The Philadelphia Phillies are in a tight race for the top spot in the National League East with the New York Mets. Entering play on Wednesday, they led by just a half-game.
The Phillies are expected to be buyers at this year's trade deadline and will look to make a run towards their first World Series title since 2008. But they have some issues to address.
Their main issues are in their bullpen. Jordan Romano hasn't panned out as their closer, and Jose Alvarado's 80-game PED suspension makes him ineligible to pitch in the postseason.
In The Athletic's latest deadline big board, former Phillie Carlos Estevez was listed as a top trade candidate, and sure enough, his former team was listed as a possible fit.
"Top five saves since 2023, Estévez is a proven closer who’s remained effective despite losing a mph off his fastball this season. His strikeouts are down, and batted ball data suggests he’s been a bit lucky in run prevention, but he’s done a good enough job limiting base runners to be an All-Star for the second time in his career. Estévez is signed through next season with a team option for 2027, so an acquiring team would be banking on him remaining effective at last one more season."
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Estevez was signed to a two-year, $22 million contract last offseason by the Kansas City Royals. With Kansas City falling out of contention and possibly selling, we may see Estevez on the move again.
The 32-year-old right-hander is 4-3 with a 2.74 ERA in 43 appearances this year. He also has recorded 26 saves.
The two-time All-Star came to the Phillies last year at the deadline from the Los Angeles Angels. Returning to Philadelphia would allow him to go back to a familiar spot.
It would also help the Phillies bullpen. They did sign David Robertson, but he needs more time to ramp up, so having a stopgap such as Estevez could be beneficial.
It will be interesting to see if Philadelphia tries to bring him back.
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