Suarez pitches 3 scoreless innings in first rehab start originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
ATLANTA — A night after Taijuan Walker took his second turn in the Phillies’ rotation, Ranger Suarez began a rehab assignment with Single A Clearwater.
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Suarez threw 33 pitches (24 strikes) over three scoreless innings, allowed one hit and struck out four. His first two fastballs of the night were 92.6 and 92.5 mph and he sat mostly 90-92, right in line with his career norms.
Suarez suffered a back injury early in spring training and was limited to just five innings in Grapefruit League games with four more on the back-fields at Carpenter Complex. The Phillies have been careful with him because he’s had a history of back injuries, but it’s a promising sign that the velocity is already where it should be.
Suarez will likely need at least two more rehab starts, perhaps three. He basically needs a full spring training. It helps that Walker has pitched 10⅔ scoreless innings in his place. All Walker needs to do during this stretch is keep the Phillies in games and he’s done that and more.
The Phillies’ eyes will remain on the Threshers Friday night when top prospect Andrew Painter pitches in a minor-league game for the first time since September 2022. Painter is expected to throw two innings and/or 35 pitches. He will start once a week and likely stick to the 35-pitch range for a little while not just because the Phillies want to play it safe with him but also because they want to preserve as many innings as possible for him to help them in the majors in the second half.
While it’s been 2½ years since Painter last pitched in the minors, he did throw 15⅔ innings in the Arizona Fall League, where he excelled, threw in the upper-90s, missed a ton of bats and took home a Pitcher of the Year award.
