Phillies Pull Off Shocking Signing! Guardians Impact Hitter Signs MLB Deal, Exceeding Expectations
The Philadelphia Phillies announced they have come to an agreement with former Cleveland Guardians slugger Oscar Mercado.
They’ve invited him to spring training, as well as former Red Sox utility player Christian Arroyo.
Mercado, 30, has spent parts of five years in the big leagues with the Guardians, Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals. He debuted in 2019, making an immediate impact for Cleveland. He hit 15 homers in 115 games, also stealing 15 bases and registering 54 RBI. He hit 25 doubles and looked like a building block for Cleveland moving forward, but he’s never been able to replicate the sucess of that season.
He hit just .128 in the COVID-shortened 2020 season and then hit .224 in 72 games in 2021. He hit .207 in 2022 but played just 55 games and then resurfaced for 20 games with the Cardinals in 2023.
He did not appear in a major league game in 2024, spending the year in Triple-A for the Padres and Tigers. He hit just .222 across 93 games. He hit only .169 in winter ball this season in Puerto Rico.
It will be a tough task for him to make the Phillies, who have among the most loaded rosters in all of baseball, but perhaps he can show well enough that someone will call Philadelphia about him.
Lifetime, he’s a .255 hitter in the minor leagues with 69 homers and 384 RBI.
The Phillies won the National League East last season but were beaten in the NLDS by the New York Mets.
