The Philadelphia Phillies will welcome the Miami Marlins to Citizens Bank Park this weekend for a four-game set. Is it possible that they could welcome one of the Marlins current relievers into their clubhouse before that?
MLB.com‘s Jon Morosi appeared on MLB Central Monday and said that he would be “stupefied” if Marlins reliever Brad Ziegler isn’t dealt before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET non-waiver trade deadline. He also added that the Phillies are among the interested teams:
“I was told by sources just today that the [interested teams are the] Phillies, Dodgers, Red Sox, Cubs and then the Yankees and the Diamondbacks as well.”
Craig Mish of SiriusXM had previously connected the Phillies with the 38-year-old righty. Jon Heyman of Fancred Sports and Jim Bowden of The Athletic both added that the Phillies continue to look for another reliever.
Ziegler, who was actually selected by the Phillies in the 20th round of the 2003 MLB Draft, has a 3.98 ERA and 4.59 FIP in 53 appearances for the Marlins in 2018. However, while those numbers are unimpressive, Morosi pointed out that since June 1, opponents are hitting just .161 off of Ziegler, who has a 0.93 ERA over that same time-span. Once an effective closer for the Arizona Diamondbacks, it’s not surprising that Ziegler is drawing trade interest.
Even after investing in their bullpen this past offseason, the Phillies could use another stable right-handed option out of the bullpen. Hector Neris, who opened the season as the team’s closer, is currently at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Pat Neshek and Luis Garcia recently returned from the disabled list, but Edubray Ramos is back there for the second time this season. And Tommy Hunter, who was signed to a lucrative two-year free-agent contract this past offseason, currently has a 4.66 ERA.
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