Rafael Marchan

This week's Phillies mailbag looks at Joe Girardi's future, September call-ups, pitching, and the status of the organ at Citizens Bank Park

Phillies prospect Rafael Marchan has been pulled from Double-A Reading's lineup as the trade deadline approaches.

The Phillies placed reserves Matt Joyce and Andrew Knapp on the injured list, re-summoning catcher Rafael Marchan, and giving Matt Vierling his first look at the major leagues.

The Phillies announced on Thursday that they have placed catcher J.T. Realmuto on the COVID-19-related Injured List.

The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Toronto Blue Jays in both games of their double header. Zach Eflin threw seven strong innings and struck out nine in game one, resulting in a 7-0 win. Bryce Harper hit a monster home-run to highlight the scoring. In game two, the Phils went with a bullpen game and somehow won?! Shocking. Rafael Marchán, who never hit a home-run in his entire professional career, had hit a three-run bomb to tie the game up at 5-5. When down 7-5, Harper came up clutch with double knocking into two runs. Alec Bohm finished the job to take the lead. Hector Neris recorded the save, but not without allowing two men on with two outs.

The Phillies injury woes are piling up, leading to a big hole in their offense and in their pitching rotation.