CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – AUGUST 15: David Phelps #41 of the Milwaukee Brewers (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
David Phelps is now a member of the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen
The Milwaukee Brewers have fallen off a cliff during the last few weeks, as Josh Hader, despite his excellent play, can’t make up for a lack of depth in their rotation and bullpen. Milwaukee seems to be inching closer towards a seller role, as the Philadelphia Phillies were able to snatch up one of their more consistent pitchers in reliever David Phelps.
The Phillies continued adding to their bullpen, acquiring Phelps from Milwaukee in exchange for two players to be named later, per Ken Rosenthal.
David Phelps has evolved into a tremendous relief pitcher in the last few years
Phelps originally broke into the major leagues as a starter with a New York Yankees team managed by Joe Girardi, but he transitioned to a long-relief role due to inconsistency. Since moving to the bullpen full-time in 2016, Phelps has posted a 2.85 ERA. While his best days came with the Miami Marlins, he bounced around between the Mariners, Blue Jays, and Cubs before signing with the Brewers.
The Phillies made some legitimate steps to improve their previously shambolic bullpen, acquiring Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree in an earlier deal with the Boston Red Sox. Now that Phelps is here to pitch the eighth inning and serve as a bridge to Workman, Girardi finally has a bullpen he can feel confident in after weeks of shuffling roles and trying to find anyone to close out the end of games.
Phelps by himself isn’t going to move the needle much, but few around the Phillies organization can complain about getting one of the best relief pitchers available in the rumor mill for a handful of unknown prospects. Meanwhile, Milwaukee will get two more prospects they can use to bolster a subpar farm system depleted by trades.