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The Philadelphia Phillies seemed dissatisfied with their rotation even after re-signing Aaron Nola at the start of the offseason. They pursued Yoshinobu Yamamoto and have been connected to other elite guns.
While Dave Dombrowski’s statement regarding the Phillies’ comfort level with their current starting rotation appears to be at odds with that, the team has demonstrated in recent years that they are not afraid to take risks.
While starters are currently making waves on the market, ESPN Senior Writer David Schoenfield predicts they will focus on upgrading the bullpen and sign Jordan Hicks, one of the finest available.
The Phillies and Dombrowski have recently placed a premium on power relievers, and Hicks is a powerful arm,” the author adds. Fans of the Philadelphia Eagles would undoubtedly appreciate this. Over the years, the bullpen has shown to be difficult to trust, even though it finished the previous regular season with a top-seven ERA (3.58). It would be fantastic to add a guy like Hicks, who had a fantastic career trajectory prior to injury.
In 65 appearances, the 27-year-old posted a 3.29 ERA in 2023, marking a comeback year. After being moved from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Toronto Blue Jays, he became even more effective, finishing with an ERA+ of 164 and an ERA of 2.63 in 25 games. Hicks possesses velocity in abundance, as described by Schoenfield. He’s among the game’s hardest throwers, and his construction of the Phillies bullpen would complement it well.
Josh Hader is the center of attention, but Hicks would be a far better financial fit for Philadelphia, with a projected market value AAV of little less than $3.5 million, according to Spotrac. Given that he’s one of the greatest bullpen components available, the hard-throwing righty will probably get a contract worth more than that figure, but he wouldn’t bankrupt the Phillies the way Hader would.
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