The Philadelphia Phillies are firing on all cylinders following a series sweep in which just about everything seemed to go right for the NL East leaders. The best news of Wednesday’s 11-2 win over the Seattle Mariners is that José Alvarado was effective in his long-awaited return from an 80-game PED suspension. The big lefty pitched a scoreless inning and should formulate a perfect plan for how the team should deploy him for the final month-plus of the season.

José Alvarado’s playoff ineligibility means the Phillies should use him as much as possible for the rest of the season

Of course, the costly ramification of Alvarado’s suspension is he is ineligible for the postseason. It’s quite unfortunate, but on the flip side, the Phillies now have a well-rested fireballer who can be used in nearly every situation for their bullpen as they hope to clinch the division for the second straight season.

Alvarado was called on to get three outs in the eighth inning in his first appearance back, and he did so on only 14 pitches.

He sat AL MVP candidate Cal Raleigh down on a nasty curveball that showed why he is still one of the game’s most fearsome left-handed relievers. It would be ideal for fans to see Alvarado fan the opposing team’s best hitter in a close postseason game, but that won’t happen. Fortunately for the Phillies, however, they’ll still boast an elite playoff ‘pen led by Jhoan Duran.

By pitching Alvarado more often in games, it allows the Phillies to give effective lefties Matt Strahm and Tanner Banks a day or two off. He’s thrown just 21 innings this season, as compared to Strahm’s 49 2/3 and Banks’ 54 1/3 innings pitched. Alvarado could be deployed as an effective swing-and-miss guy if the Phillies need a big strikeout with runners on base anywhere from the sixth inning and beyond.

Alvarado’s seven saves prior to the suspension still currently rank second on the team, before Duran breaks it. If you think about it, the Duran trade may have never actuallty materialized if it weren’t for Alvarado’s supension. Alvarado could provide the Phillies with another silver lining if they follow this plan to utilize him more often and give their playoff-eligible relievers some needed rest.