Phillies Are Confident Ranger Suarez Can Deliver Another Signature Moment

With their season on the line, Ranger Suarez is looking to play hero for the Philadelphia Phillies again.

Sep 5, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) celebrates with teammates against the Miami Marlins after the second inning at loanDepot Park / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies are staring down their mortality once again.

After an ugly Game 3 where every fear heading into the playoffs was realized, this team has to string together two wins to avoid another early elimination and keep their World Series dream alive.

Perhaps it's fitting that Ranger Suarez will be on the mound to keep the Phillies breathing.

October is where he catapulted into Philadelphia stardom, recording the final out of the 2022 National League Championship Series, pitching a shutout in the World Series a week later, and then closing out the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS last year that put his ERA in the playoffs at a historic low.

Suarez has been spectacular in these moments, and he'll need to do it again.

Because of that, Philadelphia is confident the left-hander can come through and deliver another patented postseason gem.

"All the confidence in the world in him. Obviously, we've got to win. We expect the best out of him tomorrow," Bryce Harper said per Paul Casella of MLB.com, something Nick Castellanos doubled down on by saying, "All the confidence in the world."

But Suarez hasn't been that version of himself lately.

After he was firmly in the mix for the NL Cy Young Award earlier in the year, he had a rough stretch post All-Star break with a 5.65 ERA across his eight starts that saw him spend time on the injured list.

He insists he's fully healthy now, something manager Rob Thomson echoed by saying the rising star's velocity and command are back to where they were before he got hurt.

Suarez knows the situation he's in, and is fully ready to deliver.

"It doesn't matter, the situation is that I'm going to pitch tomorrow -- if it's to clinch the series or if it's [needing] to win the game. I think the best thing that I could focus on is just being my best self and giving a hundred percent of myself ... What happens in September stays in September. It's time to turn the page. I just forget about it. I'm not thinking about it too much. We're in October now, so it's a different atmosphere. A different vibe," he said.

If anyone can back up what he's saying, it's Suarez.

In nine playoff appearances and seven starts, he has a 1.62 ERA where he's held opposing lineups to a .180 batting average.

He'll need that type of performance if he's going to shut down an ultraconfident New York Mets team who finished the regular season with the fifth-best slugging percentage and fifth-most RBI against left-handed pitchers.

The Phillies need to perform their best if they want to force a winner-take-all Game 5 back at Citizens Bank Park, and that will start with Suarez on the mound.