Realmuto solid in return from IL: 'I felt great'

PITTSBURGH -- The next week for the Phillies will be crucial as the July 30 Trade Deadline approaches. But on Saturday, the team got a huge addition without making an acquisition, as J.T. Realmuto was reinstated from the 10-day injured list.

Realmuto, who had been on the IL since June 10, underwent right knee meniscectomy surgery on June 12. Before he went to the IL, Realmuto slashed .261/.309/.411 with a .720 OPS in 51 games for the Phillies this season, and defensively he ranked second among all catchers in average pop time to second base per Statcast at 1.86 seconds.

Realmuto batted fifth and caught Saturday against the Pirates in a 4-1 loss at PNC Park. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and a single, and he tested his knee running full sprint from first to third on a double by Nick Castellanos in the second inning. He also threw out Ke'Bryan Hayes in the bottom of that inning.

"I couldn't have wished anything better for how my body felt," Realmuto said of his first game back. "I felt great."

Phillies manager Rob Thomson said it’s likely that Realmuto will get a day or two off more than he normally would at full strength at least for the next week or two, but it won’t be long until he’s back to his regular workload.

“We’re going to be careful with him,” Thomson said.

In a corresponding move, the Phillies optioned Rafael Marchán, who caught 17 games while Realmuto was recovering from his surgery. He impressed the Phillies, hitting .294 with an .894 OPS in 51 at-bats, including three home runs and four doubles.

The team opted to keep Garrett Stubbs, who has had three seasons of experience with the Phils’ big league pitching staff as the backup to Realmuto, in order to get Marchán more game time.

“He played great. He showed us everything we needed to see from him,” Thomson said of Marchán. “He’s a big leaguer, but he needs to play. He needs to be ready to play every day in case something happens here. We just thought that was the smartest thing to do.”

Realmuto is not the only addition from within the Phillies the club will welcome in the coming days. Thomson also said that Ranger Suárez and Zack Wheeler -- key starting pitchers who had been day-to-day with back issues -- will start Monday and Tuesday in Minnesota, respectively.