Girardi hopes for jolt from Knapp-Eflin battery

As the Phillies gave J.T. Realmuto a $115.5 million contract, they mixed in one gentle request: Under certain circumstances, take a night off.

Less than 10 games into that new five-year deal, those circumstances already are growing clear.

When Zach Eflin starts, Andrew Knapp will be 60 feet, 6 inches away.

While Joe Girardi refused to declare the situation official Saturday, his actions were sufficiently loud. For the second time in as many Eflin starts, the manager rested Realmuto and trusted Knapp in a game against the Braves.

Two-for-two. And counting?

“No, I still want J.T. to catch everybody,” Girardi said from Atlanta. “And I want Knappy to catch everybody, just in case.”

Before the Phillies began a seven-game road trip of some NL East importance, Girardi did some planning. With right-handed Ian Anderson starting Saturday for the Braves, he would rest the right-handed-hitting Realmuto in favor of Knapp, a switch hitter. Realmuto will start Sunday night at 7:05 against left-handed Drew Smyly.

But when Eflin struck out eight in seven innings of a 2-1 victory over Atlanta last week, supported by Knapp’s catching and 411-foot home run, Girardi was reluctant, anyway, to disconnect that battery.

“Well, they seem to work well together,” former catcher said. “And I always found, as a backup guy, a lot of times it was easier to catch one guy, in a sense. If they teamed you up a couple times in a row, you felt like you knew the catcher better.”

The Knapp-Eflin connection is not new. Under Gabe Kapler in one 2019 threegame sample, Eflin pitched nine, seven and nine innings to Knapp.

“I think it goes a long way when a guy trusts his catcher the way Zach trusts me,” Knapp said at that time. “And that didn’t come all at once.”

The Phillies, and John Middleton’s accountant too, are keenly aware that Realmuto is the best catcher in baseball. But Realmuto missed most of spring training with a fractured thumb.

“I don’t think I am in position to catch J.T. five or six games in a row yet,” Girardi said. “But I am in a position where I can catch him four. This is just the way it works best.”

••• In an 8-1 loss to the

Braves Friday, the Phillies battled through a fourth consecutive flat startingpitching performance.

Following losses in games started by Matt Moore and Chase Anderson, and after surviving the Mets in a game when Aaron Nola didn’t see Inning No. 5, Zack Wheeler lasted 4.2 innings, walked and struck out four, and allowed seven hits and three runs.

Chances are he would have pitched longer had Girardi not made a managerial error, forgetting that he was obligated to remove a pitcher upon any second mound visit by any coach or manager in an inning.

“It’s a mistake,” Wheeler said. “Those things happen.”

Wheeler also took an unpredictable early strike zone in stride, though he clearly was not amused by Ronald Acuna’s batter’sbox pose as his fifth-inning home run cleared the fence.

Asked repeatedly for his reaction, Wheeler just shrugged, shrugged some more, and shrugged again. His message was clear. Just the same, the Phillies’ starting pitching began to sag after impressive early starts from Nola, Wheeler and Eflin. That adds stress to any bullpen.

“I think you can get yourself in a little bit of a bind where you have to give people days off,” Girardi said. “Guys aren’t as built up as they will be in June or July, including guys in the bullpen. I think you have to be careful how you manage.”

• • • Adam Haseley was in the starting lineup Saturday despite going 0-for-3 Friday, his average dipping to .236.

One reason could be that Roman Quinn is 1-for-10 for the season.

At some point, those numbers will reveal a centerfield offensive crisis. Not yet, though, Girardi warns.

“I think it’s still way too early,” he said. “I think when you start to get to 50 to 75 at-bats you can start to judge the sample size a little bit. But we’ve seen really good hitters have a rough month, and they bounce back. I think it is way too early to judge them.”

••• Saturday was the 50th anniversary of the first baseball game in Veterans Stadium.

“I just remember it being a fun place to play,” Girardi said. “In those days it was Krukky (John Kruk) and (Darren) Daulton and (Lenny) Dykstra and (Dave) Hollins and all those guys. I mean, they were a good team

“And the bullpen could be a little rough area in those days,” he added, smiling, “in that little cage back in left field.”