J.T. Realmuto

Phillies Place J.T. Realmuto On 10-Day Injured List

By Mark Polishuk | May 21, 2021 at 2:22pm CDT

The Phillies have placed catcher J.T. Realmuto on the 10-day injured list due to a left hand contusion, with a retroactive placement date of May 18. Matt Joyce has been activated from the 10-day IL to take Realmuto’s spot on the active roster.

Realmuto has missed the Phils’ last four games due to a bone bruise on his left hand. Prior to that injury, Realmuto had also missed a couple of games due to a knee bruise and a non-COVID illness, so a stint on the injured list might be what the star catcher needs in order to fully recover from this flurry of issues. Waiting to decide on Realmuto’s IL placement now looks like a mistake on the Phillies’ part, as between Realmuto and other minor injury absences, the team was short-handed on more than one occasion in recent days.

Regardless, the team now finds itself officially without the game’s best catcher for at least another week, counting the three days’ worth of backdating allotted for an IL placement. Realmuto has been even more productive than usual, hitting .294/.400/.486 with four home runs over his first 130 plate appearances of the season. Extrapolated over a full season, Realmuto’s batting average, OBP, wRC+ (144) and OPS+ (147) would all be new career bests for the 30-year-old backstop.

There is no way to truly replace Realmuto, so the Phillies will have to make do with the tandem of Andrew Knapp and Rafael Marchan while the former All-Star recuperates. Realmuto joins Didi Gregorius, Roman Quinn, and Scott Kingery on the injured list, in the biggest blow yet to a lineup that has been around the middle of the pack in overall offensive production.

Joyce’s return could provide some help, if the veteran shakes off his early-season slump (.423 OPS in 38 PA). Joyce suffered a right calf strain that sent him to the injured list on May 5. After signing a minor league deal with the Phillies in the offseason, Joyce has appeared in 18 games for the team, playing both corner outfield roles.

Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto Day-To-Day With Injuries

By Mark Polishuk | May 15, 2021 at 10:29pm CDT

10:28PM: If losing Harper wasn’t enough, J.T. Realmuto is also day-to-day after re-aggravating his left wrist injury, manager Joe Girardi told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber and other reporters. Realmuto was replaced by a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning of tonight’s game. Realmuto missed two games earlier this month with what was described as an issue with his left hand. Girardi is doubtful either Harper (whose shoulder problem emerged in Saturday’s game) or Realmuto will be available tomorrow.

8:55PM: Bryce Harper left the Phillies’ game with the Blue Jays tonight due to right shoulder soreness, the Phils announced. Harper struck out swinging in both of his at-bats, and he was replaced by Scott Kingery in right field when the Phillies took the field for the bottom of the fourth inning.

This is the latest injury to hamper Harper this season, as he has previously missed time due to back soreness, a balky wrist, and (most concerning) after being hit in the face by a Genesis Cabrera fastball back on April 28. Harper has missed eight games due to these issues but hasn’t had to hit the injured list, and thus hasn’t any major interruption in what has been an outstanding season for the 28-year-old.

Harper is hitting .313/.442/.571 with seven home runs over his first 138 plate appearances, good for a spectacular 173 wRC+. While there’s obviously a long way to go in the 2021 season (and an injury could change the equation for Harper entirely), this represents Harper’s best wRC+ since his 197 number in his 2015 MVP season.

It remains to be seen if Harper’s injury will result in an IL stint, and naturally there isn’t an easy way for the Phils to truly replace his offensive production. Mickey Moniak, Travis Jankowski, and Ryan Cordell are among the top outfield options at Triple-A, and Kingery is available on the big league bench. Roman Quinn and Matt Joyce are both on the IL themselves, further thinning Philadelphia’s outfield depth.

Phillies Reinstate J.T. Realmuto From Covid-Related IL

By Steve Adams | May 14, 2021 at 4:06pm CDT

MAY 14: The Phillies announced that they have reinstated Realmuto and optioned righty Enyel De Los Santos to Triple-A.

