Phillies Sign Tommy Pham To Minor League Deal
The Phillies have reached a minor league agreement with outfielder Tommy Pham, reports Jorge Castillo of ESPN. The veteran was most recently in the Orioles organization. Castillo adds that Pham can opt out of the deal on July 25.
Pham is now with his third club in three months. He inked a minor league deal with the Mets shortly before Opening Day. The 38-year-old spent two weeks with the big-league team in mid-April. He went 0-for-13 and was designated for assignment before the end of the month. Pham latched on with the Orioles midway through May. He was granted his release after 16 games at Triple-A.
Baltimore didn’t seem like it could provide a path to a roster spot for Pham. The Orioles can barely find playing time for Tyler O’Neill, a right-handed corner outfielder in a similar mold. Pham was a long shot to reach the majors with the organization. He’ll now have about a month to find a way onto Philadelphia’s roster. There’s a much clearer route with the Phillies, who are down Adolis Garcia for multiple months and Johan Rojas for the season.
It was four teams ago (and those are just the MLB stints), but Pham had a stretch as an above-average bat as recently as 2024. He opened the campaign with 297 plate appearances of a 104 wRC+ with the White Sox. The veteran struggled in subsequent stints with the Cardinals and Royals to close the season. Pham earned semi-regular playing time with the Pirates last year. He posted a .700 OPS over 120 games, which wasn’t good enough to earn a big-league deal over the winter.
The Phillies have already made a move to address their outfield depth, adding Derek Hill in a small trade with the White Sox. Hill has quickly endeared himself to his new team, hitting .357 with a pair of ninth-inning home runs, including a game-winner. Philadelphia is reportedly eyeing the trade market for more outfield help.
Prospect Gabriel Rincones Jr. has earned the majority of the reps in right field recently. He’s off to a slow start in his first taste of the majors, going 4-for-30 in a small nine-game sample. Brandon Marsh is at his best in left field, but he has experience in center and right, so the club has some flexibility there. Pham doesn’t have the chops to play center field at this stage of his career, but he was worth 5 Defensive Runs Saved in left field last season. The ability to play the field is important on a team that has a locked-in DH in Kyle Schwarber.
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Johan Rojas Undergoes Elbow Surgery
June 25th: The Phils announced today that Rojas was reinstated from the restricted list and placed on the 60-day IL.
June 21st: Rojas underwent the surgery on Friday, according to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
June 10th: The Phillies announced that outfielder Johan Rojas recently experienced some elbow soreness while ramping up to return from his ongoing suspension. Imaging revealed a tear of his ulnar collateral ligament, which will require surgical repair involving an internal brace. The expectation is that he will be ready for spring training 2027. He is currently on the restricted list.
2026 was already shaping up to be an unfortunate season for Rojas. Back in March, he received an 80-game suspension after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Boldenone. That was going to wipe out the first half of his regular season and, like all players suspended for PEDs, render him ineligible for the postseason.
After receiving that suspension, his best-case scenario would have been for him to have a strong second half, but now that’s off the table as well and he will miss the entire 2026 campaign. He is currently on the restricted list. Once his suspension is up, the Phillies can put him on the 60-day injured list, or perhaps cut him from the roster by designating him for assignment or releasing him.
Rojas had a strong debut with the Phils in 2023. He was already known to have speed and defensive abilities, but he then put up a .302/.342/.430 line in his first 164 plate appearances. That wasn’t entirely sustainable, as he had a .410 batting average on balls in play, but it was a welcome development for the Phillies nonetheless. Thanks to that offense, his 14 steals and strong glovework, he was credited by FanGraphs with 1.4 wins above replacement in just 59 games.
His production tailed off from there. He could still swipe some bags and run the ball down on the grass but he hit just .237/.279/.312 over the 2024 and 2025 seasons. That seemingly caused the Phils move on from the idea of Rojas being an everyday player. They acquired Harrison Bader at the 2025 deadline. He became a free agent after the season but they essentially handed the 2026 center field job to Justin Crawford in the most recent offseason.
