Realmuto continues torrid stretch with homer

DENVER -- When the Phillies traded for All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto last offseason, they acquired one of the hottest names on the market. While the acquisition was overshadowed by Philadelphia’s blockbuster signing of Bryce Harper three weeks later, Realmuto represented a rarity in baseball: a catcher who is strong behind the plate, at the plate and on the basepaths.

Realmuto was hitting .231/.317/.308 with a home run through his first 15 games as a Phillie. But over his last three games, including Thursday’s 6-2 loss to the Rockies, he’s raised his OPS by 160 points, going 6-for-13 with two doubles and two homers.

“I think I was trying to do too much at the beginning of the season,” Realmuto said. “I put myself in a little bit of a hole, just being excited, being on a new team. Not really trying to impress everybody, but I wasn’t letting things come to me at the plate. I’m basically just trying to take my right-center approach, which works well for me.”

That approach paid dividends Thursday, when Realmuto lined a homer off Rockies reliever Carlos Estevez that hit the top of the right-field wall and bounced over. The two-run shot vaulted the Phillies back into the game, cutting the deficit at that time to 3-2 after Philadelphia’s lineup had managed only two hits over Rockies starter Kyle Freeland’s six innings.

"He was late, but he got it on the barrel,” Estevez said. “But I missed my spot, too. That's on me. I was surprised that ball went out. It's not like it was a cheap shot, but it went out in a weird way."

Realmuto also shined defensively, throwing out a pair of speedy Rockies. He nabbed David Dahl trying to steal second base in the first inning with a pop time, according to Statcast, of 1.81 seconds (the MLB average for a play at second is 2.01).

The throw to second was fired at 86.1 mph (MLB average in 2018 was 81.9), and Dahl’s sprint speed on the play was 28.9 feet per second (27 is considered average, and 30 elite).

Then in the seventh, Realmuto threw out Raimel Tapia at second with a pop time of 1.84 seconds and an 84.4 mph throw. Tapia’s sprint speed was 28.8 feet per second.

“Anytime you can help your pitcher out like that and help your defense by getting an extra out like that is huge,” Realmuto said. “My pitchers gave me a good chance to get those guys out; [starter Zach Eflin and reliever Victor Arano] got the ball to me quick enough.

“That’s definitely one of my most exciting plays in baseball. I really enjoy that. It’s always fun to do that twice in one game.”

It was a night for the Phillies to forget in Colorado. But it was a night they might remember more fondly if it represents the early stages of a surge from Realmuto at the plate, not to mention a continuation of his prowess behind it.

“It’s amazing. He’s not only the best defensive catcher, but also the best offensive catcher in the league,” Eflin said.

“I think everybody in this clubhouse would say that. ... It’s really special when you can go out on the mound and not really think about anything because you have such a leader behind home plate that knows the game as well as he does.”