MLB insider suggests Phillies are a strong candidate to land top free agent closer
Free agency season has arrived, so until free agents start selecting their ultimate destinations and signing contracts, all we have to go on are rumors and educated guesses. Of the relievers, Josh Hader, who was formerly with the San Diego Padres, is undoubtedly one of the most talked-about free agents.
Hader’s name was bound to surface in relation to the City of Brotherly Love this offseason, since the Phillies are definitely in need of bullpen help.
The Phillies and Rangers are trying to strengthen their unsteady bullpens.
Despite one club failing in the National League Championship Series and the other having a recently won championship to cling to, Morosi puts the World Series-winning Texas Rangers and the Phillies in the same group. Both clubs had dubious bullpen efforts, but the Phillies’ collapse in the relief corps is somewhat more obvious given the outcome.
“I think one thing is really interesting that we saw even among the teams that played deep into October, and indeed even the one that won it all in the Texas Rangers, they had some bullpen questions,” an insider with the MLB Network stated. “So I’m going to go straight to those teams that are either trying to repeat as World Series champions, like the Rangers, or get there like the Phillies.”
Everyone is aware of the events that transpired in the NLCS, wherein the bullpen—more especially, Craig Kimbrel—won two games in Arizona. The team’s renewed search for dependable bullpen arms and Kimbrel’s departure from Philadelphia in free agency were virtually inevitable as a result of those poor performances.
“When you consider the struggles of Craig Kimbrel and the overall lack of reliable bullpen innings they had late in those games in the NLCS,” Morosi said. “I look at both the Rangers and Phillies as strong candidates to sign Josh Hader.”
For his part, Hader had another fantastic season despite playing for the underachieving Padres. He made his fifth All-Star Game and finished the year with 33 saves, a 1.28 ERA, and 85 strikeouts in 56 1/3 innings.
While the 29-year-old right-hander is easily the best relief pitcher on the free agent market, it remains to be seen if the Phillies are interested in signing an actual “closer” or are comfortable working with a fluid bullpen.
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Three agonizing free-agent destinations that would haunt fans of the Phillies for Aaron Nola
MLB free agency is underway, and the Philadelphia Phillies have some maneuvering to do if they want to shore up their starting rotation and make sure the team is primed for another postseason run in 2024. It all starts with one big decision.
After Aaron Nola was the only Phillies player to be extended a qualifying offer ahead of the deadline, the belief is that he will decline the offer.
Upon examining his statistics spanning nine years with the Phillies, it is comprehensible why Nola is a sought-after free agent. With a 3.72 ERA, 1.129 WHIP, and 10 strikeouts in every nine innings pitched, he has a 90-71 record. He has pitched 1,422 innings over those nine years, which is the fifth-highest total of any starting pitcher over that time. According to FanGraphs, he also had the sixth-highest WAR from 2015 to 2023 (33.9).
In the regular season during 2023, the right-handed pitcher went 12-9 with a 4.46 ERA, 45 walks, and 202 strikeouts in 193 2/3 innings. He was stellar in the postseason, going 3-1 with a 2.35 ERA in four starts. While it wasn’t all sunshine for Nola in 2023 — he gave up a career-high 32 home runs — he continued to be a workhorse as he started 32 games for the third straight year.
On November 14, Nola has until 4 p.m. ET to make a decision regarding the $20.325 million qualifying offer. Let’s look at a few places that might come back to haunt the Phillies, assuming he packs his bags and leaves the team he has called home for the past nine years.
Next: A division opponent seeking to acquire elite starting pitchers
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