MAY 13: 10:40am: Realmuto did not test positive, manager Joe Girardi tells reporters (link via Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia). He developed a fever and grew ill last night, however, so the Phils have moved him to the Covid list to perform testing. He is not traveling with the team at the moment.

10:10am: The Phillies announced this morning that catcher J.T. Realmuto has been placed on the Covid-19-related injured list. Fellow catcher Rafael Marchan is up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take his spot on the active roster for the time being.

The team did not indicate at this time whether Realmuto has tested positive or is on the Covid list as a close contact or for contact-tracing purposes. In the event of a positive test, he’d be away from the club for a minimum of 10 days.

Realmuto, 30, is out to the finest start of his career in 2021, slashing a robust .314/.418/.520 with four homers, seven doubles, a triple and three steals through his first 33 games. That excellent production comes despite suffering a fractured thumb that cost him much of Spring Training. Recently, Realmuto has missed a couple games due to a minor knee injury, though the expectation had been that he’d avoid the IL for that particular issue.

With Realmuto sidelined for a yet-to-be-determined period of time, the Phillies will turn catching duties over to Andrew Knapp and the aforementioned Marchan. That pairing certainly can’t be expected to replicate Realmuto’s contributions at the plate — few catchers could — but Knapp did turn in a .278/.404/.444 line through 89 plate appearances last year. He’s out to a much slower start in 2021, however, and is an overall .228/.332/.345 hitter in 712 Major League plate appearances. The 22-year-old Marchan is one of the organization’s top prospects and is out to a .250/.429/.313 start through 21 plate appearances in Triple-A. He went 4-for-8 with a homer and a walk in a brief MLB debut effort last summer.

Pennsylvania Notes: Hayes, Goodwin, Howard, Realmuto

By Mark Polishuk | May 1, 2021 at 6:21pm CDT

The latest on the Keystone State’s two MLB teams…

Pirates GM Ben Cherington provided reporters (including Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) with an update on Ke’Bryan Hayes, saying that the third baseman hasn’t yet started to swing a bat, but is still “feeling improvement” in his bothersome wrist. Hayes has been sidelined since the second game of the season and has already been dealt with one setback in his recovery process. Cherington didn’t give a timetable on a potential return for Hayes, though he will be joining the Pirates on their upcoming road trip from May 3-9.
Brian Goodwin wasn’t on the list of names slated for the Pirates’ preliminary Triple-A roster, and Cherington told The Athletic’s Rob Biertempfel that the team hopes to have the situation with Goodwin’s opt-out clause settled in a day or two. Goodwin’s minor league deal with the Bucs contains an opt-out clause in May, and it remains to be seen if that opt-out date could be extended, or if Goodwin could leave the organization, or even if Goodwin could be called up to the Pittsburgh roster. Gregory Polanco, Bryan Reynolds, and utilityman Phillip Evans comprise the team’s first-choice starting outfield mix, with utilityman Wilmer Difo and recent waiver claim Ka’ai Tom on the bench. The veteran Goodwin would certainly represent a more experienced, outfield-only presence on the roster, and Goodwin can play all three positions. As per the terms of the minor league deal, Goodwin would earn $1.6MM if he made Pittsburgh’s active roster.
The Phillies announced earlier this week that top pitching prospect Spencer Howard was going to be stretched out for a rotation spot, though president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski provided a bit more detail on Howard’s role to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer and other reporters. Howard might technically start a game, but “we’re talking about giving him two-, three-, maybe even a four-inning type of thing,” Dombrowski said. “But we’re not talking about stretching him out to those number of innings where you consider him as a starting-starting pitcher, per se.” Between Howard’s health history and the lost 2020 minor league season, the Phillies are being careful with their young hurler’s arm, targeting him for an unspecified innings limit in 2021. The Phils initially aimed to use Howard as a reliever this season, but plans changed given the lack of production from the fourth and fifth spots in the team’s rotation.
J.T. Realmuto has been out of the Phillies’ starting lineup for two straight games due to a sore left hand. The catcher suffered the injury while trying to block a wild pitch in Thursday’s game, with the ball hitting the heel of Realmuto’s hand. It isn’t yet known how much more time Realmuto will miss, though it might not be too serious a situation, considering Rafael Marchan was optioned back to the alternate training site earlier today — Realmuto and Andrew Knapp are the only catchers on Philadelphia’s 26-man roster.

