Philadelphia Phillies star catcher J.T. Realmuto was placed on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday and will be out for about a month as he recovers from surgery to remove cartilage in his right knee.
Realmuto is scheduled to undergo a right knee meniscectomy on Wednesday. Manager Rob Thomson mentioned that the timing of the July 15-18 All-Star break might help reduce the number of games Realmuto will miss.
“J.T.’s going to work hard, I know that,” Thomson said before a three-game series against the Red Sox. Despite dealing with knee soreness throughout the season, Realmuto has been a consistent performer for the National League-leading Phillies, hitting .261 with seven home runs and 20 RBIs in 51 games. He missed three consecutive games last month due to right knee soreness.
At 33, Realmuto joins other Phillies on the IL, including two-time All-Star shortstop Trea Turner (hamstring) and outfielder Brandon Marsh (hamstring).
In a corresponding move on Tuesday, the Phillies recalled catcher Rafael Marchan from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Garrett Stubbs started at catcher for Tuesday night’s game, going 1-for-4. Thomson indicated that Stubbs and Marchan will share catching duties.
Marchan, 25, had a brief major league stint with the Phillies earlier this season but did not play in a game. He has batted .233 with two homers and eight RBIs in 13 games split between Class A Clearwater and Lehigh Valley.
The Phillies (46-20) lead the second-place Atlanta Braves (35-29) by 10 games in the NL East after Tuesday’s 4-1 win over the Boston Red Sox. They are just half a game behind the New York Yankees (48-21) at the top of the major league standings.
