In a surprise move, the Phillies placed Vince Velasquez on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a right forearm strain.
The injury could open the door for Nick Pivetta's return to the majors. Pivetta has found a groove at Triple A Lehigh Valley, pitching to a 2.84 ERA over his last three starts with 25 strikeouts in 19 innings and a .156 opponents' batting average.
Velasquez, fighting to keep his rotation spot, has struggled of late. He had a 1.99 ERA in his first four starts but allowed 18 base runners, four home runs and eight runs in 7⅔ innings over his last two starts. The same old issues popped back up - poor fastball command, a deliberate pace, and in his most recent start a game-calling conflict with catcher J.T. Realmuto.
In exactly 75 starts as a Phillie, Velasquez has a 4.57 ERA and the highest home run rate (1.4 per nine innings) among any Phillies pitcher who's ever made that many starts.
The Phillies called up left-handed reliever Austin Davis to replace Velasquez on the active roster. Pivetta last pitched on May 9 so he wouldn't be on regular rest until Tuesday. Velasquez had been slated to start for the Phillies Sunday in Kansas City. That nod will now go to Cole Irvin, who will be making his big-league debut.
Another option to replace Velasquez in the rotation is left-hander Cole Irvin, who continues to get outs at Triple A despite a low rate of strikeouts. He has a 2.25 ERA in six starts this season and is 16-4 with a 2.51 ERA in 197 innings since the start of 2018. Irvin is scheduled to pitch tonight.
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In another Phillies-related roster move, the Giants claimed outfielder Aaron Altherr off waivers. They've held interest in him for a little while and have one of the worst outfield situations in the majors. Altherr should have more of a role there than he did here.
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