6 Relievers the Phillies Could Target at MLB Trade Deadline

Dave Dombrowski carried a reputation as an aggressive executive when he began with the Philadelphia Phillies. He’s curiously tweaked his team-building strategies at different points during his tenure in the front office, however.

The President of Baseball Operations hasn’t executed the big splash at any of his four MLB Trade Deadlines in Philadelphia. Will 2025 be the year he pivots his strategy?

Jayson Stark mentioned on The Mike Missanelli Show that Felix Bautista and Mason Miller fit the mold of relief pitchers the Phillies might pursue this July. Scott Lauber followed up Stark as a guest on 97.5 The Fanatic mentioning Emmanuel Clase and Jhoan Duran as potential targets while reiterating the club’s interest in Bautista.

The Phillies won’t continue past the MLB Trade Deadline with Orion Kerkering and Matt Strahm alone as reliable high-leverage options at the back end of the bullpen. Their 4.38 bullpen ERA ranked 23rd in the majors at the All-Star Break, despite the lightest workload of any unit.

Dombrowski still remembers bullpen meltdowns that have prevented him from winning rings with the Phillies and the Detroit Tigers.

Craig Kimbrel infamously took consecutive losses in Games 3 and 4 of the National League Championship Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023. David Ortiz took Joaquin Benoit deep in 2013 to spoil Detroit’s World Series hopes during a sustained stretch of contention under Dombrowski.

Dombrowski has attempted to balance the stability of the organization’s long-term future with an aggressive short-term strategy. He’s identified his bullpen as the major weakness of the 2025 Phillies.

The two-time World Series champion has acquired short-term rentals Carlos Estevez and David Robertson ahead of past deadlines with the Phillies. He also brought in Kimbrel for a one-year stint in 2023.

According to Stark, Dombrowski hopes to pivot from landing a veteran reliever like Aroldis Chapman on an expiring contract.

The Phillies will utilize their surplus of starting pitching if they reach another Red October by fortifying their left-handed bullpen options. Expect Ranger Suarez, Cristopher Sanchez, or Jesus Luzardo (or some combination of all three lefties) to pitch in relief during the postseason.

Which right-handed reliever offers the best balance of fit with the Phillies in 2025, future club control, and availability within a reasonable price?

Few major league relief pitchers have dominated hitters like Emmanuel Clase over the past four seasons. The Cleveland Guardians closer sits narrowly below pace for his fourth consecutive season of 40 or more saves. However, he’s also tied for the major league lead in blown saves during the same time period.

Clase’s cut fastball averages 99 miles per hour. While his potential putaway stuff offers a drastic upgrade over current Phillies relievers, his relatively low strikeout rate pales in comparison to fireballers like Mason Miller and Felix Bautista.

The 27-year-old keeps the ball in the yard as well as anyone. He ranks in the 98th percentile in home run rate among relief pitchers with at least 100 innings pitched since 2022. The Phillies, conversely, lost Game 4 of the NLDS in 2024 after Francisco Lindor’s grand slam exposed Estevez’s vulnerability to the long ball.

Clase would bring indisputable advantages. However, a return package to Cleveland  – a team that isn’t yet an obvious deadline seller – would most likely include potential future star prospect Aidan Miller.

Will Dombrowski forfeit one major source of his pride in rebuilding the Phillies farm system for a pitcher who doesn’t solve the underwhelming amount of strikeouts in the bullpen?

The only name both Jayson Stark and Scott Lauber mentioned on 97.5 The Fanatic as a target for the Phillies is Felix Bautista.

Bautista has thrown only 160 ⅓ career major league innings after making a late debut and missing the entire 2024 season recovering from Tommy John surgery. He’s bounced back with a 2.41 ERA in 34 games for the last-place Baltimore Orioles this season.

Bautista’s 35.6% strikeout rate ranks in the 96th percentile of all MLB pitchers. The highest rate among Phillies qualified relievers this season is Matt Strahm at 27.7%. 

The towering 6-foot-8 righty leans heavily on a hard sinker sitting around 97 miles per hour. He mixes in a splitter and slider as putaway pitches.

Baltimore’s disastrous 2025 season could push president Mike Elias toward major changes. The Orioles have (theoretically) moved past an organizational phase of developing homegrown stars and into a hungrier approach to contend with a clean slate in 2026.

The unique circumstances of the potential trade partner could open the door for Dombrowski to subtract from the major league roster to add his bullpen arm. He set a precedent by sending Seranthony Dominguez and Gregory Soto south down I-95 ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline last season. Mick Abel also makes sense as a trade chip closer to major league readiness.

Landing Clase, Duran, or another backend reliever might cost Dombrowski core prospects of a farm system finally on the cusp of impacting the major league roster.

If the Orioles pursue Abel or an underperforming player on the Phillies (or both) as part of a package, the factors might align more smoothly for a deal sending Felix Bautista to the Phillies.

A 100 mph “splinker” will get any fan base excited. Jhoan Duran has saved 15 games in 17 chances this season for the Minnesota Twins, another AL Central club on the fence as a deadline seller.

Duran could bring the 6-foot-5 power arm the Phillies have missed since losing Jeff Hoffman in the offseason.

Acquiring a 27-year-old with arbitration rights extending through 2027 would come at a similarly high cost to a deal for Clase. Dombrowski's balance between full buyer mode and a more cautious approach to extend the window of World Series contention would be under serious scrutiny in any trade talks about Duran.

The Athletics don’t offer legitimate stability to young talent developing in their organization.

The Phillies would inevitably gush over a 26-year-old stud like Mason Miller with four remaining seasons of club control. The flamethrowing right-hander has struck out an astounding 40.1% of hitters he’s faced in 134 career big league innings. His fastball reached 104 mph on the gun when the A’s visited their old home in Philadelphia last season.

Miller isn’t in the best position to thrive, especially if he wants to close postseason games. However, the A’s don’t have to trade him. Stark mentioned his name as a fit, but he hasn’t emphasized Miller as one of the likelier options on the MLB Trade Deadline market.

Even if the A’s dealt Miller, the Phillies would most likely have to include top pitching prospect Andrew Painter in a return package. Dombrowski expects Painter to develop into “a number one, top of the rotation type starter” and a cornerstone piece for the Phillies. He’s unlikely to deal a premium starting pitcher for a relief pitcher.

Phillies fans are suckers for a good connection to the glory days. Griffin Jax of the Minnesota Twins attended the same high school in Colorado as 2008 World Series hero Brad Lidge.

Jax isn’t nearly as likely to slam the door 48 consecutive times at the back end of a major league bullpen. He posted career bests in 2024 with a 2.03 ERA and 0.87 WHIP. His numbers have jumped to a 3.92 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 2025, however.

The Twins might sell their 30-year-old set-up man rather than parting with a more valuable reliever like Jhoan Duran. Jax aligns more closely with Dombrowski’s past bullpen additions. He wouldn’t satisfy the need for a more stable long-term arm.

If the Phillies strike out in the coming weeks, Jax could become more of an attractive consolation prize in the final hours on July 31.

David Bednar slipped in 2024 coming off back-to-back All-Star seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He’s recovered well in 2025 with a 2.53 ERA in 36 games.

Matt Gelb calmed the chatter about Bednar as a potential top priority by mentioning the 30-year-old as only one of many righties in consideration for the Phillies.

Bednar carries only one more season of club control, and he wouldn’t fortify the Phillies bullpen at the same level as Felix Bautista, Emmanuel Clase, or Jhoan Duran.

All numbers as of the MLB All-Star Break. All advanced stats courtesy of StatCast, Baseball Reference, and FanGraphs.