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Report: Phillies Add Free Agent Reliever Dillon Maples

The Philadelphia Phillies addition of right-handed reliever Dillon Maples came out quietly Tuesday afternoon. But his addition could provide some stability in the Phillies bullpen.

Author:
Ben Silver
Mar 15, 2022 1:39 PM EDT

You probably haven't heard of Dillon Maples, but his analytics are a sight to behold.

According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, Maples arrived at Philadelphia Phillies spring camp Tuesday. His acquisition flew under the radar, his appearance in Phillies gear being the first signal of his arrival to the club.

Maples was efficient in 2021 with the Chicago Cubs, but perhaps not as efficient as his overarching stats might seem. In 31.1 innings, Maples posted a 2.59 ERA and 11.5 K/9, but his FIP was a more ghastly 4.61 due to an absurd 7.2 BB/9.

Clearly Maples struggles with control of his pitches, but that fault could be overcome by one of the best fastball/curveball pairs in the league.

His fastball, topping out at 98mph, has one of the highest spin rates in all of baseball, giving it a rising affect. In fact, Maples' fastball has on average 5.4 fewer inches of vertical break than league average.

Meanwhile his curveball, which he throws only 13 percent of the time is 99th percentile throughout MLB in spin rate. It has 74% more horizontal break than the average MLB pitcher.

Maples will be a project in 2022. His command will require improvement and due to this he can't be relied upon too heavily to start the year. But if Phillies pitching coach Caleb Cotham can tweak Maples' game in just the right way, he could become a vital piece for the Phillies bullpen down the stretch run late in the season.