Rob Thomson and the Phillies are in shuffle mode as J.T. Realmuto returns from injury

PITTSBURGH — The Phillies reinstated J.T. Realmuto off the 10-day injured list and recalled Yunior Marte on Saturday afternoon. To make room on the active roster, they sent two players to triple-A: right-handed pitcher Michael Mercado, and backup catcher Rafael Marchán.

Manager Rob Thomson said that the decision to send Mercado and Marchán down was a matter of playing time. Realmuto could get a rest day here or there and won’t be back to his full workload for a couple of weeks, but it still would be hard for Marchán to find regular starts and at-bats.

“He played great,” Thomson said of Marchán. “He showed us everything we needed to see from him. He’s a big leaguer. But he needs to play. He needs to be ready to play every day in case something happens here.

“So we just thought that was the smartest thing to do. [Garrett Stubbs] has done a great job as well. He’s been here for a couple of years, and we know how important he is to the clubhouse. But Marchán needs to play, and that’s the number one factor.”

Mercado faces a similar predicament. The Phillies would like him to pitch in a multi-inning relief role and don’t see many chances for him to do that at the big-league level. So they will get their reps in triple-A.

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“The original plan was to transition Mercado back to the bullpen so we can monitor his innings and make sure that he’s a piece for us in that role,” Thomson said. “So he’ll go back to Lehigh and get back to the bullpen. Two innings here, a couple of days off, give him an inning, couple of days off, two innings. And we can’t guarantee that [here].”

While doing so, Mercado will need to work on lowering his walk rate. He walked a career-high 14.8% of batters over his 11 ⅔ innings in the big leagues and struck out hitters at the same rate (14.8%). He was used out of the bullpen initially, and then moved to the rotation when Spencer Turnbull was placed on the injured list.

He posted a 9.26 ERA over his four appearances (including two starts).

Marchán made a good impression in his latest big league stint. His slugging percentage jumped from .346 across 56 plate appearances in 2021 to .549 in 2024. He hit .294/.345/.549 with a .894 OPS and three home runs.

These are small sample sizes, of course, but that is the reality of being Realmuto’s backup. Thomson thinks the regular at-bats have helped the 25-year-old catcher.

“He looked comfortable before, but, I mean, he looked really comfortable now,” Thomson said of Marchán. “I think he’s been up and down so much, but the overriding factor is that he got more playing time. He got a chance to get consistent at-bats [and] consistent playing time. I think it helped him too to keep him on certain pitchers. He didn’t have to think about five guys; he just thought about two or three. Helped with the game planning.”

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Needless to say, the Phillies are thrilled to have Realmuto back. They have gone 17-15 since June 11, the day he was placed on the injured list following knee surgery.

“He is a very important guy,” Thomson said. “But the last couple of years, it’s always been the next man up, somebody steps up, and I really expect that of the guys that we’ve got. I really do.”

Starting pitchers Ranger Suárez and Zack Wheeler dealt with back issues heading into the break but have been cleared to pitch in the upcoming series against Minnesota. Suárez will pitch Monday, and Wheeler will pitch Tuesday.

“Ranger’s bullpen was outstanding,” Thomson said. “I actually went out there and watched it. He’s good to go.”

Garrett Stubbs was hit on the hand with a pitch in the first inning of Friday night’s game but played through it. He was checked out Saturday, and Thomson said the X-rays came back clean, adding that Stubbs hit in the cage and on the field on Saturday.

Taijuan Walker (right index finger inflammation) threw a successful “up-and-down simulation” on Saturday in Pittsburgh, according to Thomson. He could throw batting practice as soon as Tuesday in Minnesota, but that timing is not set in stone.