Thursday, October 1, 2026
79 ° Clear
79 ° Clear
With the Brad Keller news official, the Philadelphia Phillies will now have to rebuild a lackluster bullpen.
Outside of Jhoan Duran, the Phillies have seen each of their relievers go through ups and downs throughout the first half of the season.
Both Orion Kerkering and Jonathan Bowlan will continue to be relied upon late in games. Bowlan's emergence over the last month is a positive sign of development from pitching coach Caleb Cotham. Kerkering has been a little shaky heading into the break but overall has been a plus reliever.
Duran, Kerkering, and Bowlan will be the club's top three right-handed relievers. But what the Phillies have in terms of depth after those options is bleak.
The Phillies now need to add two relievers in wake of the Keller news.
I would argue the most important factor is for the Phillies to add at least one left-handed leverage reliever.
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Their current options from the left-hand side are Tim Mayza and Jose Alvarado.
Mayza has been a solid addition to the team, joining on a non-roster invite to Spring Training. He has pitched in 37 games, tossing 42.2 innings to a 3.59 earned run average.
Alvarado, on the other hand, has not been great. The veteran has appeared in 39 games, tossing 33 innings to a 6.82 earned run average.
He has become unreliable, which cannot give the Phillies confidence ahead of the postseason.
Aside from these two players, the Phillies only have two other realistic options on their roster.
Those options are Tanner Banks and Kyle Backhus. Banks is on the injured list, and Backhus was recently sent back to Triple-A.
With no true depth in terms of left-handed relievers within the organization, the Phillies will have to trade for one.
On the right-hand side, however, they do have two players that could be potential fits. Those players are Alex McFarlane and Gage Wood.
McFarlane has been dominant at Double-A Reading this season. McFarlane has a 2.12 earned run average in 34 innings thus far. He has 45 strikeouts, which translates to a 11.9 K/9.
The Phillies have not called him to the big league roster out of fear of damaging potential trade value.
Gage Wood is also in Double-A Reading this season. Wood started the Future's Game in Philly this past weekend. He is a starter but has bullpen experience from his days at Arkansas.
Between Single-A and Double-A, Wood has pitched in 16 games, tossing 55 innings and pitching to a 3.44 earned run average. His potential is immense, which could net the Phillies a good big league player in a trade. However, with doubts surrounding Andrew Painter, the Phillies might not wish to part with their second best pitching prospect.
The following relievers are potential candidates for the Phillies to add via a trade.
Taylor Rogers, LHP—Minnesota Twins
Taylor Rogers signed with the Twins this offseason on a two-million dollar contract. The crafty lefty reliever has struggled this season in Minnesota but has both veteran and playoff experience. He would be a very low-cost, low-reward option for the Phillies to add to their bullpen.
Player Grade: C
Grant Wolfram, LHP—Baltimore Orioles
Grant Wolfram is another cheap option the Phillies could target. The 29-year-old has pitched a 4.76 earned run average in 35 games this season. Baltimore could look to flip Wolfram while his value is at its highest.
Player Grade: C+
Hogan Harris, LHP—Athletics
The current closer of the Athletics, Hogan Harris, is another left-handed reliever that could be a target for Dave Dombrowski. Harris appeared in 45 games this season and pitched to a 3.43 earned run average, earning six saves. He has a 1.25 earned run average in away games this season, showcasing that the minor league park the A's play in is harmful to his season averages.
Harris would cost a bit more than the other options but would be a worthwhile target.
Player Grade: B+
