# Luzardo injury jolts Phillies' October plans

> Jesús Luzardo's shoulder injury knocks him out for the regular season and leaves the Phillies scrambling before October.
- Title: Luzardo injury jolts Phillies' October plans · PhillyVoice
- Summary: Jesús Luzardo's shoulder injury knocks him out for the regular season and leaves the Phillies scrambling before October. The Phillies can still reach…
- Keywords: phillies, mlb, playoffs, injuries, pitching, news, local, Luzardo, injury, jolts, Phillies', October
- Source: PhillyVoice — https://phillyvoice.com/jes%C3%BAs-luzardo-injured-list-pitch-regular-season-injured-shoulder-rotation-schedule-playoff-race-news-analysis
- Published: 2026-09-15T21:07:54.079+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: phillies, mlb, playoffs, injuries, pitching, news, local
## Luzardo was peaking
Jesús Luzardo looked like Philadelphia's hottest arm after opening September with a complete game shutout against first-place Atlanta, dropping his ERA to 2.87.

> He appeared to be peaking at the exact right time
## Then the shoulder barked
The Phillies scratched him from his next scheduled start because of shoulder inflammation, hoping one missed outing would calm things down.
## The rest did not work
Luzardo still was not feeling right, so Philadelphia put him on the injured list and ruled him out through the regular season finale.

> He was not feeling as well as they expected today.
## Holman gets the spot
Journeyman pitcher Grant Holman is coming up from Triple-A to take Luzardo's roster spot, at least for now.
## October is still open
The Phillies are not ruling Luzardo out for the playoffs, but his status is now uncertain right when the rotation should be settling.

> They are not ruling him out for potential postseason start
## Two starters are locked
Zack Wheeler and Cristopher Sánchez remain the clear postseason starters. The bigger question is who handles Games 3 and 4.
## Nola or Painter next
With Luzardo sidelined, Aaron Nola or Andrew Painter could be asked to take bigger October starts than expected.
## First, clinch the spot
Philadelphia sits as the National League's fifth seed, holding the second Wild Card slot with 12 games left and a magic number of eight.
## Four starters, thin margin
The Phillies must finish the regular season with four starters and only one off-day, which likely forces at least one bullpen game.
## Bullpen pressure rises
That is a scary ask after the bullpen and emergency help allowed 12 runs in a recent blowout loss in Atlanta.

> Putting more pressure on the shaky bullpen isn't what the doctor ordered.
## A huge arm missing
Luzardo owns a 6.4 WAR, top-tier NL marks in ERA, WHIP and strikeout rate, and a likely top-five Cy Young finish. The Phillies need that version back.
## Key takeaway

The Phillies can still reach October, but their ceiling may depend on whether Luzardo's shoulder heals fast enough for playoff starts.