The Philadelphia Phillies have now lost three out of four after opening up the second half with a crushing loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in a game where they took a 7-3 lead into the 7th inning.
The Phillies still have the best record in baseball at 62-35, but after a few weeks of treading water at one of the most important positions on the field, they could be getting one of their best players back this weekend.
NBC Sports Philadelphia shared that catcher J.T. Realmuto is “very close” and could be making a return for the Phillies this weekend after being out since June 9th with a knee injury.
The Phillies have been going through it a bit in the injury department of late with starters Zack Wheeler and Ranger Suarez both missing time as well, while also dodging lengthy absences from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper after each provided an injury scare just before the All-Star break but only missed about a week each.
Realmuto is hitting .261 so far this season with seven home runs and 20 RBIs in 51 games and would provide an added boost to a lineup suffering from having to play Garrett Stubbs nearly every day in his absence.
Stubbs doesn’t have a hit in his last 22 at-bats and is sporting just a .491 OPS on the year, while Rafael Marchan has been a surprise at the plate in Realmuto’s absence with an .894 OPS in 51 at-bats.
It’ll be interesting to see what the Phillies do with the backup catcher situation once Realmuto returns, as Marchan has significantly outperformed Stubbs, yet Stubbs is a key locker room guy for this ballclub.
