Philadelphia Phillies Activate All-Star Left-Handed Pitcher from Injured List

The Philadelphia Phillies get back another one of their All-Star pitchers in advance of Saturday’s game with Kansas City.

May 15, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) throws a pitch against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. / Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies announced on Saturday that they activated pitcher Ranger Suárez from the 15-day injured list and optioned pitcher Tyler Gilbert to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

The Phillies optioned Gilbert to the minors after Friday’s game in advance of activating Suarez.

Suárez is listed as the probable pitcher for Saturday’s game against the Kansas City Royals. He’ll face Kansas City starter Brady Singer.

He returns after making 20 starts this season with a 10-5 record and a 2.87 ERA in 119.1 innings. He has 116 strikeouts and 27 walks. The Phillies are 14-6 when Suárez starts.

He last pitched a four-inning simulated game last Saturday, tossing 57 pitches at Citizens Bank Park. He has been on the injured list with lower back soreness.

Suárez earned his first All-Star Game nod this year, but he did not play. He earned that spot with the best start of his career.

He was one of eight Phillies selected, including Bryce Harper, Alec Bohm, Trea Turner, Zack Wheeler, Matt Strahm, Jeff Hoffman and Cristopher Sánchez.

After his first 10 starts he was 9-0 with a 1.36 ERA. He was the first pitcher in MLB with a 9-0 start and an ERA that low in 58 years.

His ERA after 10 starts was also the lowest for a Phillies starter since Grover Cleveland Alexander.

Before that, Suárez won each of his first eight starts, which per OptaStats made him the fourth pitcher in MLB history since 1901 to have a WHIP of 0.72 or less in their first eight starts, all of which were wins.

Gilbert, a left-hander, threw two innings of relief in Friday’s game, so he would have been unavailable for Saturday’s game. It was his first appearance with Philadelphia.

The Phillies selected Gilbert in the sixth round of the 2015 MLB Draft and traded him to the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020.

He eventually made his MLB debut with Arizona in 2021 and has a total of 29 big-league appearances with a 2-7 record and a 4.32 ERA.