José Alvarado’s cutter is back, cutting down Phillies opponents

José Alvarado’s cutter is back in form at just the right time.

The Phillies left-hander came in for the ninth inning Saturday and shut the door in a 7-5 victory against the Mets. He threw his cutter seven times in 14 pitches and retired the side in order.

When his cutter is on, Alvarado is on. The pitch can be devastating for right-handed batters, as it breaks inside to jam them at the plate. On Thursday, Alvarado got a swing-and-miss from the Mets’ Pete Alonso on his cutter for the final out of a 5-4 win.

“I’m working [on my] mentality,” Alvarado said. “Stay focused on the game. I don’t want to come in the game in a big situation and think about it too much.”

Alvarado returned from the injured list at the end of August — his second time on this list this year with left elbow inflammation — but he wasn’t confident in his cutter. It showed: Alvarado shied away from throwing it, which cut his two-pitch arsenal in half.

But now he’s feeling like the reliever he used to be in April, before he was injured in the first place.

“I switched my old grip, and that is what is solved right now,” Alvarado said. “Right now, I feel like my command is good. It’s back.”

Alvarado also threw seven sinkers Saturday. His sinker was just as good, with the Mets not able to put a single one of those pitches in play. Alvarado hasn’t walked a batter in his last three appearances, and the last time he made an appearance without recording a strikeout was Sept. 1.

“Tremendous,” manager Rob Thomson said. “He looks like he’s back to what we saw at the start. We’ve got to take care of the muscle and make sure he stays right there.”

Alvarado recorded his 10th save of the season on Saturday, the first time in his career he has recorded that many.

Craig Kimbrel has had the majority of the Phillies’ save opportunities this year, and he has the prototypical closer entrance when he makes his appearances at Citizens Bank Park, complete with Guns N’ Roses and flashing lights. But with October on the horizon, Thomson said the Phillies must be flexible: They don’t plan to consider any one pitcher their closer.

“I wouldn’t say [Alvarado] is the closer or Kimbrel’s the closer. We’re just trying to pick our spots to put them in the game at the right time, against the right hitters, so we have success,” Thomson said. “You can see Alvarado in the sixth or seventh, depending on the game state. You probably wouldn’t do that with Kimbrel. He’d be more of an eighth- or ninth-inning guy.”

» READ MORE: Rob Thomson and Dave Dombrowski have been brilliant in guiding the Phillies back to the playoffs

Alvarado’s return to his former self gives the Phillies flexibility in the bullpen for the postseason, and for him, it couldn’t come at a better time.

“Right now, I don’t need to change anything,” Alvarado said. “I’m here to compete until the end, here to compete until the last day of the season.”

Aaron Nola (12-9, 4.57 ERA) is set to start Tuesday’s 6:40 p.m. series opener against the Pirates, who had not named a starter as of Sunday evening. As it stands in the rotation, Nola is also lined up for Phillies’ final game of the regular season, although the team may make changes after clinching a playoff spot. “We’ll have to just read it as we go,” Thomson said. ... Thomson is also hoping to find a “soft spot” for Michael Lorenzen’s next appearance. Lorenzen recorded only one out on Sept. 19 against the Braves, pitching in relief for the first time since 2021.