Marlins Rumors: Yermin, Greene, Dickerson

By Steve Adams | April 13, 2021 at 12:32pm CDT

The Marlins’ offseason trade interest in Willson Contreras was fairly well documented, but it appears he wasn’t the only Chicago catcher pursued by the Fish. Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald report that the Marlins also made an “aggressive” attempt to acquire Yermin Mercedes from the White Sox but couldn’t convince the South Siders to part with him. “Aggressive” is a relative term, but in the case of Mercedes, nearly any focused effort to pry him away could’ve been seen as such prior to Opening Day. He’d logged only a single MLB plate appearance prior to the 2021 season and entered the year as a 28-year-old with 53 Triple-A games under his belt. Scouting reports on Mercedes have universally tabbed him as a DH-only prospect who lacks a true defensive position.

There’s been no ignoring Mercedes’ remarkable breakout at the plate to begin the season, however. The bat-first characterization of his skill set looks to be well deserved, as he opened the year with an incredible eight consecutive hits and is now 16-for-32 with a pair of homers, three doubles and four walks to match his four strikeouts. Mercedes obviously won’t sustain a .538 average on balls in play, but at least early on, he looks the part of a strong DH option. Even with some regression to be expected, the torrid start has surely quelled any temptation for the White Sox to trade the “Yerminator.” The Marlins, meanwhile, figure to continue looking for catching help this summer and into next offseason, per Mish and Jackson.

A few more notes out of South Florida…

While the Marlins may be seeking catching help now, they had one of the game’s top all-around backstops not long ago. Miami traded J.T. Realmuto to the Phillies prior to the 2018 season, but The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal sheds some light on talks that took place with another interested party: the Reds. Talks between Cincinnati and Miami weren’t a secret at the time, and it’s been previously reported that current second baseman Jonathan India and catcher Tucker Barnhart were among the players who could’ve potentially been sent to the Marlins in a Realmuto deal with the Reds. The breaking point in talks, according to Rosenthal, was that the Reds staunchly refused to part with flamethrowing righty Hunter Greene in the deal. Greene was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 Draft, and while he’s since had Tommy John surgery, he remains a highly regarded pitching prospect. Then again, righty Sixto Sanchez, whom the Marlins actually did pick up in their eventual trade of Realmuto, is widely considered among the game’s top overall young talents.
Corey Dickerson doesn’t appear to be in the Marlins’ plans beyond 2021, Jackson and Mish add in the previously linked Herald column, making a trade at this year’s deadline appear possible. Dickerson stood out as a rather logical on-paper trade candidate in the first place, as a veteran on an expiring contract with an up-and-coming team that most do not expect to contend for a playoff berth. Dickerson, who’ll turn 32 in May, has batted just .259/.314/.402 through his first 243 plate appearances as a Marlin dating back to 2020. He inked a two-year, $17.5MM deal to serve as Miami’s primary left fielder, and while his power and exit velocity have dropped off, his strikeout and walk rates have actually improved a bit with the Fish. As of this year’s July 30 trade deadline, Dickerson will still have $2.97MM remaining on this year’s $8.5MM salary, plus an additional $1MM owed to him in the form of a deferred signing bonus. The Marlins could need to absorb a portion of that sum in order to bring about a trade.

Jeff Mathis Granted Release By Phillies

By Steve Adams | March 24, 2021 at 9:11am CDT

The Phillies announced Wednesday that veteran catcher Jeff Mathis, who was in camp on a minor league contract, has requested and been granted his release by the club. He’s once again a free agent.

