Philadelphia Phillies fans worried closer Jose Alvarado could be out of action long-term: "Should have known he was too good to be true"

Philadelphia Phillies closer Jose Alvarado felt discomfort while warming up this week. He is dealing with inflammation in his throwing elbow, landing him on the 15-day IL.

Alvarado has already gone and had an MRI done. He will meet with a doctor to evaluate the results and see where to go from there. This isn't great for the hard-throwing lefty who has been on a tear this season.

Alvarado has been Philadelphia's best relief arm. In 14 games, he has a 1.88 ERA in 14.1 innings pitched. He also has 24 strikeouts and a 0.70 WHIP. The 27-year old is on pace to have one of his best seasons as a professional this year.

The injury has Philadelphia manager Rob Thompson worried. This isn't a good sign, as managers tend to keep quiet in expressing any concern this early into an injury.

Philadelphia Phillies fans are concerned that Jose Alvarado will miss significant time. Anytime a pitcher has an MRI, the first thing anybody thinks of is Tommy John surgery.

Alvarado's 15-game IL stint is retroactive to Monday. The team has called up reliever Andrew Bellatti to replace the injured southpaw.

Philadelphia Phillies need Jose Alvarado healthy

Hopefully, Jose Alvarado is just dealing with elbow inflammation and nothing more. The Philadelphia Phillies need him in the bullpen if they want to turn things around and climb up the division.

Heading into Wednesday, Philadelphia holds a 17-19 record, good enough for third place in the National League East. They are a half-game behind the Miami Marlins and eight games behind the red-hot Atlanta Braves.

While more than a handful of games behind the division leaders, the Phillies are starting to piece it together. They just got back their captain Bryce Harper back in the lineup.

With Harper back in the lineup, this team should move a bit differently. Harper is a huge piece of their offense. When he's healthy, he does nothing but produce at the plate.

As Harper has missed a month of the regular season, expect him to make up for lost time. It wouldn't be surprising if he goes on a tear this month, being the best hitter in all of baseball.

About the author

Jared "Bloomy" Bloom is a journalist covering Major League Baseball at Sportskeeda and a former college baseball pitcher from Illinois, who just graduated with a Master's degree in Sport Psychology.

A writer with over 3 years of experience, Jared is consistently more concerned with quality than quantity, thoroughly checking multiple sources of information, and prides himself in being knowledgeable not just about MLB, but the game of baseball in general. He loves breaking down plays and game-changing moments, as well as looking closer into players' statistics.

Jared is a die-hard Chicago White Sox fan, and one of his earliest memories is seeing his great-grandfather, a huge Sox fan, in his rocking chair watching a game. Jared started playing from the age of 5 with his grandfather coaching him early on.

Jared loved Tim Lincecum for his quirky delivery and looked up to him as a role model when playing. His current favorite is Phillies star Bryce Harper, an exciting player who doesn't let injuries hold him back. Jared's favorite sports moment is Mark Buehrle's opening day between-the-legs glove flip to first base in 2010.

When he is not watching or writing about baseball, Jared can be found racing BMX at his local Rockford BMX track or coaching his local youth travel baseball team.

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