Taijuan Walker will begin a minor league assignment Wednesday in Reading
Walker is in play to rejoin the rotation after the Phillies return home from their West Coast trip, which ends Aug. 11.
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Taijuan Walker has taken the next step toward his return to the Phillies rotation and is set to begin a rehab assignment this week.
Walker will head to double-A Reading on Wednesday, where he’s scheduled to throw three innings. The following Tuesday, the Phillies are hoping to stretch him to five or six innings with triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Walker was placed on the injured list with right-index finger inflammation in June after developing what manager Rob Thomson called a “hot spot” on the finger. The inflammation impacted Walker’s ability to throw his signature splitter.
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Walker faced live hitters on Saturday in pregame batting practice, and Thomson said his splitter looked “excellent.”
“He feels great,” Thomson said. “Says he feels like his body’s moving freely, arm’s moving freely. Better than he has all year. Probably better than he was most of the time last year, too. So it’s really a good sign. I’m really, really happy with his progress.”
Ranger Suárez’s recent back injury did not cause the Phillies to accelerate Walker’s rehab, Thomson said. Kolby Allard, who made his Phillies debut on Sunday against Cleveland, is scheduled to take Suárez’s next scheduled start.
Thomson said Walker has been responding well to a program that involves throwing weighted balls to help with his fastball velocity. Depending on how he pitches in Lehigh Valley, Walker could be ready to return for the Phillies’ next homestand, starting on Aug. 13 with a series against the Marlins.
Extra bases
The Phillies signed Penn righty Ryan Dromboski to an undrafted free-agent deal on Monday. Dromboski, a native of Columbus, N.J., was the Ivy League pitcher of the year in 2023 and finished his Penn career with a 5.24 ERA across 139 innings. He is the third local college player, all pitchers, to sign with the Phillies this year, joining St. Joseph’s Luke Gabrysh (15th-round selection) and Penn’s Eli Trop (16th round). ... Aaron Nola (11-4, 3.44 ERA) is scheduled to start against the Yankees’ Gerrit Cole (3-2, 5.40 ERA) on Tuesday.