Phillies Have Already Seen Massive Improvement in Key Area Since Blockbuster Trade

The Philadelphia Phillies have seen a massive improvement in an important area since the trade deadline.

Jul 28, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson (59) looks on from the dugout before a baseball game against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies started their series against the Texas Rangers with an impressive win.

As the New York Mets continue to struggle, this feels like an amazing opportunity for the Phillies to extend their lead in the National League East. For most of the season, this has been a tight race, but with the Mets now losing nine of their last 10 games, the time to create some space and win the division is now.

For most of the year, Philadelphia has been relying heavily on their starting rotation to carry them. Coming into the 2025 campaign, this was a unit that was expected to be great, and they have delivered.

Zack Wheeler is battling with Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates for the NL Cy Young award, with the right-hander trying to avoid another runner-up finish.

Furthermore, the lineup has been much improved since the return of Bryce Harper. This is a unit that has a lot of talent but has underachieved at times.

The real issue that has plagued the team not only in 2025, but in the playoffs last campaign was the bullpen.

At the trade deadline, the Phillies were expected to make a splash to improve the unit, and they certainly did. With the Minnesota Twins having a fire sale, Philadelphia was able to acquire closer Jhoan Duran.

Duran is exactly the type of impact player that the Phillies needed to get for their bullpen, and it has already paid dividends.

Since the trade, Philadelphia has had the best bullpen ERA in baseball, which is something that seemed impossible for them to achieve, even in a small sample size, before the trade.

The #Phillies bullpen has a 2.04 ERA since Jhoan Duran arrived — 4th in #MLB.

The strikeout percentage is 31.7% — 3rd in MLB.

Opponents are hitting just .136 off them — best in MLB.

WHIP is 0.68 — also best in MLB.

David Robertson and Jose Alvarado will be joining too.

— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) August 9, 2025

Duran has made two appearances so far since the trade and has recorded a save in each of them. The right-hander has yet to allow a hit or a walk for the Phillies and is making things look easy.

Even though he has only made a couple of appearances, his presence in the bullpen moves roles around for other pitchers.

Will Success Be Sustained?

Aug 3, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jhoan Duran (59) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Citizens Bank Park. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Despite the struggles, there is some talent in the bullpen for Philadelphia, with Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm both having strong campaigns.

Hopefully, the team will see David Robertson figure things out in the minors and be ready to go soon as well. He was recently signed as a free agent and is coming off a strong year with the Texas Rangers.

Overall, even though the sample size is very small, it’s encouraging to see the early impact Duran is having on the bullpen.