March 19, 2025:  Nobody is ready to talk about Taijuan Walker's future with the Phillies.

That’s because nobody knows what’s happening with Ranger Suárez's back.

Walker had pitched well this spring until he allowed six runs in 3 2/3 innings in Wednesday’s 9-7 Grapefruit League loss to the Yankees at BayCare Ballpark. Walker is going to make the Phils’ Opening Day roster, unless he is traded in the next few days, which is unlikely. But the presumption since camp opened last month is, if Walker makes the team, he will be the long man in the Phils’ eight-man bullpen.

But that might change now because Suárez has a stiff back following a four-inning, 60-pitch start at the Carpenter Complex.

“That’s why we haven’t announced anything with the rotation, who’s pitching when and who’s got the home opener,” manager Rob Thomson said. “All that stuff.”
 
Suárez dealt with a back injury last season, which derailed a stellar first half. Thomson said Suárez's back is “not quite as bad” as last year, according to tests.

“The next 24, 48 hours will tell us a lot,” Thomson said.

Asked if this could affect Suárez's ability to pitch the first week of the season, Thomson said: “I don’t know, I don’t know. We’ll know more in the next couple days.” (T Zolecki - MLB.com - March 19, 2025)

April 1, 2012: Suarez signed with the Phillies and scout Jesus Mendez, for $25,000, out of Venezuela.

After signing with the Phils, Suarez spent three seasons in the Venezuelan Summer League. He compiled 102.2 IP with an insane 4 BB to 95 strikeouts.

In 2015, he made his U.S. debut in the GCL, tossing only 27.2 IP but posting a stellar 0.65 ERA with 4 BB and 20 strikeouts.

In 2018, the Baseball America Prospect Handbook rated Suarez as the 11th-best prospect in the Phillies organization. He rose to #9 in the winter before 2019 spring training.

MLB debut (July 26, 2018): Suarez won his big league debut in a 9-4 victory over the Reds at Great American Ball Park. Suarez, the organization's No. 8 prospect, allowed four runs and six hits in five-plus innings. He walked one, struck out three, and allowed two homers.

Ranger committed to play for Venezuela in the 2023 WBC. Suárez will make his spring debut for Team Venezuela in the first of the club’s two exhibition games prior to the tournament. 

Phillies pitching coach Caleb Cotham says, “I couldn’t have more trust in a pitcher.” The reasons? Suárez’s ability to control an opponent’s running game, field his position as well as any pitcher in baseball, and most of all, attack the zone with five pitches.

And don’t forget Suárez’s calm approach. When he closed out the NLCS last season, Cotham estimates Suárez’s heartbeat was probably at 33 beats per minute. (Weaver/Rosenthal - Sep 21, 2023 - The Athletic)

May 3, 2024: Ranger Suárez, PHI, NL Pitcher of the Month

Suárez has, once again, managed to overshadow the bona fide aces he shares a rotation with. Suárez's microscopic 0.63 WHIP in his first six starts led all qualifiers last month; his 1.32 ERA over 41 innings of work ranked second. The 28-year-old has also already recorded a shutout, his first since 2021, a 112-pitch effort against the Rockies on April 16. (SS Chepuru - MLB.com - May 3, 2024)

June 19, 2024: Ranger Suárez recorded the National League-pennant clinching out in 2022. He's started a World Series game. And now, he's off to one of the best starts to a season in Major League history. But his family had never seen any of it in person -- until now. The day Suárez has dreamed -- and talked -- about for years came to fruition when his wife, Joseany Cabello, and two children, Sofia and Dominick, watched him pitch in the big leagues for the first time. They were treated to yet another solid performance from the left-hander, who tossed six innings of one-run ball in the Phillies' 5-2 loss to the Padres at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies' only offense came from a pair of Bryce Harper homers. But the results were all secondary to Suárez.

“It was the first time they’ve seen me [pitch] and I'm just really happy,” Suárez said via team interpreter Diego D'Aniello. “Happy that they're here with me enjoying the game, happy that they're watching what I do and happy that they're enjoying the whole team as well.”

Suárez had made 229 appearances across the Minors and Majors (including the postseason) since 2015. His family could do nothing more than watch on TV (when available) from their home in Pie de Cuesta, Venezuela.

But, they had a much better view of their likely soon-to-be All-Star husband and father from the family section behind home plate. Now, Suárez, Cabello and their two children are living together in Philadelphia through the end of the season. Suárez wasted no time showing them exactly why he's the frontrunner to start next month's All-Star Game for the National League in Arlington -- a trip the entire family will make if (and when) he's selected.

