Phillies' J.T. Realmuto to Have Surgery on Knee Injury; No Long-Term Concerns

Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto will undergo surgery Friday to "clean up" the meniscus in his right knee, according to manager Gabe Kapler, who said there are no long-term concerns.

Realmuto has not played since a 10-1 loss to Cleveland on Sept. 22 and had an MRI done on his knee Monday night.

"It would pop, just a little discomfort," Realmuto told reporters about when he noticed the injury against Cleveland. "It wasn't really painful [Sunday], but I woke up [Monday] and it was a little more tender, a little more pain. Definitely sore."

The 28-year-old continued:

"To be honest with you, I've had a little issue in the back of my knee for the last two or three years. I don't know if this is just an instance where it finally flared up enough to feel it a little bit more, but I felt fresher this September than I've ever felt in any years in the past. I don't think it has anything to do with the workload. I just think it was just a bad luck kind of thing."

The 79-78 Phillies were officially eliminated from postseason contention with a 4-1 loss to the Washington Nationals on Tuesday. The Phillies haven't made the playoffs since 2011.

Realmuto hinted Monday that Philadelphia's win-loss record would influence how he and the team handled his injury. "We're going to be smart about it," he said. "Because we all know where we stand right now in the standings. I don't want to push it and risk hurting myself for next year or anything like that."

This season was Realmuto's first in Philadelphia after the Miami Marlins traded him in a blockbuster in February. The two-time All-Star appeared in 145 games with 130 starts at catcher. At the plate, Realmuto hit .275/.328/.493 with 25 home runs and 83 RBI—both career-high marks.

Realmuto is set for arbitration next year but won't become a free agent until 2021.