Mathis, 38 next week, went 6-for-29 with a homer and a pair of doubles with the Phillies this spring. His chances of making the roster seemed to improve when J.T. Realmuto sustained a small fracture in his thumb early in camp, but Realmuto has returned to the lineup and is now looking likelier to be ready for the opener. Mathis’ release only seems to add to that likelihood.

Now back on the market, Mathis will likely seek another opportunity from a club looking to add a glove-first backup behind the plate. Offense has never been Mathis’ calling card, but his bat bottomed out from 2019-20 with Texas, when he produced just a .159/.212/.252 batting line through 312 plate appearances. His work this spring was a bit more encouraging, however, and Mathis has long been regarded as one of the game’s premier defensive players at any position. Even if last year’s defensive ratings took a dip, another club in need of a lightly used backup could show interest in bringing him aboard for his defensive aptitude and the extensive knowledge he can share with the organization’s younger catchers and/or pitchers.

NL Notes: Realmuto, Padres, Nola, Rockies, Reds, Delmonico

By Anthony Franco and TC Zencka | March 21, 2021 at 4:56pm CDT

Initially expected to make his Spring Training debut as a designated hitter this afternoon, J.T. Realmuto wound up scratched from the lineup. It seems there’s no cause for alarm, with Phillies manager Joe Girardi saying the star catcher just had some general body soreness after working in a simulated game yesterday (via Todd Zolecki of MLB.com). The Phillies continue to hope Realmuto will be available on Opening Day, with Girardi reiterating to MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link) that “the important day (in his recovery) is April 1.” Realmuto suffered a fracture in his right thumb last month.

NL Notes: Arrieta, Realmuto, Brault, Betances

By Mark Polishuk | March 20, 2021 at 3:59pm CDT

Jake Arrieta signed a one-year, $6MM deal with the Cubs last month, returning to the site of his Cy Young Award-winning prime years. Arrieta’s initial great run in Chicago could have been cut short, however, had the Marlins been willing to include J.T. Realmuto as part of a trade package with the Cubs in 2014, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal writes. The Marlins weren’t in contention in 2014 but were looking ahead to build for 2015, eyeing Arrieta as a big rotation piece. It was known at the time that the Cubs were floating Arrieta on the trade market, perhaps looking to sell high after Arrieta had turned his career around after previously being dealt from the Orioles to the Cubs.

Interestingly, Realmuto was not regarded as a blue-chip minor leaguer at the time, as he didn’t appear on top-100 prospect lists from either MLB.com or Baseball America until after the 2014 season. After middling numbers in his first four pro seasons, Realmuto emerged in 2014 while playing for Miami’s Double-A affiliate and even bypassed Triple-A that year to make an 11-game MLB cameo on the Marlins’ active roster. Still, the Marlins obviously believed in Realmuto’s potential, and the trade negotiations fizzled out.

As we ponder the alternate reality where the Arrieta-for-Realmuto trade went down, here’s more from the National League…

Pirates starter Steven Brault left Friday’s outing after only two innings due to tightness in his left arm, and is day to day with the injury. The team’s statement specified that Brault’s issue was with his latissimus muscle, rather than any forearm or elbow tightness. Still, any sort of injury concern isn’t welcome news for Brault or the Pirates, as Brault is projected for one of the top spots in Pittsburgh’s rotation. The southpaw had a 3.38 ERA/5.07 SIERA over 42 2/3 innings for the Bucs last season, allowing only two home runs and doing a good job of limiting hard contact, though Brault was aided by a .243 BABIP and his 21.3K% was below average.
With Dellin Betances struggling in Spring Training, could the Mets decide to part ways with the reliever entirely? SNY’s Andy Martino thinks it may be a possibility, if the Mets see Betances as something of “a sunk cost” who won’t help their efforts to contend. One would imagine the Mets would try to shop Betances in trades before considering a release, though it isn’t as if Betances’ trade value is high following a rough first season in Queens. The righty posted a 7.71 ERA over 11 2/3 innings in 2020, recorded more walks (12) than strikeouts (11) and spent a month on the IL due to a lat injury. Unsurprisingly, Betances exercised his $6MM player option to remain with the Mets rather than test free agency in the wake of his down year. A four-time All-Star in his heyday with the Yankees, Betances missed almost all of the 2019 season due to shoulder problems and then a partial Achilles tear.

