The Phillies waited a while to announce a decision on who would start their Monday night game in Washington, but in the end, they announced they would go with an opener – lefty Tim Mayza. It was Mayza who got the call before when the team wanted to go with an opener and he will start in Washington with newly recalled Alan Rangel set to follow him.
Meanwhile, the bullpen will have Kyle Backhus back in action after he was activated from the IL. To make room on the roster for the two additions, pitcher Max Lazar was optioned back to Lehigh Valley and pitcher Bryse Wilson was designated for assignment.
Backhus spent nearly two months on the IL with left elbow inflammation. He pitched 4.2 innings of one-run ball in the minors and struck out seven hitters on a rehab assignment. Rangel has been pitching primarily out of the starting rotation with Lehigh Valley, but the team has used an opener in three of his 14 scheduled starts this season. He posted a 3-4 record and 3.99 ERA with the IronPigs. Rangel was up with the Phils earlier this season and made one three-inning relief appearance and gave up three hits with no walks and five strikeouts. He did allow one run, which put his ERA at 3.00 for this season.
Rangel made his MLB debut last season and made five relief outings covering 11 innings with 10 hits, six walks, and eight strikeouts with a 2.45 ERA. His career ERA in the majors is 2.57.
Lazar and Wilson joined the Phillies when Andrew Painter and Tanner Banks were sent to Lehigh Valley. Lazar has been up and down with Philadelphia and since 2024 has made 50 relief appearances in the majors with a 4.73 ERA. Wilson has pitched in parts of every season since 2018 with Atlanta, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, the White Sox and now, the Phillies. His one outing in Philadelphia this season was a scoreless two inning outing against the Mets last Thursday.
Wilson was out of options, so the Phillies had to DFA him and have 10 days to either trade him, release him, or put him through waivers. Any team that would claim him would have to place him on their major league roster. If he clears waivers, he can either accept an assignment back to Lehigh Valley or declare himself a free agent.
Minor League Transactions
- Outfielder Cade Fergus was released. Fergus, 25, had played eight games with Lehigh Valley and 21 with Reading this season. He batted .200 (5-25) with the IronPigs and hit just .106 (7-66) in his time with Reading. The Phillies had drafted Fergus in the 13th round of the 2022 Draft out of George Washington College.
- Also at Reading, Caleb Ricketts was placed on the Development List. The 26-year-old catcher was with Lehigh Valley earlier in the season and hit just .143 in 43 games. With Reading he has played eight games with three home runs, seven RBI, and a .257/.278/.571/.849 slash line.
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