The Notes: Realmuto, Mercado

The team sits with a 26-12 record after splitting a two-game series with the Toronto Blue Jays. They play a Miami Marlins organization that has already given up after the trade of Luis Arráez. They’re blowing it up, something Dave Dombrowski is familiar with.

The Phillies vibes seem great on the other hand, they’re carrying a top-five offense and a top-two pitching staff. It can’t get much better than that.

JT Realmuto’s Defense

Realmuto has looked like a solid offensive player this season. In an era that puts more pressure on catchers to be able to hit, Realmuto’s 112 wRC+ ranks 12th among catchers but he’s been on a quiet hot streak with a .926 OPS over his last 13 games.

You take those numbers from your catcher, especially one who’s 33 years old. However, his defense has been much worse this season.

Realmuto’s framing has taken a major step back over the past few seasons. He ranked as a very good framer in 2021 with 4 framing runs above average. His 2022 season saw him slip to about league average before a massive plummet last season.

What he could still hang his hat on was that he was great at blocking balls in the dirt. You could argue this is even more valuable for a team like the Phillies who feature arms like Seranthony Domínguez, Gregory Soto, Yunior Marté, and others who are known to have wild command.

This year, he went from one of the game’s best in 2023 to one of the worst. He has the second-worst Blocks Above Average in baseball behind Connor Wong of the Red Sox with negative-six.

Some of this could be because the season is only about five weeks old and a lot of low sample size stuff still needs to be worked out. Johan Rojas has negative-two Defensive Runs Saved and we don’t have to question his defense because we know that’s going to turn around.

However, I think it’s also fair to say that his legs should be as fresh as they will be all season in April so it’s hard to say if his defense will get better over time.

Michael Mercado is a Starter

The Phillies AAA team has been sort of a mess with the rotation. Kolby Allard has a 10.71 ERA and is no longer in the rotation, Max Castillo has an ERA that starts with eight, and Mick Abel doesn’t look ready yet.

The Braves and Dodgers have used eight starters already and it’s been well documented about the rise in pitcher injuries. The Phillies have been lucky to see Spencer Turnbull turn into a massive success but you’re more likely than not going to need more than him to get through a season.

Mercado carries the stuff that will get major league hitters out. His fastball sits with an upper-90s fastball that grades out well from stuff+ models and has a decent cutter and curveball.

He’s pitched to a 0.44 ERA with 18 strikeouts but 10 walks in 20.2 innings pitched. It’s hard to imagine he’s anything more than a spot starter that goes through the order twice but that can be valuable throughout a season and beyond.

He carries all three minor league options and the Phillies would probably get a fourth if they requested it down the line. That’s four years’ worth of potentially a decent SP6 or 7 that can go up or down.