Philadelphia didn’t use David Robertson in its 2-0 victory over the San Diego Padres in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series on Tuesday, but he was available in the Phillies’ bullpen.

That wasn’t the case during Philadelphia’s four-game victory over the Atlanta Braves in the NL Division Series last week. The former Paul Bryant High School and Alabama standout had a right calf strain and was left off the Phillies’ roster for that round of the playoffs.

While his teammates were defeating the Braves, Robertson worked on overcoming his injury, and he made it back for the NLCS.

“It’s kind of miraculous how quick he’s come off his injury and how much better he is,” Philadelphia manager Rob Thomson said. “I wouldn’t have expected he’s at where he’s at.”

But Thomson said he’d seen it with his own eyes.

“I got outside for his (pitcher fielding practice),” Thomson said before Tuesday’s game, “and when I first got out there, it looked like he was a little ginger on it. But as time went on, it got better and better and better, and finally the last play he made was a bunt, the third-base line, and he fielded it nice and easy.

“Trainers checked him out, checked him out again this morning, said he felt good, so we feel comfortable putting him on the roster.”

Robertson got hurt on Oct. 8, while jumping up and down after Bryce Harper’s home run in the second inning gave the Phillies what they needed to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 in an NL Wild-Card Series and advance in the postseason.

Pitching in his 14th MLB season, Robertson joined the Phillies in a trade with the Chicago Cubs on Aug. 2. For the 2022 campaign, Robertson posted a 4-3 record with a 2.40 earned-run average and 20 saves in 58 relief appearances.

“Another guy that I trust,” Thomson said, “and how we’re going to deploy him at the start of the series, we’ll see. I’d like to get kind of a little bit lower-leverage landing spot because he hasn’t pitched in nine days. He hasn’t seen a hitter. But we’ll see how it goes.”

Robertson appeared in his eighth postseason when he worked a scoreless eighth inning in Philadelphia’s playoff opener against the Cardinals on Oct. 7. The Phillies rallied for six runs in the top of the ninth to make Robertson the winning pitcher in a 6-3 victory.

That moved Robertson’s playoff record to 6-0, and he joined former New York Yankees standout Lefty Gomez as the only pitchers in AL/NL history with at least six pitching wins and without a loss in the postseason.

The Phillies and Padres resume their best-of-seven series at 3:35 p.m. CST Wednesday at Petco Park in San Diego. FOX and FOX Sports 1 will televise the game.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.