Phillies Bullpen: ‘Swiss Army Knives’ & Closer By Committee
Rob Thomson seems to trust the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen as a strength of the team. MLB.com did, after all, rank the pen as the best in the majors before the 2024 season.
Opposing hitters know the fireballers. Jose Alvarado has become a feared lefty at the back end the past two seasons. Gregory Soto can also bring the heat. Seranthony Dominguez has shown at points during his career that he has a ceiling as a shutdown closer.
Thomson and the Phillies have also, however, benefitted from a pair of “Swiss Army Knives” early in 2024. Matt Strahm and Jeff Hoffman are two of the most reliable relievers on a stacked roster.
“Him (Hoffman) and Strahm are – one’s left-handed and one’s right-handed– but they do kind of the same thing. You can use them in multiple spots. Both of those guys can close out games. They can (handle) high-leverage (spots). They can come in a dirty inning and go out the next inning. They’re just like Swiss army knives, and that’s valuable.” –Rob Thomson
Matt Strahm
The Phillies signed Strahm to a two-year deal entering 2023. He blossomed with one of his best major league seasons.
He did a serviceable job in six early-season starts before the rotation came together. The journeyman lefty moved to a full-time relief role for 49 games after his final start on May 2.
Strahm posted a 3.25 ERA and held opponents to a .223 batting average through the remainder of the regular season. He also made seven postseason relief appearances without allowing a run.
The front office rewarded him with a contract extension during spring training.
Strahm limped through a bad outing on Opening Day. However, he’s been immaculate in six appearances since. He’s already lowered his ERA to 2.35. His season WHIP is just .65.
He could increase his value with additional spot starts in 2024 if the Phillies face injuries or heavy usage in doubleheaders and similar situations.
Continued success could help Philadelphia fans move past an ironic blip of his past. The North Dakota native shared on 97.5 The Fanatic that his final high school appearance came against none other than Carson Wentz.
The (now disliked) former franchise quarterback smacked a big hit to end Strahm’s high school career on a sour note. An unlikely twist of fate has made a relief pitcher more beloved locally than an Eagles quarterback who played an undeniable role in the city’s only Super Bowl season.
Jeff Hoffman
The unexpected gem of the 2023 Phillies bullpen sparkled in a career year after spending parts of six MLB seasons in two other organizations.
Hoffman entered the 2023 season with a 1.59 career WHIP in 134 MLB games. He posted a 0.92 WHIP in 54 games in red pinstripes. The excellent regular-season effort surprisingly gave Rob Thomson the confidence to use Hoffman as the primary right-handed reliever over Seranthony Dominguez during the 2023 postseason.
Fast forward to 2024. Hoffman has now made four consecutive appearances in the ninth inning of tight games. He appears to have the role of the primary righty secured early in the season.
The 6-foot-5 tower blew his first save opportunity of the season against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 8. He bounced back two days later to close out the Red Birds in the series rubber match. The short memory aligns flawlessly with his comments to Andrew Salciunas in Clearwater.
“No matter what happens that night, the next night is a totally new ballgame. I feel like we’re really good at putting our best foot forward that specific night and not carrying over bad at-bats or bad outings from the night before. It’s a testament to our coaching staff too. We are really good at erasing.” –Jeff Hoffman
Phillies Bullpen Using Closer By Committee
Traditional baseball minds usually look to identify a closer as the best pitcher in an MLB bullpen. The topic persisted in Clearwater through spring training. However, the Phillies don’t lean on one pitcher in a closer role.
Who would know better than Brad Lidge? The World Series hero spoke about Thomson’s preference for the closer by committee approach.
“You have to have a special type of bullpen with a lot of buy-in from the guys in order for it (closer by committee) to be able to work. Times have changed. It’s 2024. I think we’re all a little more used to the concept of bullpen by committee, and frankly, Rob Thomson is not afraid to do it. He knows how to do it.” –Brad Lidge
Alvarado looks like the most dominant reliever on the roster. Orion Kerkering has rejoined the team ready to reveal his arsenal of shutdown pitches. However, Thomson looks set on utilizing the pool of talent at his hands with a collective effort.
