Former Phillies Friday: Jorge Alfaro has a new home
Jorge Alfaro — the toolsy catcher who has been part of two of the biggest trades in Philadelphia Phillies history — has a new home.
Alfaro had his contract selected by the Colorado Rockies Thursday, with the team optioning catcher Brian Serven to Triple-A Albuquerque. This came after Alfaro recorded five hits in 14 at-bats for the Triple-A Isotopes.
Previously, the 30-year-old had slashed .320/.366/.520 in 175 at-bats for the Worcester WooSox, the Triple-A affiliates of the Red Sox. After Boston failed to promote him to the Major Leagues, Alfaro opted out of his minor-league deal with the Red Sox and eventually caught on with the Rockies organization.
The Phillies acquired Alfaro in July of 2015 along with outfielder Nick Williams, RHP Jake Thompson, LHP Matt Harrison, RHP Jerad Eickhoff and RHP Alec Asher in the trade that sent lefties Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman to the Texas Rangers.
Between 2016 and 2018, Alfaro slashed .270/.327/.422 with 15 home runs, 51 RBIs and a .749 OPS in 143 games for the Phillies. Alfaro and RHP Sixto Sánchez headlined the return that the Phillies sent to the Miami Marlins in the February of 2019 trade that allowed them to acquire All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto.
Alfaro spent parts of three seasons with the Marlins, before being traded to the San Diego Padres, where he split time with Austin Nola behind the plate in 2022.
With incredible raw power and a cannon of an arm that former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler once compared to Hall of Famer Iván Rodríguez, it’s not hard to see why teams continue to get intrigued by Alfaro:
But Alfaro is excellent example of just because a player has a high ceiling doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll reach it.
Even with a world-class arm, Alfaro has -17 defensive runs saved. His .371 career batting average on balls in play hasn’t led to him competing for batting titles because he’s struck out in 34.1% of his career at-bats. According to FanGraphs, Alfaro posted a 3.2 WAR in 2018, his final season with the Phillies. Since then, he’s produced 2.0 WAR.
There’s certainly no shame in having a lengthy MLB career, which Alfaro has had. But instead of becoming a perennial All-Star, Alfaro is a journeyman.
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