Philadelphia Phillies DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

The Athletic's Matt Gelb reports that with the Philadelphia Phillies calling up right-handed pitching prospect Mick Abel to start on Thursday against the Toronto Blue Jays in the series finale, right-handed veteran Taijuan Walker will move back to the bullpen. The Phillies want to experiment with Walker as a one-inning reliever despite the fact that he's started eight of the 10 games he's appeared in this year. The 32-year-old veteran got off to a nice start for the Phillies in 2025 in a starting role at the back end of the rotation as an injury replacement, but he's allowed seven earned runs on 13 hits (one homer) while walking three and striking out eight in nine innings in his last two starts against the Rockies and Brewers. Despite his decent numbers, Walker has failed to complete five innings in half of his eight starts this year. He'll lose most of his limited fantasy upside with the move back to the bullpen in Philly.

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (elbow) is out of the lineup again for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers, but The Athletic's Matt Gelb reports that Harper expects to return for Tuesday's series finale in Toronto against the Blue Jays after a scheduled day off for the team on Monday. Harper hasn't played since being hit by a pitch on his elbow last Tuesday against the Atlanta Braves, but he's feeling much better and should be back early next week. Alec Bohm is playing first base again on Sunday and is hitting third, while Edmundo Sosa is at third base and batting sixth against Brewer left-hander Jose Quintana, who is making his first start off the injured list. Bohm has hit just .154 with a soler home run in 13 at-bats against Quintana, while Sosa is hitting .333 with two RBI in his nine career at-bats against the veteran southpaw.

Philadelphia Phillies right-handed pitching prospect Mick Abel is expected to earn the call from Triple-A and start Thursday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays. As a result, Taijuan Walker will shift to the bullpen. When Aaron Nola (ankle) hit the 15-day injured list, the Phillies promoted Abel to make a spot start but expected Walker to operate as the full-time replacement. During his first career outing in the majors, Abel looked quite comfortable, tossing six shutout innings with five hits and nine punchouts against the Pittsburgh Pirates. However, Walker has allowed nine earned runs over his last 12 innings and will return to a relief role. Given his impressive MLB debut, fantasy managers in standard formats should consider adding Abel as he could have a path to remain in the rotation until Nola returns.

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (elbow) threw a ball and swung a bat on Saturday, according to Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic. He has been sidelined since last Tuesday but appears to be trending in the right direction. Not only did he participate in some baseball activities today, but manager Rob Thomson also said the superstar "generally feels better." Furthermore, his X-rays came back negative, and he's expected to avoid a stint on the injured list. It's unclear if Harper will make it back into the lineup this weekend, but he should return to action relatively soon. The Phillies have a day off Monday before taking the field Tuesday in Toronto.

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (elbow) remains out of the starting nine on Saturday when they continue a series against the Milwaukee Brewers. Harper exited Tuesday's game after taking a pitch on his elbow. He has yet to return to the starting lineup but did receive negative X-rays on his elbow, which suggests the injury is not overly serious. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status leading up to their game on Sunday. This afternoon, Alec Bohm will cover first base and will bat in the four-hole. This opens the hot corner for Edmundo Sosa, who will bat in the nine-hole. The Phillies are worth stacking in DFS this afternoon as the Brewers will rely on a bullpen game. Right-handed pitcher Chad Patrick is slated to receive the bulk of the workload.