Breaking: Former Phillies Reliever Finds New Home With Yankees

The Philadelphia Phillies are going to potentially have some major holes to fill in their bullpen this winter.

General manager Dave Dombrowski wasn’t going to leave any stone unturned when pinpointing what went wrong with his team in the 2024 playoffs, as they were eliminated in the NLDS by their National League East rivals, the New York Mets.

The bullpen, which was a strength during the regular season, had a meltdown in the playoffs. Changes might come this winter, but his hand could also be forced with two key players hitting the market.

Jeff Hoffman, who was an All-Star, and Carlos Estevez, who was acquired from the Los Angeles Angels ahead of the deadline, are both free agents.

They are expected to garner considerable interest as teams around the league are always looking for bullpen help.

Retaining both of them was always going to be a challenge, and now it’s known at least one team is courting Estevez; the New York Yankees.

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, the American League champions are casting a wide net in free agency. They have been connected to a lot of relievers and Estevez is one of the players they have already shown an interest in.

Their interest in a top-of-the-market bullpen arm should come as no surprise.

They could have several holes in their own bullpen to fill with closer Clay Holmes, Tommy Kahnle and Tim Hill all being free agents. All three played prominent roles in their postseason run. Replacing them won’t be easy, but landing a player of Estevez’s caliber would certainly be a good start.

An All-Star in 2023 with the Angels, he has ample experience working late in games in high-leverage situations.

57 out of his 86 career saves have come in the last two seasons.

The talented righty was truly dominant in 2024, recording a 2.45 ERA across 54 appearances and 55 innings with 50 strikeouts. He had a minuscule 0.909 WHIP, doing a wonderful job of limiting base runners throughout the year.

Francisco Lindor ruined his postseason debut, beating him during their matchups in the NLDS, but one performance shouldn’t ruin his market, as Estevez has put himself in a position to land a multi-year deal.

The Phillies will assuredly do what they can to bring him back, but they are going to face a lot of competition for his services as one of the more established relievers available.