Two Philadelphia Phillies pitchers will take a big step in returning to Citizens Bank Park.
Nick Nelson (hamstring) is scheduled to begin his rehab assignment Wednesday at Double-A Reading where he’s expected to throw about 55 pitches or three innings.
More importantly, Ranger Suarez is set to begin his rehab assignment Thursday at Reading.
Phillies manager Rob Thomson said that he’s hoping for Suarez to throw three or four rehab games before returning to Philadelphia.
“For me, I’d like to get him to 90 or 100 (pitches) so that he can come back and have a regular start,” Thomson said.
Under this schedule, Suarez would likely rejoin the Phillies in mid-May though it could be pushed to May 20 or beyond.
Suarez’s return would be a major lift for the Phillies’ starting staff and it would also shift Matt Strahm back to the bullpen.
Strahm has been very effective with a 3.00 ERA and 27 strikeouts.
When Suarez does come back, Thomson said “everything is on the table” regarding the rotation.
It’s possible that the Phillies could go with a six-man rotation for a while.
It all depends on how quickly – and how effective – Suarez can be when he returns to the rotation.
Just having Suarez back will be terrific. We all saw how valuable he was in the postseason in a variety of roles.
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