One of the skills that made Carlos Ruiz so valuable to the Phillies, especially late in close games, was his consistency falling and blocking to avoid wild spots. Brad Lidge in particular, with that move, would not have been so effective here without Ruiz behind the plate.
The current catcher of the Phillies – he’s pretty good at it, too.
As big as a game as one in the Phillies’ thrilling 3-2 win Wednesday night, JT Realmuto’s snag of a Brandon Workman curveball was in the dirt on a 2-2 score with runners-up on the corners and two outs in the ninth inning. Preventing the binding run scored and the winning run went up to second base. A few places later, the game was over.
(That Realmuto game, once made so randomly, hits the market at 1:19 from the video above.)
Workman was everywhere again, he found his way in and out of danger. For the second straight game, an excellent defensive game was needed for him to escape with the save. On Sunday, it was the game on the plate, the Roman Quinn — after Scott Kingery — after Andrew Knapp relay that gave Tom Emanski a single tear.
Workman has set the first record based on all three of his appearances as Phillie and in seven of 10 outings this season. He has 22 base runners in 10 innings. All three of his outings as Phillie have been shaky, but he does deserve some credit for staying unformed and confident in his hook. He will live and die with the pitch, which is superficially clear from just three innings of work here.
“Worker, when he was so great last year, he threw 71 innings and there were 29 hits, but there were also 45 walks and 104 strikeouts,” Phillies manager Joe Girardi said after his 1,000th career win. “When you run people, you have to knock people out, and he has that ability. That’s what gets him through innings.”
Workman knocked out Eric Thames and Victor Robles to end the game, but Realmuto deserves at least half a saving for making that game at the second-to-last pitch.
It was an example of literally saving a run with defense. If that ball goes under the glove of Realmuto, like many catchers, then the game is level and there is a runner on the second. It was a game-saving game in a game that the Phillies needed. It helped them to a series of wins ahead of Thursday’s final against Max Scherzer. In addition, it retains another deflationary loss. It was their third straight win after five straight losses. It felt like a potential turning point.
This series against the Nationals has highlighted the overall value of Realmuto, not that anyone is asking these days. He can win games with his bat like he did Tuesday with a three-run homer in the Phillies’ 6-2 win. He can make a difference with his speed as the fastest base running catcher in the major leagues. And he influences games every night with his reception and control of the running game.
Full player. The kind you do not let go at 29 years old.
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