It’s been 80 games since Jose Alvarado last jogged out of the bullpen for the Phillies. That was back on May 16 when Alvarado picked up his seventh save of the season with a clean 0.2 of an inning against Pittsburgh. What wasn’t clean was Alvarado, who two days later was suspended 80 games for violating MLB rules on banned substances. After a rehab assignment with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Alvarado is officially a member of the Phillies bullpen.

To make room for the 30-year-old, the Phillies optioned Nolan Hoffman back to Lehigh Valley after he had a somewhat disastrous MLB debut Monday night against the Mariners. To make room on the 40-man roster, Philadelphia designated left-handed reliever Josh Walker (Lehigh Valley) for assignment.

Alvarado was one of a number of pitchers in the mix to get saves for the Phillies back in May. Now, that job belongs squarely to Jhoan Duran, who was acquired from the Minnesota Twins at the trade deadline for pitcher Mick Abel and minor league catcher Eduardo Tait.

Alvarado became the first Phillies player to be suspended for 80 games because of the use of a banned substance. The suspension came when Alvarado tested positive for Exogenous Testosterone, which was attributed to a weight loss drug taken by Alvarado during the offseason but was still in his system when he was tested. The Phillies will not have Alvarado available to pitch in the postseason as part of the penalty.