“Hopefully,” Suárez said of making his first All-Star team. “If God gives me that opportunity to go to the All-Star Game, of course I’ll take them with me. It would be really nice to go to that first All-Star Game and have them with me.”

Suárez struck out four and walked zero while lowering his season ERA to 1.75. That’s the lowest mark by any Phillies pitcher through his first 15 starts of a season since 1968 (Woodie Fryman, 1.61). As Suárez walked off the field after the sixth, the always stoic southpaw waved to his family behind home plate. “It's really nice to see your family watching you pitch,” he said.

As remarkable as this season has been for Suárez, nothing has compared to the past week. His family arrived in Philadelphia the same day the Phillies were wrapping up an 11-day, three-city intercontinental road trip in Baltimore.

Suárez rushed home to find his kids -- 6-year-old Sofia and 3-year-old Dominick -- waiting to spend Father's Day with him for the first time.

“I was excited that they got here on that day,” Suárez said. “Since they were born, they've never spent a Father's Day with me, so I was just really excited about it.”

It's been a long time coming for Suárez, who missed the birth of his son due to the COVID pandemic. He was stuck in a Florida hotel at the time, unable to travel back to Venezuela.Travel between the countries is extremely difficult. It's why teammate and fellow Venezuelan pitcher José Alvarado hadn't seen much of his family for years -- until an emotional reunion this past Christmas. Like with Alvarado, the Phillies' organization stepped in to help reunite Suárez with his loved ones.

“I know for myself, coaching in the Minor Leagues, not having my family with me all the time, it hurts,” said Phillies manager Rob Thomson, who has been involved in professional baseball for nearly 40 years. “So I am very happy for him that they're here and their first time getting to see him pitch. I'm really happy for him, because I know he's happy. (P Casella - MLB.com - June 19, 2024)

July 2024: Suarez was selected to participate in the All-Star Game.

TRANSACTIONS

April 1, 2012: Suarez signed with the Phillies and scout Jesus Mendez, for $25,000, out of Venezuela.

Jan 13, 2023:  The Phillies avoided arbitration with Suarez by agreeing to a one-year contract for $2.9 million.

Jan 11, 2024: The Phils agreed to a one-year, $5 million deal with Suarez, avoiding arbitration.

Jan 9, 2025: The Phils agreed to a one-year deal with Ranger, avoiding arbitration. The deal was worth $8.8 million. 

Suarez has a FASTBALL velocity that has risen to 90-96 mph, giving him more options to change speeds and make his match-ups more interesting. His CHANGEUP is described as stellar, averaging in mid 80's and generates a lot of ground balls with fade and sink. away from righthanded hitters He also has a SLIDER that is near average with a 45 grade.

Ranger hides the ball well in his delivery, adding deception that helps his stuff play up.  Suarez doesn't have one wipeout pitch, but he's a smart pitcher who mixes and matches both his stuff and his location. (Spring, 2019)

2018 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball 37.3% of the time, his Sinker 23.1%; Change 20.4%; and Slider 19.1% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 92.9 mph, Sinker 91.4, Changeup 84.7, and Slider 82.4 mph.

2019 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball 23.8% of the time, his Sinker 28.9%; Change 26.8%; and Slider 20.6% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 93.1 mph, Sinker 92.2, Changeup 85.1, and Slider 85.1 mph.

2022 Season Pitch Usage. Avg. Velo: Sinker 28% - 92 mph; Cutter 22.3% - 89.5 mph; Slider 20.5% - 83.4 mph; Fastball 11.5% - 92.3 mph; Change 11% - 85 mph; Curve 6.5% - 85 mph.

Ranger is a successful pitcher at getting soft contact and ground balls. He didn't have the velocity to overpower hitters, so he used finesse to get the ball into play for his defense to handle.

And while he is still a savvy lefty with great control and pitch-ability, Suarez began incorporating his lower half into his delivery in 2017, and he added another 2 or 3 mph, bringing his heater to as high as 96 mph.

Suarez has control of his 3-pitch arsenal. And he understands pitching and how to get hitters out. He reads swings and sets the hitter up to get himself out. He can throw any pitch in any count.

Sept. 25, 2021: Suárez threw a complete-game shutout on 97 pitches.

2021 Season: Ranger Suárez started the season out of the bullpen and was impressive right away, going 20 1/3 innings without giving up a single earned run, across 11 games. He had a 5-3 record and 1.12 ERA when he was moved to the starting rotation at the beginning of August.

