligament tear will keep Harper at DH, at least for the time being, but Philadelphia is no doubt thrilled to get his bat back in the lineup.
As for Muziotti, his 2022 season is over due to a torn patellar tendon in his right knee. The 23-year-old, one of the better outfield prospects in the organization, made his MLB debut this April and appeared in nine games. He spent the majority of the year with Double-A Reading, hitting .259/.339/.455 through 38 games. He’ll be paid at the prorated $700K MLB minimum rate for the rest of this season and collect around five weeks of big league service time while looking ahead to 2023.
The Phillies will steamroll the opposition on continuous basis and claim the 2022 World Series title. Says me.
KEEP PLAYING TEAMS LIKE THE NATIONALS AND THE REDS ALL THE TIME NO WONDER. BRAVES ARE SMART ENOUGH, WE WILL WALK HIM OR HIT HIM
The Phillies have a winning record against the Dodgers, Cardinals, Padres and Brewers. They are .500 against the Braves. The Mets have owned the Phillies. The idea that the Phillies only feast on bad teams is false. Phillies have done well against almost every team not from Queens.
That makes sense and then the Phillies can hit Riley.
The Phillies are now all hitting and starting to defend better. It makes no sense to put anyone on base, regardless who it is.
the reason our schedule is so weak right now is if you go back and look at our schedule for the last week of April the entire month of May our schedule was horrendous.
YOU HAVE A NINE GAME STRETCH IN SEPTEMBER THAT YOU PLAY THE BRAVES SEVEN GAMES THEN YOU PLAY TORONTO TWO GAMES. BESIDES THAT, WITH YOUR EASY SCHEDULE HELL YOU SHOULD WIN 95 GAMES
Can you that louder so I can hear you
WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING?
Good to have the best teams getting healthy for the stretch run
The Mets problems just got worse.
The Mets problems? They’re 21-9 in their last 30 games and have the easiest September schedule in all of baseball.
The Mets don’t have any problems with the Phillies.
Why? They are done with Phillies. He can now light up the Braves and help the Mets.
….back in the line-up and hitting clean-up!
Coming back against the Pirates, kind of like a rehab assignment in the minors! And I am a lifelong Pirate fan, 60 plus years!
BFFLR;
It’s always darkest before the dawn?
The journey of a thousand miles (or the playoffs) begins with one step…?
That’s not Bradley Zimmer DFAed.
He will be when Marsh returns.
While nursing a bad elbow, Harper get hut on the thumb, breaking it qhile concurrently falling off a building thatbwas being imploded, thereby landing in wet cement that he sinks into and end up with just a mouth sticking put that he uses to watch ball 4 go by, and simultaneously getting his teeth stolen by a local merchant who just happened to be selling PEDs to Fernando Tatis, thereby violating his contract and thus forcing the Phillies to take him to arbitration; however, since he can’t physically go to arbitration, they dig up the concrete and carry him there, which results in him getting dropped and breaking his other thumb, which he put in a pie and pulled out a plumb and said what a good boy am I.
Quite possibly, the dumbest thing I’ve ever read. Well done Coop!
That is one heckuva sentence
“Mr Madison, what you’ve just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this thread is now dumber for having read it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.”
cocaine is helluva drug, because with a comment like that you must be speeding your jewels off.
What are you talking about drug addict?
Re-aggravated injury coming in 3, 2, 1………….
Must be thinking of deGrom.
No chance. He has to pitch through the playoffs to get his money.
And I think he will. I made an idiotic comment in response to Books’ idiotic comment. Hope deGrom stays healthy, and I’d bet he does.
Its probably worth noting that the Phillies not being like the single worst defensive team in baseball came once Harper went on the IL and they didn’t have to start Schwarber & Castellanos in the corner OF spots every day
Im not suggesting that getting one of the best hitters on the planet back makes them worse, but it def means that some of the gains they made defensively will be lost
This is so incorrect. Hall was the primary DH while Harper was hurt. Schwarber and Castellanos primarily played the field while Harper was out. Stop with the misinformation.
And apologies for coming off a little aggressive. It’s just that like 7 people have said this and it’s totally wrong.
The Phillies defense has improved markedly this season, as has their bullpen.
To add…..
A few weeks ago Bryce Harper joined the TV broadcast for a 5 inning (rained out) game. That asked him about the Phillies D. He responded that the players heard it and are sick of hearing it. All of them started working extremely hard with the coaching staff daily. Said they had pride.
From 2019-2021 I thought Nick Castellanos and JD Davis were easily the 2 worst fielders in MLB. Lately Castellanos has actually been making some difficult plays. He’s still below ML average, but working at getting better. The most important thing is that when he screws up a play he no longer tries to overcompensate by throwing to the wrong base – instead he gathers himself, finds the cut-off man and gets the ball to him….which is the right thing to do.
Castellanos and Schwarber have mostly still been playing RF and LF since then. A lot of the DH starts were taken by Hall or otherwise split amongst the rest of the roster.
Lol, Out of line just shouting out statements regardless of their validity. Have you watched even ONE Phillies game since Harper went out, or did you just feel like commenting here???
….agree with VPH, but my offering is….
Oh stop, just stop. I know we’re on an opinion site…but you choking out that narrative is just tone deaf…
But I shall fight for the right for you to put it out there….
I just do not think a starting rotation of Nola, Suarez and Gibson get it done
I’m less concerned about that. Wheeler will be back soon and Wheeler, Nola and Suarez are a fantastic 1-3. Who I’m concerned about is Dominguez. That’s a huge injury.
OK.
But Wheeler will be back and Syndergaard has been surprisingly effective.
Equally importantly, the Phillies have the best all-around Catcher in MLB handling them, as well as very probably the best back-up Catcher – which few outside of Phillies fans know about. Offensively, he started a rally the other night leading off an inning with a bunt single that the opposing 3B was unprepared for……which brings up the point……
The Phillies are slowly playing smarter and smarter baseball. Sometimes they regress for a game, but Rob Thompson and the coaches get on them immediately, help them make adjustments, and it stops.
Watching MLB games are fun and informative. Just watching highlights and buying into media narratives gives people a false sense of thinking they’re on top of what’s going on…..same as with everything else in America.
Harper is tough – guy wants to play. Good to see.
I can only think of him as Bruce Hooper now and forever.
Please Harper, go on a tear, keep the Braves as the 1st WC, and then beat them in the WC round. Also, please beat the Dodgers. Mets vs. Phillies in LCS would be awesome.