Phillies’ Johan Rojas to miss the rest of the season with an elbow injury
Rojas, who was eligible to be reinstated from his 80-game suspension on Jun 25, will have surgery and is expected to be ready for spring training.
TORONTO — Johan Rojas will not play for the Phillies in 2026 after suffering an elbow injury.
Rojas is serving an 80-game suspension without pay for testing positive for boldenone, a performance-enhancing substance. The 25-year-old outfielder was eligible to be reinstated on June 25, but while ramping up to return to baseball activities, Rojas reported discomfort in his right elbow.
Imaging revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament, which will require surgery with an internal brace. The Phillies said Rojas’ surgery is scheduled in the coming weeks, and the plan is for him to return in time for spring training.
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According to the terms of Rojas’ PED suspension, he already was ineligible to participate in the postseason.
But his injury now removes a potential outfield depth option for the remainder of the regular season. Rojas is an elite defender with speed, though he hasn’t been a consistent producer at the plate in the majors. In 71 games in 2025, Rojas hit .224 with a .569 OPS.
“Haven’t thought too much about the depth part of it, because he hasn’t been available all year,” said interim manager Don Mattingly. “We have some guys with experience in center field. But I feel bad for the kid, obviously. He’s had a rough year, as far as how everything went down, and now this. But as far as our depth, I think we’re pretty well covered.”
Rookie Justin Crawford is the Phillies’ primary center fielder this season, though he often sits against left-handed starters, including Monday in Toronto against Patrick Corbin. Brandon Marsh can slide to center, and switch-hitter Steward Berroa is another center field option on the bench.
Mattingly also pointed to Dylan Carlson as another depth center field option in triple-A Lehigh Valley. The Phillies signed Carlson in May after he was released by the Iowa Cubs, Chicago’s triple-A affiliate. Carlson has slashed .161/.261/.297 in 33 minor league games this season.
Carlson has made 12 starts in center field for the IronPigs and made 24 putouts in 25 chances.
Backhus began rehab assignment
Left-handed reliever Kyle Backhus (left elbow inflammation) pitched a scoreless inning for triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday in his first appearance on his rehab assignment. He allowed two hits and struck out two.
It marked Backhus’ first game action since April 25. In 10 appearances for the Phillies this year, the sidearmer posted a 4.66 ERA.
“We got him scheduled out a little bit, we got to get him built back up,” Mattingly said. “I think he missed five, six weeks, so he’s going to have a little bit of time. He threw a couple [live batting practice sessions] before he went out, so that’s his first kind of rehab and competition.”
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Mattingly said Backhus is next scheduled to throw on Friday and then Sunday for Lehigh Valley.
“And then as we do that, then we start adding some one-pluses, coming into an inning,” Mattingly said. “Things like that to make sure he’s ready, possibly back to back in there somewhere, to make sure he’s ready to pitch at this level where we don’t have to protect him once he gets here.”
Extra bases
Following Thursday’s off day, right-hander Andrew Painter (1-7, 6.21 ERA) is scheduled to start the series opener in Milwaukee against Brewers’ right-hander Jacob Misiorowski (7-2, 1.50).
Say this for the Phillies: They are what we thought they were, a playoff contender led by two aces atop the starting rotation and a dominant closer. Pitching coach Caleb Cotham joins "Phillies Extra," The Inquirer's baseball podcast, to discuss the state of the Phillies' pitching, from the success of Cristopher Sanchez and Zack Wheeler to the struggles of Andrew Painter. Watch here.
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