Suárez continued to impress in his new role, posting a 3-2 record, 1.51 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 12 starts. He gave up multiple runs in just three of those starts and slowly increased the length of his outings, pitching six or more innings in his final five starts. His best outing came on September 25 against the Pirates, when he gave up just four hits in a complete game shutout, while striking out seven.

The southpaw was a refreshing addition to the rotation late in the season and exceeded expectations overall, coming off of a 2020 season where he pitched in just four innings.  (Bryce Turner - Oct. 26, 2021)

2022 Season: While Suárez’s sample size from October and November was small, there is a lot to suggest that the 27-year-old still has his best baseball ahead of him.

Suárez had an incredible postseason ERA of 1.23, as well as a Walks And Hits Per Inning Pitched (WHIP) of 1.02. However, he has displayed incredible command in different ways since entering the majors for the first time in July 2018.

The left-handed pitcher from Venezuela has pitched well against lefties his entire big-league career. According to Baseball-Reference, Ranger Suárez has only allowed a batting average of .183 against left-handed batters. He also has only allowed 57 hits while earning 83 strikeouts against southpaw batters in his career.

Another important aspect of Suárez’s game is that he was not too reliant on his four-seam fastball in 2022. Baseball Savant recorded Suárez throwing his sinker 40.2 percent of the time, while he only turned to his four-seamer 17.7 percent of the time in 2022. This was the lowest percentage of any year of his career, and a big reason why he could gain command on the mound.

Suárez expanding to a six-pitch arsenal in 2022 — featuring a sinker, changeup, four-seam fastball, cutter, curveball, and a slider — made a huge impact on him reducing his reliance on his fastball.

Expanding from a four-pitch arsenal allowed Suárez to transition from the bullpen to the starting rotation. His desire to expand his game not only made it so Suárez could become a starter in the majors, but it has also allowed him to increase his potential as a ballplayer.  (Travis Williams - Dec. 26, 2022)

2023 Season: Arbitration eligible in ’24, Suarez represents another sticky matter for Phillies management. A winning and generally effective left-handed starter, he wasn’t actually ready to start a game until May 13 this season. He eventually started 22 games but won only 4.

A six-earned-run mess on September 27 against the Pirates pushed his ERA for the season over 4.00. (Rick Soisson | Oct 27, 2023)

April 17, 2024: Suarez pitched his second career complete-game shutout.

April 29, 2024: Suarez joined the club of only seven players in Phillies history to pitch 30+ consecutive scoreless innings or more. His name will now be alongside Cliff Lee (who did it twice), Ken Heintzelman, Larry Andersen, and Hall of Famers Grover Cleveland Alexander (twice), Steve Carlton, and Robin Roberts. 

Suárez is the first Phillies pitcher since Robin Roberts in 1952 to win at least nine consecutive starts. His ERA is the third-lowest by a Phillies pitcher in the first 10 starts of his season since earned runs became an official stat in the National League. Only Grover Alexander had better starts to a Phillies season — and those happened in 1915 and 1916. 

He is the first pitcher since Juan Marichal in 1966 to go 9-0 or better with a sub-1.50 ERA in his first 10 starts.

“What he’s doing, I’ve never seen it before, especially on the same team,” Aaron Nola said. “The way he commands all his pitches to both sides of the plate. He always has an out when guys are on base. He always has a pitch.”

Everyone has exhausted ways to describe Suárez’s calm dominance. But Nola and Zack Wheeler have a different perspective on it. They can appreciate how clinical Suárez is. He struck out 10 batters Tuesday and registered strikeouts on five different types of pitches — four sinkers, two four-seam fastballs, two changeups, one curveball and one slider. 

“So,” Nola said, “he’s got five strikeout pitches. When he’s getting 0-1, 0-2, 1-2 — which he has a lot this year — that makes the difference. He’s not walking guys. You can’t sit on anything. You can’t sit on a location. You can’t sit on a pitch because he’s got all those pitches for strikeouts.”

He’s pitching.

“The separation between his fastball and his changeup and curveball is pretty big,” Nola said. “So that’s why you see guys take his fastball and see guys super early on his changeup. Super early on his curveball. The separation is not small; they can’t get fooled and still hit it decent. They’re too out in front. They either miss it or hit a weak groundball.”

It is a style that feels sustainable for six months. Suárez is in better shape and he is repeating his delivery more often. That means better command. Obviously, he won’t have a 1.36 ERA the whole season.

Nola smiled.

