The loss/decline/injury of Wheeler/Nola would devastate the Phillies. Together they pitched 399 IP last season and their combined W-L was 15 games above 0.500. That is the difference between winning the NL East and a sub-.500 team. There aren't a lot of 200 IP/years guys is MLB these days. The loss of these two puts a big added load on the rest of the pitching staff.
And it's to Dombrowski's credit that he's clearly thinking about it, always. He signed Sanchez and he's already thinking about how to replace Suarez, who turns 30 this year himself. In a perfect world you have a rotation of Nola, Wheeler, Sanchez, Painter and Crochet or Sasaki (for instance) next year. Maybe Abel's in the mix. But if it doesn't fall together like that, they'll be more ready/able to write a big check to a FA in '26 or '27.
They clearly believe in this guy.
4:13pm: Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reports (on X) that Romano is actually guaranteed $8.5MM. He’d unlock an additional $500K in incentives if he reaches 60 innings pitched.
Boy, they'd better have good doctors.
I mean it's one thing to bet on him with an incentive laden deal, but $8.5M guaranteed
Well, he's still likely to be more valuable than Merrifield if he lasts 20 innings.
This is why spending the money for Fried makes sense. Swapping out quality players for an iffy Crochet doesn’t do it for me. Neither does swapping out quality young players in an overpay for a Seattle SP. The Phillies system is not deep enough to afford the loss of young talent.
Sure seems like the blue jays doctors must have had their concerns to let their closer walk for 8 million.
Maybe. But possible this is also just a contract a team with a $280 million payroll can afford and a team that wants to get under $200 million cannot. He probably was not tradeable until he proved he was healthy, so the risk for a team that wants to cut salary was too high.
They would seem to really rate his closing experience too, something they always seem to go back and forth on. I wonder if he's agreed to the more flexible approach and Estevez didn't want that.
If nothing else, this was the Austins Hays money.
So Max Fried will pitch at age 31 next year (Turns 31 in Jan.) . He is six months younger than Nola. He is looking for 40 mill per year. Where your next leaders need to come from are guys like Andrew Painter and Christopher Sanchez. Also the reason why they are pushing for Crochet.
I saw a longer version of DD's quote on PHLY where he mentioned the medicals were good, as was video of him throwing recently.
Romano passed his physical on Monday in Philadelphia. Dombrowski said he is already throwing in the mid-90s.
“He’s one of the best back-end, high-leverage guys in baseball,” he said....
Asked if he will be the team’s closer in 2025, Phillies manager Rob Thomson said, “There were no promises to him, other than [high] leverage. So I think we utilize our bullpen as of right now just the way we have been.”...
“We feel comfortable where we are,” Dombrowski said about the bullpen. “I’m not saying we won’t add. I never know what’s going to go ... I never know that. ... If we feel we can help our club in other ways, if there’s something out there that makes us so much better, we’re still open to that. But we feel good where we are in our bullpen.”
Hoffman wants to be signed as a starter. No reason the Phils couldn't sign him as their #5...I think I'd rather bet on him than Crochet.
We didn't get past the Mets this past season and the Mets seem to have strongly improved their roster, so, no.That said, that's why we play the game.
Have the Mets improved there roster? They have lost two starting pitchers and have not resigned Alonso. Will they replace those at some point yes. As of today they still have a ton of holes on their team. So I would not say they strongly improved their roster. Much like the Phillies and Braves we have to see what the end result looks like. Their is a good chance on paper they will be strongly improved but its premature to say that off of one signing.
I think so, having previously acquired Holmes and Montas. ESPN spouts that they want to bring back Alonzo.
They'll have Vientos full time ... lots of things trending up for them, sadly
If the Phillies sign a legit starter, Hoffman or otherwise, they will trade Suarez, and that guy becomes the 3 or 4, not the 5. I don't think they are even serious contenders for Crochet at this point because the trade price is too high, and too many teams want him. But all else being equal I'd still rather have him at two years and lower cost then give Hoffman a long-term starting pitching deal. It's just that it's not equal.
So long as they keep Suarez Phillies just need another Turnbull/Lorenzen type for depth.
I think Soto counts for a lot! And they have already replaced two starting pitchers (with Montas and Holmes). Will probably get a third one too and it might be a big one (they are also on Crochet, nothing stopping them from signing Burnes or someone else either).
And they are probably going to keep Alonso. I think I'd rather they do that, otherwise they'll get someone better/younger (either right away or in the long-term), maybe even poach Schwarbs next year.
I'm with Matt. The Phillies are still one of the four or five best teams in MLB and even if they are only 8th or 9th that means they can get to the World Series. They were hardly the better team every time they won a playoff round in 2022 or 2023 (or the worse team when they lost, except to the Astros).
This will be interesting. I wonder if the Mets offer him a short, high AAV contract because their luxury tax bills will not be so bad the next few years. Give him 3 or 4 years at a $35 million AAV and that is it. He'll be a viable bat as a 1B or DH for a few years but I would worry about him by the time he hits 34 or 35 years old.
I think that makes sense since IMO it is almost a lock that Soto opts out at the 5 year mark for another big FA payday anyway.
Shinnosuke Ogasawara Lhp has been posted. He’s kind of interesting- like a short Rich Hill, low 90s fastball, really good knuckle curve and decent change up. Very low strikeout rate last year and while he looks like he’d be home-prone, he wasn’t in Japan. He looks like he competes well and there may be something to improve with how he uses his stuff to improve him. 5th starter/bullpen guy- got to get your foot in the door somewhere. Mlbtraderumers guessed 2 years/12 million.
Fangraphs with a reasonably positive take on Romano. Had not seen him much but I guess he is one of those taller pitchers with a really long extension to home plate that plays up his fastball (like Bailey Falter but he actually throws 97). Speculates that the Phillies might teach him a 2nd fastball type for variety because we have done that with most of our pitchers.
