Phillies Placing Catcher on Injury List With Lower Back Ailment

A lower back injury is going to sideline a Philadelphia Phillies catcher for the foreseeable future.

May 26, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Philadelphia Phillies hat and glove on the bench against the Atlanta Braves in the seventh inning at Truist Park. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Things have not been going well for the Philadelphia Phillies in the early going of the 2026 MLB regular season.

Their offense has been making history, but not the kind any team wants to be associated with, struggling mightily to consistently generate offense. Unfortunately, things aren’t going to get any better with a key contributor heading to the sidelines.

As originally reported by Matt Gelb of The Athletic and confirmed by Todd Zolecki of MLB.com on X, catcher J.T. Realmuto is heading to the injured list with a lower back ailment.

The veteran backstop has been dealing with some lower back tightness throughout the campaign and missed a few games as a result to rest. After being back in the lineup for a few games, it was determined that rest would be the best course of action, and he was placed on the 15-day IL.

J.T. Realmuto heading to the injured list

Mar 29, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto (10) at bat against the Texas Rangers at Citizens Bank Park. | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Realmuto went 0-for-4 against the Chicago Cubs on April 21 in his last start before the team decided to hold him out. Taking his place on the active roster will be Garrett Stubbs, who was recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

He will split time with Rafael Marchan behind the plate until Realmuto is healthy enough to return to the lineup.

Thus far this season, Realmuto has produced a .259/.344/.352 slash line in 61 plate appearances. It is still very early, but this is the fourth consecutive year that his slugging percentage is heading in the wrong direction and dropping compared to the previous campaign.

He has recorded two doubles and one home run thus far this season. While the numbers are underwhelming, he has been one of the most productive hitters in the Phillies’ lineup thus far in 2026.

Can confirm J.T. Realmuto is going on the IL as @MattGelb reported.

— Todd Zolecki (@ToddZolecki) April 22, 2026

That exemplifies just how bad things have been at the plate for Philadelphia in the early going. Realmuto has been battling back ailments and decreasing production, but is still providing more than most of his teammates at the plate.

Realmuto is the seventh Phillies player to land on the injured list. Starting pitcher Zack Wheeler and right-handed pitcher Max Lazar have yet to appear in an MLB game this season.

However, left-handed relief pitcher Jose Alvardo, right-handed relievers Zach Pop and Jonathan Bowlan and closer Jhoan Duran have all been added to the injured list in the first few weeks of the season.

This has been a brutal turn of events for a Philadelphia squad that has received zero good fortune thus far in the season.