Phillies Star Reliever Expected To Return Sunday

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For the first time all season, the Philadelphia Phillies are entering a game above .500 after beating the red-hot Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday.

It was a much-needed win as they found themselves in their home stadium and put balls over the fence, something that has been rare so far this year.

The pitching staff was also great.

Ranger Suarez had his best outing of the season when he threw six scoreless innings, allowing only two hits, and striking out eight batters. The bullpen took things from there as Yunior Marte pitched a shutout inning and Nick Nelson only gave up one run during his two frames.

That is a positive sign.

The Phillies’ bullpen has had issues early on this year, something that was a red flag to fans everywhere based on how this unit has performed in the past.

It was clear they were missing one of their top arms, Orion Kerkering, who was sent to the minors after Spring Training to rehab after being sick with the flu and straining his forearm.

The 23-year-old who has been billed as Philadelphia’s “closer of the future” is expected to make his return on Sunday according to their injuries and moves page on MLB.com.

This would be a major addition.

Kerkering flew through the Phillies’ pipeline in 2023, going from Single-A all the way to the MLB, playing a huge role to close out the season and in the playoffs.

Getting him back will give Philadelphia another lethal arm as they try to lower their 24th-ranked bullpen ERA that sits at 5.24 through 13 games.