Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto will undergo a procedure to clean up the meniscus in his right knee, manager Gabe Kapler announced Wednesday (Twitter link via Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia). With the Phillies formally eliminated from postseason contention, he’ll go under the knife now rather than play out the season’s final series. There are no long-term concerns associated with the operation, and Realmuto is expected to be ready to go for Spring Training.
The surgery means that Realmuto’s season will come to a close with a strong .275/.328/.493 batting line in his first year with the Phils. Realmuto slugged 25 homers, 36 doubles and three triples over the course of 538 plate appearances while serving as something of an iron man behind the dish; no one in baseball has caught more than the 1139 innings that Realmuto did in 2019. The volume of that workload makes his output at the plate all the more impressive and heightens the value of his superlative defense. Realmuto threw out a ridiculous 47 percent of base thieves in 2019 and ranked among the best in the league in terms of pitch blocking and pitch framing.
Put simply, Realmuto is arguably the game’s best catcher. Phillies general manager Matt Klentak recently lauded Realmuto’s overall contributions and was rather candid in suggesting that an extension for the 28-year-old All-Star will be one of the organization’s priorities over the winter. The Phils control Realmuto through the 2020 season, at present, and he’ll command a sizable raise on this year’s $5.9MM salary in arbitration over the winter. Realmuto has voiced his own interest in signing a long-term pact to remain with the Phillies, so it shouldn’t be a surprise if the two sides ultimately hammer out a deal between now and Opening Day 2020.
Can’t they clean out the meniscus that is Gabe Kapler while they are at it?
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Typical Negadelphia comment. Likely one of the culprits who threw the dollar hot dogs on the field. And Hatfield hot dogs are trash, but come on!
I’m not a Kapler hater, but I have to agree with Applesauce, Kapler has to go. I was optimistic at his hiring and didn’t immediately jump to conclusions or slap a DOA notice on him as most have.
However, it’s obvious that he’s in way over his head, has lost the club house, and his analytical approach has come back to bite him more than help him. Additionally, his laid back “LA attitude” is like oil and water when mixing with Philadelphia. It’s just not a good fit and time to move on.
None of that is obvious.
I like those dollar dogs! I’ll pass on Kap.
ditto
Realmuto was the best player on this team with Nola right behind him. Might as well get the surgery done. Ironic that Harper was supposed to be the stud of this team.
Harper is a stud, so that makes 3 studs on the Phils. Unfortunately, you need more than 3 studs to compete. Simple as that. Astros have 8. Dodgers have 8. Big difference between those clubs and the Phils’ club.
Don’t know why everyone hates Kapler so much. The team just wasn’t good enough. No depth. He didn’t build the team and I actually find it impressive his team was in contention heading into the final two weeks of the season considering the hand he was dealt. He did a very good job the last two months navigating his way through a bullpen full of guys who have no business on a big league roster. He pushed all of the right buttons. I’m not saying he’s the best in the game, but changing him does nothing more than appease the fans. As long as Macphail and Klentak are running the show it doesn’t matter who the manager is. Don’t fool yourself into thinking he’s the problem.
i think Kapler by far was not the biggest issue this year, but ive also seen enough the past few years to know he is not the man for the job.
You’ve got about 7 more days before that surgery takes place.
And takes about 7 days to rehab it…
as long as he’s healthy enough to sign an extention this offseason
Wish they allowed medically supervised use of HGH. No reason these greats shouldn’t get a chance at making a full recovery with the best medicine available.
Hope Realmuto comes back strong because the Phillies could use some good luck going into next year.
Called cortisone shot it’s contains steroids, but it’s medical use
Need a viable backup catcher so that JTR doesn’t have to be out there for 1100 innings. Can anyone be surprised that something happened with his knee, considering the tremendous amount of pressure put on it?
i hope Grullon sticks. otherwise there are cheap options available as long as they are willing to move on from Knapp.
The Phillies played JTR in too many games this year. They desperately need a strong backup for 2020.
Catchers and knee issues, no matter how minor they are hyped in the press, are not good long term combinations…..
As I said on another thread earlier today, signing JT to a long term deal is a must, as is signing a better backup catcher. Knapp is awful.