Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Ranger Suarez looks like an ace

Ranger Suarez has had some tough luck for the Philadelphia Phillies in the second half. He’s only 1-0 through five starts. What he has managed to do in those five trips to the mound, however, is leaving fans breathless.

After wrapping up the first half with 16 starts, 84 innings, a 7-5 record, and a 4.07 ERA, it looked like Suarez had begun to turn things around from his slow start to the season. Maybe those doubts about him that some of us had (raises hand) were a rush to judgment.

The least experienced of the Phillies starters to open the season may have just needed some warming up. Suarez looks fully ready and capable of helping the Phillies in their late-season charge.

Phillies lefty Ranger Suarez is having an ace-like second half

Suarez has a 1.19 ERA in his five second-half starts. The 30.1 innings of sample size defeat the doubters. It’s large enough to see a trend.

We can expand this further and point to a very specific point in his season when things turned around. After a loss against the Atlanta Braves on June 29, Suarez landed on the IL. He returned rather quickly, making his final start of the first-half on July 16 against the Miami Marlins. Five shutout innings and a victory later, he set the course for a much different result.

Despite all of the no-decisions in his last five games, the Phillies have actually won all but his most recent start against the Cincinnati Reds. The walk-off loss last Thursday was a 1-0 poke against Philadelphia.

There was a point earlier this season when it could be debated which of the three starters behind Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler was the weakest link. Suarez, Zach Eflin, and Kyle Gibson were about even in many areas. Suarez’s past success in the bullpen had me thinking it was him who should get removed from the starting rotation. What a fool!

Now with no choice but to stick with him in the rotation, the Phillies are the benefactors of it. If the playoffs started today, he’d be the easy choice to join the rotation even if it’s just three guys. The postseason doesn’t begin until October, though. But at the rate he’s going, it’s hard to imagine Gibson or Noah Syndergaard knocking him off the mantle.