By Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Earlier this week, the Philadelphia Phillies announced that starting pitcher Jerad Eickhoff was headed to the disabled list with an upper back injury. On Friday, they will need a replacement for him and it looks to be 26-year-old right-hander Mark Leiter Jr.
Mark Leiter Jr will start Friday for the Phillies. First MLB start.
— Matt Breen (@matt_breen) June 22, 2017
Leiter Jr. has appeared in 12 games, spanning 19 innings, for the Phillies already this season out of the bullpen, posting a 4.74 ERA. He tallied 12 strikeouts and walked 14 with the opposition hitting .162 against him. Leiter Jr. has started three games in Triple-A, going 1-0 with a 5.93 ERA. His last outing was his best as a starter, hurling six scoreless frames, scattering just two hits and striking out eight.
Leiter Jr. isn't the sexiest choice for the Phils, who could have given Mark Appel (1.74 ERA over his last five starts) a chance in the bigs or promoted Tom Eshelman (5-1, 1.68 ERA) from Triple-A. The team would have had to designate someone for assignment in order to add Eshelman.
The Phillies selected Leiter Jr. in the 22nd round of the 2013 draft. He's gone 28-22 with a 3.45 ERA in 98 career Minor League games.
