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Five Bullpen Trade Targets That Will Make the Phillies Contenders

The Philadelphia Phillies bullpen has an ERA that ranks ahead of only three MLB teams. They need relief help, but where will it come from?

Author:
Ben Silver
May 17, 2022 5:25 PM EDT

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Philadelphia Phillies

Only the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cincinnati Reds, and Colorado Rockies' bullpens have been worse than the Philadelphia Phillies' in 2022. Their ERA sits at 4.38 early in the season, ripe for improvement.

2017 was the last time the Phillies' bullpen ranked in the top half of MLB by ERA, back before they were even attempting to make a postseason push.

Things need to change on a grand scale for the bullpen. Adding relief help right now is like patching holes in a sinking ship, but patching holes is better than letting the ship sink.

There are a wide variety of solid bullpen arms on teams that are not contending right now, the most alluring of which is David Bednar.

Acquiring Bednar won't be cheap, he's not a free agent until after 2026, meaning a deal for him at the deadline isn't about acquiring a rental, but about nabbing a back-end stud.

Since re-inventing himself with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2021, the 27-year-old Pittsburgh local has thrown 78.2 innings for a 1.94 ERA and 2.59 FIP.

The Phillies have recently revamped their farm system, building around a high volume of middle-tier talent. Players like Logan O'Hoppe and Rafael Marchan would go a long way in getting a deal done with the Pirates for Bednar.

Unlike Bednar, Andrew Chafin would probably come as a one-year rental. The Pirates signed him to a one-year guaranteed deal this offseason, including a player option for 2023. But Chafin has performed well enough so far that he'll likely opt to test the free agent market again.

He's only thrown 7.2 innings this season, not making his debut until April 27, but he's been dominant since then. The lefty has limited both right-handers and left-handers to measly numbers coming out of the bullpen, a lefty specialist he is not.

In 2022, Chafin has struck out 11.7 per nine innings and walked just 1.2 per nine innings. He's yet to allow a home run. Going back to the beginning of 2021, Chafin has pitched 76.1 innings for a 1.89 ERA.

He probably couldn't close games for the Phillies, but he would slot quite nicely beside Seranthony Domínguez as a left-handed set-up man.

Tyler Kinley of the Colorado Rockies is a player that has burst onto the scene in 2022, sporting a 0.68 ERA and 2.50 FIP in the high offensive environment at Coors Field.

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The 31-year-old righty relies heavily on a slider which he throws over half the time, and a low-spin rate fastball which creates some sinking action. That fastball has allowed Kinley to flourish in Colorado, inducing groundballs at a high rate and staying away from the long ball. He's yet to allow a home run in 2022.

Like Bednar though, Kinley probably won't come cheap. He's under contract through 2024 and might require a few top 30 prospects. Donny Sands has been a popular name based upon his performance at Lehigh Valley this year, and could be a centerpiece for a deal including Kinley.

A.J. Puk is an imposing lefty, standing at 6'7". He only has 41 big league innings to his name, but almost all of them have been dominant. Since entering the league with the Oakland Athletics in 2019, he's posted an ERA of 3.07 and FIP of 2.74.

It wouldn't be the first time the Phillies had been linked to Puk either. He was drafted sixth in the 2016 MLB amateur draft, with early mock drafts having him taken first by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Like Kinley and Bednar, Puk is under contract for a long time. He's not set to hit the free agent market until after 2026, so the Phillies would have to move heaven and earth to pry him away from the Athletics. Perhaps he could come to Philadelphia in a deal including Ramón Laureano.

Even though the Baltimore Orioles are far from contending, they have one of baseball's strongest bullpens. Players like Jorge Lopez, Joey Krehbal, Félix Bautista and Keegan Akin have shored up the back-end of a strong relief core.

However, almost of those pitchers are rookies or sophomores, hard to pry away from a team which hopes to contend in the near future. Dillon Tate, however, has some experience under his belt.

The 28-year-old still won't be a free agent until 2026, but it wouldn't be impossible for the Philadelphia to pry him away from Baltimore with the perfect cocktail of prospects.

In four years and 122 innings, Tate's managed a 4.28 ERA, but since 2022 began, that ERA is 2.16 with a 2.74 FIP in almost 17 innings. His command has been the best of his entire career, holding batters to just two walks since the season began.

Tate doesn't throw particularly hard, his primary pitch is a sinker which he pairs with a changeup and slider to nab one of MLB's highest chase rates. Tate would be a fine addition to the Phillies' 'pen, slotting near the back-end with Jeurys Familia, Brad Hand, and Domínguez.

As it stands, the Phillies bullpen is capable of improvement on it's own. Perhaps Connor Brogdon can find some of the talent that made him so successful in 2021, or maybe Francisco Morales can become the Phillies' next Seranthony Domínguez.

Either way, the Phillies have room for improvement, whether that comes from the outside or the inside of their pipeline.