Injured Robertson (calf) not on Phillies' NLDS roster
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ATLANTA -- David Robertson leapt in the air Saturday as he celebrated Bryce Harper¡¯s home run in Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series in St. Louis.
It cost him a spot on the NL Division Series roster.
Robertson strained his right calf as he jumped in the Phillies¡¯ bullpen. He recently received a PRP injection in Philadelphia. It is a blow to the Phils, who have leaned on Robertson as one of their top late-inning relievers since they acquired him before the Aug. 2 Trade Deadline. He was 1-3 with a 2.70 ERA in 22 appearances since the trade. He threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts in Game 1 against St. Louis.
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¡°He¡¯s devastated,¡± Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. ¡°He really wanted to pitch in the series. He knows how big a part he is to this club, and he's very disappointed. Trust me, he's going to work and do everything he can to get back as soon as he can.
¡°Whether he¡¯s available for the next round, we don¡¯t know.¡±
Right-hander Nick Nelson replaced Robertson on the roster. Outfielder Dalton Guthrie replaced infielder/outfielder Nick Maton on the roster.
So how will the Phillies handle the loss of Robertson?
¡°We've got [Connor] Brogdon and [Andrew] Bellatti, we've added Nick Nelson to the roster,¡± Thomson said. ¡°We have Brad Hand back. He hasn't seen much action lately. But somebody of that group, somebody's going to step up or a couple of them for sure.¡±
Noah Syndergaard is a potential option to start Game 4. But Thomson did not rule out the possibility that he could be deployed as a reliever.
¡°I liked his stuff out of the ¡®pen,¡± Thomson said. ¡°It ticked up. I¡¯ve said many times before ¨C he¡¯s going to throw strikes. The moment's not going to get the best of him. So I have confidence in doing something like that.¡±
Guthrie replaced Maton because Guthrie bats right-handed and the Braves have only two left-handers in the bullpen. He also has more experience in the outfield. It would not be a surprise to see him enter the game as a late-inning replacement in right field, if the Phillies have a lead.
Here is the 26-man roster:
Pitchers (13): Left-handers Jos¨¦ Alvarado, Bailey Falter, Brad Hand and Ranger Su¨¢rez. Right-handers Andrew Bellatti, Connor Brogdon, Seranthony Dom¨ªnguez, Zach Eflin, Kyle Gibson, Nick Nelson, Aaron Nola, Noah Syndergaard and Zack Wheeler
Catchers (2): J.T. Realmuto and Garrett Stubbs
Infielders (5): Alec Bohm, Rhys Hoskins, Jean Segura, Edmundo Sosa and Bryson Stott
Outfielders (6): Nick Castellanos, Dalton Guthrie, Bryce Harper, Brandon Marsh, Kyle Schwarber and Matt Vierling