MLB analyst believes the Phillies could sign the newest available closer

admin | December 2, 2023 | Other Clubs | No Comments

In a surprising turn of events, the Cleveland Guardians are reportedly open to trading their closer, Emmanuel Clase. ESPN’s Jeff Passan broke the news on Friday.

What would it take for the Phillies to trade for a legitimate All-Star closer like Clase?

As the MLB offseason rumor mill continues to turn, another big name has emerged as a potential trade candidate for the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Phillies instantly spring to mind as a potential Guardians trade partner. It’s no secret that, following the terrible conclusion to 2023, general manager Sam Fuld and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski are searching for bullpen upgrades.

MLB analyst thinks the Phillies will jump at the chance to get Clase

Philadelphia will be interested in the two-time All-Star closer, according to one MLB observer.

During a broadcast on MLB Network Radio on Friday, host Mike Ferrin hypothesized that a team like Philadelphia, which might not want to pay a nine-figure salary to the best free agency closer available in Josh Hader, would find Clase appealing in a trade.

Jim Duquette, an ex-general manager of MLB Network, concurred with Ferrin’s evaluation.

“It does have their [Philadelphia’s] name written all over it, right?” Duquette stated. “Of the teams that need bullpen help … I could see Philly jumping in on this.”

What would it take to trade for Clase?

Any team searching for a closer is going to find Clase to be a highly attractive trade target. For the next five seasons, he will be controlled by the team at a very fair pay. With $10 million in team options for 2027 and 2028, he will earn $4.5 million in 2025, $6.5 million in 2024, and $6 million in 2026.

For the 25-year-old who has led the majors in saves the last two seasons—42 in 2022 and 44 this year—that’s an investment of $33 million spread over the next five seasons.

If only marginally, his 2023 performance might dampen the trade offers. Despite having the most save opportunities—56—he missed 12 saves in 2023. Even so, a save percentage of 78.6% is not optimal. With a career-high 3.22 ERA in 72 2/3 innings, the big righty’s strikeout percentage fell to 21.2 percent from 28.4 percent in 2022.

A closer inspection reveals that although his FIP was a respectable 2.95, his career-high BABIP of.295 was likely caused by a decline in his ground ball percentage from 63.9 to 55.0 percent.

“Is there a young starting pitcher they [the Phillies] might be willing to move for a closer like Clase?” asks Duquette in an attempt to lure Clase away from Cleveland.

Bringing in a young pitcher, like Mick Abel or Cristopher Sánchez, would surely strengthen the Phillies’ position. But if there’s one thing the Guardians excel at, it’s nurturing young pitchers. Gavin Williams, Tanner Bibee, and Logan Allen all made major debuts during their most recent season. In addition, they still have Triston McKenzie, who missed a significant portion of the year due to injury.

The Guardians might be more interested in a bat, but they wouldn’t turn down the opportunity to get another youthful, manageable arm. They had the second-worst slugging percentage (.381) at the end of 2023 and tied for the sixth-lowest team wRC+ (92). Right now, a strong hitter like Nick Castellanos might aid their offense, but his $20 million contract a year would probably make the frugal front staff cringe.

This leads us to less expensive, younger possibilities. If you’re looking for position players with major league experience, your options are now Johan Rojas and Brandon Marsh. Prospects like third baseman Aidan Miller and outfielder Justin Crawford may pique the interest of the Guardians more.

If the Phillies are able to acquire Clase, the bullpen will instantly become a World Series-caliber squad with the addition of his 91 mph slider and 99 mph cutter to the relief corps.