The Phillies placed Ranger Suarez on the 15-day injured list Saturday with a right hamstring strain. The move is backdated to August 16.
Suarez was supposed to start Sunday night in Williamsport against the Nationals but Zack Wheeler will take the turn instead.
Suarez suffered the injury in Toronto earlier in the week. This is his second stint on the IL in 2023. An elbow strain prevented him from making any starts in spring training, and his regular-season debut came on May 13 in the Phillies’ 39th game.
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The lefty is 2-6 with a 3.88 ERA in 17 starts. He showed rust in May, excelled in June with just four runs in 33 1/3 innings, struggled in July and had been solid in three August starts.
The Phillies recalled reliever Andrew Bellatti from Triple A to take Suarez’ place on the active roster. They still have five starters in Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Michael Lorenzen, Cristopher Sanchez and Taijuan Walker, who was skipped in the rotation this week. Walker’s recent dip in velocity and performance was a bit of a concern, and the Phillies’ off-days Monday and Thursday allowed them to keep the long game in mind.
Sanchez and Wheeler round out the Nationals series. The Phillies are then home for nine games, beginning with three big ones against the Giants team directly behind them for the top NL wild-card spot. Nola is in line to start Monday on normal rest. Walker could start Game 2 on Tuesday if everything checks out in a bullpen session this weekend. Lorenzen would be on regular rest Wednesday for the series finale.
The Phils are off each of the next four Thursdays.