Phillies reliever Gregory Soto reported to major league camp on Wednesday, the Phillies announced.
Soto, who was acquired this offseason via a trade with the Detroit Tigers for Nick Maton, Matt Vierling and Donny Sands, was not in camp due to visa issues. He was throwing at the Phillies’ academy in the Dominican Republic.
The delay cost him an opportunity to pitch in the World Baseball Classic. Soto was supposed to leave camp around this time to pitch for the Dominican Republic, but the visa delay made his participation in the tournament less feasible.
Soto, a two-time All-Star with the Tigers, pitched to a 3.28 ERA with 30 saves in 60 1/3 innings in 2022. He’s a hard-throwing lefty who tends to struggle finding the strike zone.
While the Phillies believe Soto is a great pitcher as is, they hope that with some tweaks in the form of a mechanical adjustment or a different pitch mix, they can fix some of those command issues and unlock his potential.
Bryce Harper is also expected to report to Phillies spring training on Wednesday.