Rob Thomson dishes advice for Phillies bullpen after Jose Alvarado suspension

With the Philadelphia Phillies embarking on a seven-game road trip in the wake of reliever Jose Alvarado's 80-game suspension, manager Rob Thomson gave some simple advice to his bullpen.

"Just do your thing and try not to do more than who you are," Thomson said. "I said to the group that we have enough stuff in our pen. We do. Just don't try to do too much. Throw strikes. Just be yourselves and we'll get it done."

Philadelphia's bullpen has indeed gotten it done so far this season, and part of that comes thanks in part to a Phillies rotation that has provided plenty of length this season. Entering Monday, the Phillies' bullpen has logged 149.2 innings, tied for the second-fewest number of innings in all of baseball.

Alvarado has recorded 20.0 of those frames, posting a 2.70 ERA and striking out 25. He also has seven saves, the most on the Phillies. However, the 29-year-old left-hander was suspended 80 games without pay for violating Major League Baseball's drug policy after testing positive for exogenous testosterone, which MLB has determined to be a performance-enhancing substance.

Without Alvarado, Thomson said the Phillies will have to shift around some relievers' roles, especially in high-leverage situations. However, Thomson also wants to make sure he puts the right reliever in the right spot for not only the best chances of success, but also to ensure the bullpen stays as injury-free as possible.

"I think the number one goal is to find another guy or two that can go into leverage," Thomson said. "I think managing the leverage guys is pretty easy because I have certain rules and I stick with them, and I'm not going to move away from that because it's all about keeping them healthy."

Thomson shrugged off any talk that the suspension might cause a negative ripple effect for Philadelphia in the late innings.

"My message to the team yesterday was that, in years past, we've had plenty of injuries and guys have stepped up," Thomson said. "They're going to do it again. I truly believe that."

All quotations obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.