Under The Knife 5/19/25
Breakdown, Go Ahead and Give It To Me
Instead of a normal intro, Chuck Wolf has a video he shared with me discussing some of the biomechanical issues with Roki Sasaki. While not everyone will agree with Wolf’s assessment, I think it’s valuable to get this kind of expert weighing in on a player this important to a contender, so big thanks to him on this:
JOSE ALVARADO, RP PHI (drug suspension)
Jose Alvarado was hit with an 80-game suspension for exogenous testosterone. He’ll be ineligible for the playoffs even after he comes back in mid-August, tossing the Phillies bullpen into a shuffle. Alvarado had been really good the last couple seasons, finally healthy, and was consolidating things in a contract year. (The Phils have a ‘26 option.) Testosterone is extremely easy to detect and that appears to be the case with Alvarado, with easy etiocholanolone glucuronides that are detectable for weeks after injection. Alvarado would have passed his spring test and all tests in the past, so it’s unclear as of now what was going on. There’s no good excuse for this one given the substance and detection.
He’s been really good, with his fastball back up near triple-digits this year and we’ll have to wonder now if this might be the reason. Pitchers normally take steroids for recovery and protein synthesis and with Alvarado’s history of shoulder issues, that’s a reasonable reason. He’s made no statement yet
The pen construction will be a work-in-progress for a bit. Jordan Romano is likely to get even more save chances and the deep pen will need to adjust a bit. Taijuan Walker will come back to the rotation and they’ll need a long man, though Walker could come back. I’m curious if Andrew Painter - who was up to 60 pitches in his last Triple-A outing - will find a rotation slot or if he could be a long man for this team, limiting his innings a bit.
AARON NOLA, SP PHI (sprained ankle)
Aaron Nola has had two bad outings and now there’s at least some explanation. He has a sprained ankle, suffered ahead of his start against the Guardians. Right now, the expectation is that this will be a minimum stay for rest and more treatment, though I am curious why he was allowed to make the start. The Phillies don’t lack for options and Nola was obviously off his game and likely making some biomechanical changes. It’s clear his release point and velocity were off, even from less tools than the Phillies have available in real-time.
The injury itself is simple, though getting Nola back to his good mechanics and stuff seems simpler than it is. With the tools we have now, knowing when he’s there is easier than ever and quantifiable. Getting that feel is tougher and can be more of a challenge than many outside realize. So the simple sprain could end up a bigger challenge mentally than physically.
In his spot, Mick Abel came up to start the last game against the Pirates, but will go back down despite his 9 K’s against Paul Skenes. It’s unclear who will come out of the rotation when Nola is back, but I have to think Taijuan Walker could be a valuable trade chip if they have to shift someone else out of the rotation. If nothing else, Walker could take some innings, which could be very valuable for several teams come July.
News on Jared Jones, Ronald Acuna, and pitching issues in Boston and KC are all behind the wall. There’s also some key info on Ronald Acuna’s comeback. For five bucks, this velvet rope goes away and the bouncer waves you in.