NL East Health Notes: Soroka, Phillies, Nats, D. Smith

By Connor Byrne | March 19, 2021 at 10:11pm CDT

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos told Fox Sports South that right-hander Mike Soroka could make his season debut in mid-April, David O’Brien of The Athletic relays. Soroka got through his third simulated game of the spring without any issues Friday. The 23-year-old remains on the comeback trail from a torn right Achilles that limited him to three starts last season. Before that, Soroka burst on the scene with 174 2/3 innings of 2.68 ERA pitching in 2019.

Injury Notes: Realmuto, Grisham, Inciarte, Romine, Guzman

By Mark Polishuk | March 11, 2021 at 9:21pm CDT

J.T. Realmuto has been cleared for baseball activities, manager Joe Girardi told reporters (including NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury). Realmuto’s tasks today included hitting off a tee and making 40 throws from 90-foot distances, as the catcher continues to work his way back from a right thumb fracture. There is some optimism that Realmuto will be ready to go for the Phillies’ opener on April 1, with Salisbury writing that the club could take it easy with Realmuto’s playing time over the season’s first week or so, should Realmuto still need a bit of prep time.

A brief injured list to begin the season also isn’t out of the question for Realmuto, as with backdating, he would only miss the first six games. Backup catcher Andrew Knapp would step in as the interim starter, though finding a second catcher could be a little complicated. Rafael Marchan (the only other catcher on the 40-man roster) is battling a hamstring problem, so the Phillies could need to open up a 40-man space to find room for Jeff Mathis or Christian Bethancourt, both in camp on minor league deals.

More injury updates from around baseball….

Padres outfielder Trent Grisham left today’s game with what manager Jayce Tingler called “a slight strain in his hamstring.” Grisham didn’t think the injury was terribly serious, but Tingler told MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell and other reporters that Grisham will be re-evaluated tomorrow. Grisham enjoyed a breakout season in 2020 that included a Gold Glove, and while the Padres have a lot of depth, they won’t be able to easily cover center field if Grisham’s hamstring lands him on the IL. Jurickson Profar might be the top fill-in choice, as Profar has been getting some work in center field this spring.
Ender Inciarte has been hampered by a thumb injury that has kept him out of action since March 4. Braves manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that Inciarte is “progressing, but he’s not to the point he can go out and get a game at-bat right now, so we’ll have to see.” As Burns notes, star prospect Cristian Pache was already looking like a strong bet to break camp with the team, and an Inciarte absence would all but assure Pache of a spot on the Opening Day roster. Inciarte hit only .190/.262/.250 over 131 PA in 2020, and is now entering the last guaranteed year of his contract. With Pache and another noteworthy prospect in Drew Waters both knocking on the door for MLB playing time, Inciarte might be in his final year in Atlanta even if he does have a bounce-back season.
Cubs catcher Austin Romine hasn’t played since the weekend due to a right knee sprain, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweets. While the problem isn’t considered to be too serious, there isn’t yet any plan for when Romine could return to action. The veteran catcher signed a one-year, $1.5MM free agent deal to act as Willson Contreras’ backup this season. Should Romine have to miss any time, veteran Jose Lobaton (in camp on a minors contract) would likely get the call, though the Cubs would have to make another move to add Lobaton to the 40-man roster.
Marlins righty Jorge Guzman is battling elbow inflammation and will be “out for a bit” of time, GM Kim Ng told the Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson (Twitter link) and other reporters. The hard-throwing Guzman was acquired as part of the Giancarlo Stanton trade in December 2017, and he ranked 87th on Baseball America’s top 100 prospects list prior to the 2018 season. Guzman made his MLB debut in cup-of-coffee fashion in 2020, tossing one inning and allowing two homers.

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