The Philadelphia Phillies have been coasting at the top of the NL East over the last few weeks while the New York Mets struggle and Philly continues to thrive. The addition of star closer Jhoan Duran at the trade deadline is a big reason why the Phillies have continued to close out games in clutch situations.On Friday, Duran unfortunately got a little dinged up during the Phillies’ game against the Washington Nationals. The former Minnesota Twins closer took a line drive off of his foot and limped off the field before he was taken off on a cart.
Jhoan Duran had to be taken off the field by a bullpen cart after this comebacker hit his ankle:pic.twitter.com/5FecmH0QVj
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The Phillies were able to close out a 6-2 victory over the Nats to even the series at a game apiece as David Robertson entered the game to finish out the ninth inning. However, all the focus is on Duran and his health moving forward as the Phillies continue to make a push for the postseason.
Hopefully, the X-rays will come back clean on Duran’s foot and the Phillies closer isn’t forced to miss much time. Philadelphia has built a sizable lead over the Mets at the top of the division, but it will find it much tougher to close out some of these tight games if Duran isn’t able to be out there.
This was only Duran’s fifth appearance since being traded to the Phillies, but he has been very efficient in those outings. During that time, Duran has allowed just one hit without an earned run, getting credit for a save in all four instances.
Obviously, that is not the case for the fifth appearance, but the first priority will be getting Duran healthy and ready to go for the postseason, as the Phillies will need him to be at his very best if they want to win a World Series.
Duran is up to 20 saves on the season and is one of the very best closers in baseball, and projects to be for many years to come. This injury should just be a small blip in the radar for him as he continues to get comfortable in his new threads.