The Swiss Army Knives, the shutdown fireballers, and the rest of the members of the Phillies bullpen will work as a committee to lock down the back end of the ballgame.
“We have a lot of talent, whether it’s the young kid Orion (Kerkering) or Alvy (Jose Alvarado), or Ser (Seranthony Dominguez) or (Gregory) Soto, we have so many guys with closing experience, so many guys with experience pitching at the back end. I think that’s going to be a really, really big strength for us not having to necessarily dictate ‘This guy is our ninth inning guy. This guy is our 8th inning guy.’ I think we have so many different weapons that we can use in those situations.” –Jeff Hoffman
All statistics as of the beginning of play on April 16.
Since August 1st, 2023, Matt Strahm and Jeff Hoffman are tied for first in all of Major League Baseball in WAR among relievers at 1.2. pic.twitter.com/jFO0hTz6l1
— Luke Arcaini (@ArcainiLuke) April 16, 2024
Watch Kincade & Salciunas on the 97.5 The Fanatic YouTube page for discussion about the latest breaking sports news in Philadelphia.
Philadelphia Phillies: 6 Remaining April Series
Pittsburgh Pirates: April 11-14 at Citizens Bank Park
The Phillies will face their long-lost cross-state rivals at Citizens Bank Park for a four-game set beginning on Thursday, April 11. While modern Philadelphia fans think of the Mets and the Braves as the chief rivals, the old NL East battles of the 1970s went much differently.
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia series always draw overlapping fan bases because of the history between the two sports cities and the general proximity in Pennsylvania, especially for weekend series.
DJ Jazzy Jeff will highlight the weekend with a postgame party on Friday, April 12.
Colorado Rockies: April 15-17 at Citizens Bank Park
The Rockies don’t look like much of a threat in the NL West, but the weekday series includes some major landmarks.
April 15 is Jackie Robinson Day across Major League Baseball. The baseball pioneer broke the color barrier 77 years ago, and big leaguers appropriately honor his legacy with the number 42 on their backs each year on April 15.
Tuesday, April 16 is the first Hatfield Phillies Franks BOGO Night. Regardless of how you feel about Dollar Dog Night, you’ll still save a few bucks on ballpark dogs.
It’s also the return of Jake Cave to Citizens Bank Park.
Chicago White Sox: April 19-21 at Citizens Bank Park
The White Sox are the final opponents of a favorable homestand against teams projected to finish toward the bottom of the standings. The Phillies have struggled in the early months of the past two seasons. They’ll have an opportunity to gain momentum and padding in the standings.
Chicago unfortunately lost center fielder Luis Robert Jr. to a long-term injury, costing the Citizens Bank Park crowd their chance to watch the budding star.
Cincinnati Reds: April 22-25 at Great American Ballpark
The Phillies dropped two games of a three-game set against the Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park in the second series of the regular season. They’ll travel to Ohio hungry to face Elly De La Cruz after the phenom shortstop kicked a few errors under sloppy conditions in Philadelphia.
Bryce Harper feasted off Cincinnati pitching in the only victory of the series. He’ll look to repeat the success at Great American Ballpark.
San Diego Padres: April 26-28 at Petco Park
Prepare for late nights. Watch the Phillies after dark when a six-game West Coast trip kicks off in San Diego on April 26. The weekend set won’t spark quite the same excitement as the 2022 NLCS, but you’ll probably catch a few highlights of one of the most memorable series in Phillies history.
The Padres dealt Juan Soto to the New York Yankees during the offseason. Their roster still features some of the best firepower in the league, however. Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Fernando Tatis Jr. highlight a stacked lineup.
Los Angeles Angels: April 29-May 1 at Angel Stadium
The Phillies will travel to Anaheim for the final two games of the month on Monday, April 29 and Tuesday, April 30. They’ll finish out the West Coast swing on getaway day with a 4pm game (EST) on May 1.
Mike Trout will naturally own the headlines. However, former Phillies prospects Mickey Moniak and Logan O’Hoppe also provide interesting storylines two years removed from the series of deals that brought Brandon Marsh to Philadelphia.
