Ranger Suarez One of the Best Left Handed Starters In the League
After the World Series last year, we knew Ranger Suarez was better than maybe we had even thought. While Aaron Nola, and even Zack Wheeler to an extent, struggled a bit vs the Astros, Ranger still looked great. That was the case for the whole playoffs. He got off to a slow start this year because of an injury at the World Baseball Classic. When he finally had his first start, it was clear he was behind. All he needed was a bit of time though. Since the calendar turned to June, there are few starters period that have pitched better than Ranger Suarez. And if you look back at his whole time as a starter, there are not many lefties better than him.
His month of June was incredible. One of the best ever by a Phillies pitcher. In the same category as what Cliff Lee did in 2011. Just 4 earned runs allowed across 5 starts. The latest display was allowing just 1 run across 7.1 inning vs the Cubs Tuesday night.
Ranger Suárez in June🔥🔥🔥
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) June 28, 2023
1.08 ERA
5 starts
4 ER
33.1 IP
33 Ks
1 HR
Third best ERA in baseball this month pic.twitter.com/O3HQHyLWd2
But it is not just June. Look back to when he moved into the starting rotation midway through the 2021 season. How many lefty starters have looked better than him in that time? That list is not long. And don’t just take my word for it. Jayson Stark echoed these same thoughts when he joined The Best Show Ever this week.
This is what he had to say about Ranger Suarez.
“I would be hard pressed to think of 5 left handers in the sport you would rather have on the mound than this guy. The last 3 season the only left handers in baseball with lower ERAs than him are Carlos Rodon, Max Fried, and Shane McClanahan. Then it is Ranger and Kershaw tied at 2.80. That is pretty incredible.
He is back to October Ranger. Maybe even 2021 Ranger. It is incredible to see. He throws 5 pitches. Right now he dots them wherever he wants. There is no hard contact on anything. The hitters don’t seem like they can recognize what is coming. They chase the sinker, the changeup, and the curveball over and over again. He has changed the way you would look at this whole team.”
Ranger has been nothing short of incredible ever since he joined the rotation. Outside a small stretch at the beginning of this year, and one last year after another slow start, he has been lights out. To the point that even Jayson Stark mentioned he may consider using Ranger Suarez in any potential game 1 in the playoffs. We know the moment is not too big for him. And as we continue to see this season, he has as good of stuff as anyone in the league right now. Especially from a lefty.
You can listen to the full conversation with Jayson Stark below:
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Ranking The Phillies Biggest Needs At The Trade Deadline
1) Another Bat Who Can Play Everyday At Either First or in Left Field
This is kind of in limbo until we know if Bryce Harper is really a viable option at First base. If he can play first, then Kyle Schwarber can thankfully move to DH. That would open up Left Field to add another bat. But if Harper can’t make the switch in the middle of this season, then it would need to be First Base where they make the move.
Regardless, the lineup could use a boost. The name everyone loves to mention is Paul Goldschmidt. And if they could pull that off, it would be amazing. Even if that meant Harper had to keep DHing for now and Schwarber had to stay in Left. If you can add a bat like that, you do it. How realistic that move remains to be seen though. The Phillies should absolutely be in on him if the Cardinals try to move him. But it’s not something you can bank on happening.
(Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)
The lineup needs more pop though. The Phillies are regularly playing guys who are not everyday players. Whether it be Edmundo Sosas, Kody Clemens, etc. Both have had moments where they looked good, but overall have not been productive enough. Which is what a bench bat does. They need someone who can be productive enough to play every day though for that 9th spot in the lineup. Some like the idea of playing Christian Pache in Left. And while that would be great for their defense, I have not seen enough from his bat to trust he can be an everyday guy yet. The best thing for Pache may be platooning in Center, and replacing Schwarber in Left late in games for defense.
The Leftfield options are not as pretty as the idea of trading for Paul Goldschmidt. Wil Myers is a free agent, but that is for a reason. Joc Pederson would be intriguing, but the Giants are playing well enough they may not be sellers. Jurickson Profar is barely productive at Coors Field. So if the Phillies look to go that way, they may need to get creative and acquire someone not being talked about much right now.
2) Bullpen Help
The Phillies have a very good backend of the bullpen. Jose Alvarado, Gregory Soto, and Craig Kimbrel have all been tremendous for them. Seranthony Dominguez is hurt, but after a slow start, he was pitching well too before he went on the IL.
It is when you go outside those 4 that you can get into trouble. Yunior Marte and Jeff Hoffman have been hard to trust of late. Both Connor Brogdon and Andrew Bellatii are currently in the minors after struggling at this level to start the season. Also, they may have broken Matt Strahm by using him too much early in the season as a starter.
They need more guys they can trust in the middle innings. Aroldis Chapman, who is having a bounce-back season, would have made sense, but he was traded to the Rangers. The White Sox could move Kendall Graveman for the right price. Joe Kelly is another name to watch. And of course, there are a lot of middle-tier relief pitchers we haven’t actually heard of that could be decent targets as well.
(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
They don’t need to make a splash here. But they definitely need some help when it comes to the middle of their bullpen. I also think they need to bring Brogdon and Bellatti back up because we know they have stuff that plays at this level, and they deserve another chance.
3) A 5th Starter
The hope is that this will be Andrew Painter. And if he can come up and live up to even half of the hype this season, that would fix the issue. But whatever the plan is, the Phillies need another starter. Christopher Sanchez has given them two decent starts in a row out of that 5th spot. And for now, he makes for a decent band-aid. But we have seen enough of him to know he is not a long-term solution. They will eventually need to have someone more reliable there.
Obviously, the first thing everyone thinks about is Shohei Ohtani. He would even kill two birds with one stone by giving them that extra bat too. That just seems unlikely. It would take a lot to get him and runs the risk that he leaves in the off-season, and you gave it all up for nothing.
If the Phillies add a starter, it will be a more realistic option. Like Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez technically has a few years left on his deal. But he has an opt-out after this season. Given that he is having a career season, with a 2.13 ERA in 11 starts, he will likely exercise that option for a big payday this offseason. And that makes him pretty much a rental, and a prime trade candidate with the Tigers not likely to compete. Rodriguez has been a dependable MLB starter for years now. Even if there is a regression coming, his overall career numbers suggest he would be a good 5th starter for the Phillies.
(Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
Again, ideally, this gets filled by young of their young arms down in the minors. But the Phillies may want someone with more experience. And even if they do bring Painter up eventually, it could still serve them well to have another starter.
