Philadelphia Phillies DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto (groin) took a foul ball off his groin in the ninth inning in Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the hosting Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre and was removed from the game early. Realmuto was down on the ground for a few minutes before walking into the clubhouse under a trainer's assistance. Before departing prematurely, the veteran backstop went 1-for-3 at the plate with a single and a strikeout. It's likely that the 34-year-old will be held out of Thursday's series finale in Toronto, but Realmuto could return to action this weekend for a series in Pittsburgh against the Pirates. Any time missed by Realmuto would push Rafael Marchan into a starting role behind the plate. Realmuto came into Wednesday's contest hitting just .225 with five home runs, 22 RBI, 18 runs and four steals in his 187 at-bats, although his xBA of .252 points to positive regression going forward.

Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Aaron Nola (ankle, side) was scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Thursday, but instead he'll be shut down for a day or two, according to manager Rob Thomson. Nola felt some stiffness in his right side, although Thomson said it's "very mild" and the team is being overly cautious. The 32-year-old veteran is currently on the 15-day injured list and is recovering from a sprained right ankle, but now he's dealing with another ailment. It doesn't sound like Nola will be pushed back too far in his rehab, but it's something else to worry about for a normally solid fantasy pitcher that was really struggling before going on the shelf. Nola should be stashed in an IL spot in all fantasy leagues, but so far he's gone 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA and 1.51 WHIP with 52 strikeouts and 16 walks in 49 2/3 frames over his nine starts.

The Philadelphia Phillies announced on Wednesday that they placed right-hander Zack Wheeler on the paternity list and recalled right-handed pitching prospect Mick Abel from Triple-A Lehigh Valley in a corresponding move. With Wheeler away from the team for a few days, Abel will come up from the minors to make a spot start in Toronto against the Blue Jays. We knew that Wheeler wouldn't be available for the series in Canada, but he should return to the team for a very favorable matchup this weekend in Pittsburgh against the last-place Pirates. Fantasy managers will definitely want to keep Wheeler back into their starting lineups for that one. The Pirates offense is fourth-worst in baseball with a .641 OPS, while Wheeler remains a fantasy ace with an ERA under 3.00 and 94 K's in 76 innings over his 12 starts.

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (elbow) looked just fine in Tuesday's 8-3 win over the Blue Jays after missing the last week of games due to being hit by a pitch in the elbow. Batting third, Harper went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and two walks. The 32-year-old went back-to-back with Trea Turner against Bowden Francis in the first inning, lofting a splitter just over the right-field wall for his ninth long ball of the season. Harper has been a bit disappointing offensively this season by his standards but is still slashing a respectable .268/.380/.463 with 34 RBI and eight stolen bases in 245 plate appearances. The good news is that he picked things up in May after a slow March and April, so he has been trending in the right direction.

Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner had another solid game at the plate in Tuesday's 8-3 win over the Blue Jays. Turner went 3-for-5 with a single, a solo home run, and a two-run HR. The 31-year-old got things going in the first inning, taking Bowden Francis to the opposite field in the first inning to score two. He later turned on an eighth-inning Erik Swanson offering, depositing it into the left-field bullpen. Turner has pretty much been exactly what fantasy managers have come to expect this season, slashing .305/.363/.452 with seven HR, 28 RBI, and 16 stolen bases in 262 plate appearances.