Phillies to start Noah Syndergaard in Game 3 and Ranger Suárez in Game 4 of the World Series

HOUSTON — When the Phillies decided to use Ranger Suárez out of the bullpen in the first game of the World Series, they knew it may cause them to shuffle their pitching plans later in the series.

Sure enough, Suárez won’t pitch again until Game 4.

The series is tied at one game apiece after the Phillies lost, 5-2, to the Houston Astros on Saturday night. After the game, manager Rob Thomson announced that Noah Syndergaard will start Game 3 Monday night at Citizens Bank Park. Suárez will start the following night.

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“We figure for Game 4 he can at least give us, we can extend him out a little bit more than we could if he was pitching Game 3,” Thomson said.

Without Suárez, the Phillies may not have pulled out Friday night’s series opener. The lefty threw 11 pitches in what substituted for a between-starts bullpen session and recorded two key outs against the Astros’ big left-handed hitters: Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker.

“That’s Ranger,” third baseman Alec Bohm said. “Pretty impressive to be able to go from starting, to come out of the bullpen, to go and start and do all that. To him he’s just grabbing a ball, stepping on the mound, and throwing it.”

The Phillies were going to have to use Syndergaard — and a relay team of relievers — in one of the next two games. Instead of doing it in Game 4, they’ll move it up one night. Syndergaard threw 78 pitches in an Oct. 1 start in Washington but has thrown a total of 68 pitches over three postseason appearances, including one start.

But Syndergaard has appeared in the World Series before. He got the start in Game 3 in 2015 for the New York Mets and allowed three runs in six innings of a 9-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

The Phillies acquired Syndergaard in a deadline trade with the Los Angeles Angels. He posted a 4.12 ERA in 10 appearances (nine starts) for the Phillies while continuing to adapt to not throwing as hard as he did before Tommy John surgery in 2020.

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Syndergaard started Game 4 of the divisional round and allowed one run in three innings against the Atlanta Braves.

The Phillies likely will have similar expectations Monday night, specifically that he can get through the Astros lineup once before turning things over to the bullpen.

“We’ve got all the faith in the world in him to go out there,” Bryce Harper said. “He’s been in that position, he’s been in that spot, and we’re excited that he can go out there and throw it.”