“He might,” Nola said. “He might. He definitely has a chance, in my opinion. I just think if he keeps throwing strikes with the quality pitches that he’s throwing, he’s going to have a heck of a year. Something that doesn’t happen often. If he stays healthy, he’s going to throw a lot of innings. He’s going to do something pretty cool.” (Gelb - May 22, 2024 - The Athletic)

2024 Season: In 27 games this season, Suárez had a 12-8 record with a 3.46 ERA and 145 strikeouts. Suárez has a 3.36 FIP and a 84 ERA- this season. Since returning from the injured list, Suárez has had a 5.74 ERA and a 4.73 FIP in seven starts. Opposing batters have a .313/.378/.516 line against Suárez in that span. 

Ranger controls the running game with a quick pickoff move. And, he's a lefthander with quick feet.

In 2022, Suarez won the Fielding Bible Award as a pitcher for the Phillies. Suárez racked up nine DRS this season, three more than any other pitcher in the Majors.

And opposing baserunners also didn't steal a single base with Suárez on the mound.

May 10-28, 2018: Suarez was on the DL with a right hamstring injury.

May 1-25, 2019: Ranger was on the IL.

June 30-Aug 30, 2020: Ranger was on the Covid-19 IL.

June 30-July 16, 2022: Ranger was on the IL with lower back spasms.

March 22, 2023: The Phillies canceled Suárez’s bullpen session at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater because of left elbow inflammation. Suárez has not pitched since March 8, when he felt tenderness in his forearm while pitching for Venezuela in a World Baseball Classic exhibition. He recently resumed throwing, and he seemed to be on track to pitch the first week of the season. Now, Philadelphia is considering other options.

March 23, 2023: An MRI exam revealed no structural damage, but they have shut him down for throwing for a few days. Suárez has not pitched since he felt tenderness in his left forearm while pitching for Venezuela in a World Baseball Classic exhibition on March 8. 

March 29-May 13, 2023: Ranger started the season on the IL with tenderness in left forearm.

Aug 18, 2023: Suárez was scheduled to start at the Little League Classic, but he will miss the assignment due to a bout of right hamstring soreness, which cropped up this week in Toronto. 

Aug 16-Sept 1, 2023: Ranger was on the IL with right hammy strain. He suffered a Grade 1 hamstring strain while working out on the artificial turf in Toronto.

July 19, 2024: Suárez, who has had low back spasms, threw from 120 feet and had a flat-ground session.  Thomson also said that Suárez threw twice over the All-Star break. 

July 27-Aug 24, 2024: The Phillies placed National League Cy Young contender Ranger Suarez on the 15-day injured list because of lower back soreness.

Aug 5, 2024: Suárez threw a bullpen session in Los Angeles. He is likely to throw a couple more times and possibly make a rehab start before he rejoins the rotation.

Suárez’s back injury is his second back issue in the past few weeks. He skipped his first National League All-Star appearance in Texas last month because of spasms on his right side. After rejoining the rotation on July 22 in Minnesota, Suárez said he felt fine afterward. But he woke up on July 26 feeling “tightness,” as Thomson described it. Suárez tried to push through the soreness during his bullpen session that day, but couldn’t. "We’re going to be super cautious and give him a little rest,” Thomson said. “Over the course of a full season, guys typically need some time off. I think he’ll come out of this and he’ll be stronger coming down the stretch.” 

Aug 14, 2024: Suárez threw a two-inning simulated game on Aug. 13. Manager Rob Thomson said he “looked good,” with his fastball reaching 90-91 mph and he was able to command his curveball and changeup. Suárez will pitch another simulated game on Aug. 18. 

March 19, 2025: Suárez has a stiff back following a four-inning, 60-pitch start at the Carpenter Complex on Saturday.

 Suárez dealt with a back injury last season, which derailed a stellar first half. Thomson said Suárez's back is “not quite as bad” as last year, according to tests.

“The next 24, 48 hours will tell us a lot,” Thomson said. Asked if this could affect Suárez's ability to pitch the first week of the season, Thomson said: “I don’t know, I don’t know. We’ll know more in the next couple days.”

March 21, 2025:  Suárez is scheduled to play catch on March 22. He is feeling better, but it’s unclear when he will pitch next because of back stiffness or if he will be ready to make his first scheduled start of the season.

March 24, 2025: Suárez began the season on the injured list, due to a back injury.

March 26, 2025:  Suárez played catch on March 22 and 23, but there is not enough time to get him ready to start the season. The Phillies believe he can rejoin the rotation sometime before the end of April.