The Phillies placed Corey Knebel closer on Tuesday’s COVID-related injury list, a day after Knebel was unavailable in their 5-4 comeback win due to flu-like symptoms that manager Joe Girardi described.
Knebel, who wasn’t in the bullpen Monday night, was feeling better Tuesday than Monday, Girardi said, and the team still thought he had the flu as of Tuesday afternoon. An initial COVID test didn’t return a positive result, but the Phillies are awaiting the results of a second saliva test that Knebel took Monday.
“He only has the flu, we think,” said Girardi on Tuesday afternoon. “We are waiting for some tests. He’s feeling better today than yesterday but we’ll have to wait for that final test. It’s the saliva test that we need to sort out, going to a lab.”
If that test comes back negative, Knebel would be eligible to return immediately. In his absence Monday, the Phillies turned to left-hander Brad Hand, one of their many assists with finishing experience. Jeurys Familia, Jose Alvarado and Seranthony Dominguez also did the job on points. Hand threw a 1-2-3 ninth inning and looked good doing it, spotting his fastball on the outside corner and throwing his slider for strikes.
If Knebel has to miss more than a few days, Girardi said the Phillies would mix and match closer depending on who’s due. Two lefties — Dom Smith and Brandon Nimmo — batted in the ninth inning on Monday. Had it been three straight righties, the Phils might have used Familia.
Knebel’s place in the Phillies’ active roster is taken by South Jersey native Jeff Singer, who on Tuesday morning got the call he’d been waiting his whole life for: he’d been called up to the big leagues by the team he grew up with .
Singer, who had “40 or 50 or more” family and friends as of Tuesday night, used the word surreal to describe his day.
“Somehow that just surprised me, it’s still very early in the season,” he said. “It hasn’t really occurred to me yet. You know there will be moves throughout the year, but I just didn’t think it would be this early, especially for me. I don’t really know what to say. I have many friends and family here and we are all very excited. It will be a fun experience. Right now I’m just really thinking about the moment.”
The left-hander, who graduated from Holy Cross Academy in Delran before playing at Monmouth and Rutgers-Camden, had served four scoreless innings in two appearances at Triple A this season.
Left-handers Cristopher Sanchez and Bailey Falter are in play to follow Zack Wheeler on Tuesday after what is expected to be an abbreviated start and Hand could be forced to close so there’s no harm in having another left-hander in the pen. Singer is the sixth left-hander on the Phillies’ active roster, along with Hand, Sanchez, Falter, Alvarado and Damon Jones. With Singer replacing a player the Phillies placed on the COVID IL, they can pull him up even though he’s not on the 40-man list.
“I’ve just got to stick to my strengths and take it one moment at a time when I get in there,” he said.
The 28-year-old singer has an interesting story. Never giving up on his dream, he continued to play in the Rancocas Valley men’s baseball league in Burlington County while eking out a living working at an auto dealership in northeast Philly. He did well enough in the Rancocas Valley League to earn a spot with the Camden Riversharks and eventually a minor league deal with the Phillies in 2015.
Singer climbed the minor league ladder with stellar seasons at Class A Lakewood in 2016 and High A Clearwater in 2017. In 2019 he was even better at Double A Reading where he went 7-0 with a 2.34 ERA and 74 in 61⅔ innings scored.
“We think he’ll handle the situation. He’s been with us a few times in spring training, he can give us several innings if we need it,” Girardi said. “It’s a nice story, he’s from here. I’m sure he will top the passing list tonight. Good for him.”
Check out more of Singer’s story here.