The Philadelphia Phillies entered the trade deadline season with a handful of needs. The Phillies are essentially all-in on this season in an ultra-competitive National League East where Philly is in a tight race with the New York Mets.
With a star-studded rotation and several formidable bats at the top of the lineup like Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, and Bryce Harper, the most significant need for Philadelphia was its bullpen, specifically the back-end, where they have had trouble finding a steady closer.
They make the biggest splash of the deadline by landing closer Jhoan Duran in a stunning deal, and now their deadline grade comes to light.
Philadelphia Receives an A- for Its Deadline Efforts
The Phillies also didn’t just acquire Jhoan Duran; they addressed some of their other needs, like outfield help in Harrison Bader, who will likely slot into center field immediately.
Jim Bowden of The Athletic gave the A-grade to the Phillies, and here were his key takeaways:
“The Phillies landed the best-available closer, Jhoan Duran, who is also controllable through 2027. Getting a high-leverage reliever addressed their biggest need. However, they were forced to part with two top prospects, Mick Abel and Eduardo Tait, due to the competitive market. The Phillies also improved their bullpen depth and experience by signing free-agent reliever Dave Robertson to a one-year deal that will pay him approximately $5.5 million on a pro-rated, one-year, $16 million contract. They acquired Harrison Bader, an above-average defensive outfielder who can play center and left. He has a 111 OPS+ this season. I would have liked to see the Phillies get a better right-handed bat than Bader, like Luis Robert Jr. of the White Sox, but when the prospect ask from the White Sox became too high, I understand why they settled on Bader, who will be a plus defensively and on the bases.”
So, essentially, for the Phillies, the acquisition of Durán carried them to an A grade, which makes sense when you look at his numbers. The 27-year-old reliever has a 2.01 ERA over 49.1 innings and 16 saves. That saves number is double what the previous saves leader for Philadelphia had (eight), Jordan Romano, who has an ERA over 6.00.
What Do These Moves Do for the Phillies’ Future?
Well, they are getting an immediate shutdown closer in Duran. When you have starters like Zack Wheeler, Christopher Sanchez, and Ranger Suarez, who all have ERAs well below 3.00, it bridges the gap tremendously from starter to closer, where Duran will thrive.
The addition of Harrison Bader is also an immediate upgrade. The former Minnesota Twins outfielder has 12 home runs this season, provides excellent defensive coverage, and is an above-average hitter. Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas, the Phillies’ other center fielders, have combined for just six home runs and 42 RBIs. Bader has 38 runs driven in this season.
Philadelphia needed a boost for the final two months of the regular season, as they have considerably understood how important it is to win the division and avoid the Wild Card round after what happened to them last year.
Phillies Not So Shocking MLB Trade Deadline Grade Revealed