Phillies-Yankees Observations on Duran, De La Cruz, Moore, Bullpen Battle

It took all of two spring outings for Phillies closer Jhoan Duran to reach 100 mph and stay there with his fastball.

"My velo's a little down right now, it's because it's too hot here," he joked on the Phillies' broadcast last Wednesday after exiting his first outing in Clearwater.

Duran's four-seam fastball that day averaged 97.7 mph and maxed out at 98.4 — big velocity but well below his standard.

By this past Saturday in his second appearance, Duran was back to his typical range. He threw only two fastballs among 17 pitches and they were 101.0 and 100.6 mph.

Tuesday against the Yankees was Duran's third appearance and it was a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts. He threw only 12 pitches, nine of them strikes. He threw four fastballs and they averaged 100.2.

The only pitcher in all of Major League Baseball with a harder average fastball than Duran last season (100.5) was Mason Miller (101.2). Phillies teammate Jose Alvarado ranked fifth in the majors at 99.6.

Duran's primary out pitch, the splitter, is also far and away the fastest in the majors — 97.7 last season with Paul Skenes second at 93.7.

To put that in perspective, the average velocity in 2025 on Duran's splitter was faster than 93% of major-league pitchers' fastballs.

No ninth-inning questions

The 28-year-old right-hander was electric after coming over from the Minnesota Twins at last year's trade deadline for Mick Abel and catching prospect Eduardo Tait. The Phils were able to parlay a few good months out of Abel, a former first-round pick, into their closer of the present and future. Duran went 16-for-19 in save chances as a Phillie with a 2.18 ERA, 27 strikeouts and one walk in 20⅔ innings.

The Phillies finally enter a season with the lockdown closer they've barely had this century. Billy Wagner was great in 2004 and '05, Brad Lidge was perfect in 2008 and Jonathan Papelbon was very effective for bad Phillies teams from 2012-15, but that's been it in terms of a set-it-and-forget-it closer.

Duran will earn $7.5 million this season, with next year his final of arbitration eligibility. He is set for free agency after 2027.

The Phillies have had high-quality regular-season bullpens during their four-year period of contending, but they feel best about this one with Duran, Alvarado, Brad Keller, Tanner Banks, Orion Kerkering, Jonathan Bowlan and a host of candidates with different strengths vying for their final two bullpen spots. One of the winners might be sidearm lefty Kyle Backhus.

A few other stray observations from Tuesday's Phillies game against the Yankees ...

De La Cruz and Moore

Bryan De La Cruz got a 96 mph, middle-in fastball on a 1-2 count in his first at-bat and laced it over the shortstop's head for a single to center. It was 104 mph off the bat. He went 2-for-3 and is up to .304 with an .863 OPS on the spring as he competes for the Phils' final bench job.

De La Cruz' primary competitor for that spot, Dylan Moore, barely missed a home run to center in the bottom of the sixth inning. He crushed a 93 mph sinker over the middle 396 feet to the deepest part of the park, but it was corralled at the wall by Spencer Jones.

Moore has hit into a bit of tough luck this spring and the Phillies will certainly take that into account when weighing his status the final week of camp. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said at the end of February that the final bench player would ideally be someone who can play both infield and outfield. Moore can; De La Cruz can't.

The Rule 5 pick

Rule 5 right-hander Zach McCambley made his third consecutive walk-free appearance on Tuesday after walking five batters in his first three outings of the spring.

This is the biggest key for a reliever who has experienced minor-league success but walked 4.0 batters per nine innings as a pro.

McCambley allowed a couple of hard-hit balls and needed 20 pitches to get through the fifth inning against the Yankees but held them off the board and has allowed a run in just one of six Grapefruit League appearances.

Final bullpen spot

McCambley's Opening Day roster chances are boosted by the fact that the Phillies would risk losing him if they don't break camp with him, but they might not let that stand in the way of a more deserving reliever if someone else outperforms him.

It's difficult to say at this point who has the leg up between McCambley, Zach Pop, Chase Shugart, Seth Johnson and Max Lazar, but everyone from that group has pitched better in camp than veterans Lou Trivino, Trevor Richards and Tim Mayza.

The only one from that group who is on the Phillies' 40-man roster and out of minor-league options is Pop.