With Crawford, Adolis García and Brandon Marsh set to be the regular outfield in 2026, Rojas was lined up to either be in a fourth outfielder role or sent to the minors. Between the suspension and this surgery, he will instead be a total non-factor for the year. If he holds onto his roster spot through the winter and gets healthy, he could be back in consideration for those kinds of depth roles next year. Garcia is an impending free agent but the Phils will presumably look to address that spot before the 2027 season begins.
For now, the Phils have Edmundo Sosa and Steward Berroa as their bench outfielders, backing up the trio of Marsh, Crawford and Garcia. Marsh is the only one of those three having a good season, so it’s possible they look to shake things up at the deadline.
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Cubs Claim Bryse Wilson, Designate Christian Roa For Assignment
The Cubs have claimed right-hander Bryse Wilson from the Phillies, per Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune. Philadelphia designated him for assignment earlier this week. In a corresponding 40-man move, the Cubs have designated righty Christian Roa for assignment. Wilson is out of options and will also need an active roster spot when he reports to the team.
The move is presumably a response to an awful run of injuries suffered by the Cubs. Earlier today, they placed both Edward Cabrera and Ben Brown on the injured list, Cabrera due to a hamstring strain and Brown due to a neck strain. As if subtracting two fifths of the rotation in one day wasn’t enough, the Cubs are playing a doubleheader today, putting extra strain on the pitching staff.
They are going to get some relief with Matthew Boyd expected to come off the IL tomorrow, but it’s challenging situation, especially when considering the other issues. Justin Steele has hit a few setbacks in his attempts to return from last year’s elbow surgery. He still has a chance to come back this year but likely only as a reliever. Cade Horton is out of the season due to Tommy John surgery. Jameson Taillon is also on the shelf with a hamstring strain.
Javier Assad took the ball for the first game of today’s twin bill. Shota Imanaga will start the nightcap. Boyd is penciled in for tomorrow. Colin Rea could follow. Even if that goes according to plan, they will need plans for Saturday and Sunday, as Assad and Imanaga won’t be on regular rest until Monday.
Wilson, 28, could perhaps be part of the solution or at least provide a long relief arm for the bullpen. He has worked both as a starter and a reliever in his career. He has made 164 appearances over nine seasons, 57 of those being starts. In 463 innings, he has a 4.80 earned run average. His 16.5% strikeout rate is below average but he has limited walks to a 7.5% clip.
He began this year with the Phils on a minor league deal. He was released in early June and then re-signed to a new minor league deal, perhaps indicating there was some kind of opt-out in that deal. In the second deal, he triggered an upward mobility clause last week. The Phillies added him to their roster but bumped him off after one scoreless appearance of two innings.
In Triple-A this year, he has made 12 appearances, logging 54 1/3 innings with a 6.29 ERA. That’s obviously not a nice number but there is some fine print. His 23.5% strikeout rate, 8.5% walk rate and 52% ground ball rate are all average or better numbers. The ERA has been inflated by a .373 batting average on balls in play and 60.2% strand rate, which are both far to the unlucky side. His 4.06 FIP is far more optimistic.
Roa, 27, was just claimed off waivers last month. The Cubs have kept him on optional assignment, so he didn’t make an appearance for them in the majors. He has been riding the DFA carousel this year. He began the campaign with the Astros on a minor league deal and cracked the Opening Day roster. He has since gone to the Twins, Orioles and Cubs via waiver claims.
Now that he has been designated for assignment once again, he could be back on the wire in the coming days. He lacks big league experience, with just 11 2/3 innings under his belt, but clubs are clearly intrigued. A former second-round pick of the Reds, he posted a 2.83 ERA in 60 1/3 Triple-A innings last year. His 11.4% walk rate was high but he struck out 26.1% of batters faced.
This year’s results haven’t been as pleasant. Around the transactions, he has thrown 15 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 9.39 ERA. That number has been pushed north by a .421 batting average on balls in play and 58.3% strand rate. His 13.2% walk rate is way too high but he is striking out 30.3% of opponents. He is averaging about 95 miles per hour with his four-seamer and sinker while also throwing a slider and changeup.
Though the numbers aren’t great, he has some pedigree and a live arm. The fact that he has options means he can be kept in the minors. Perhaps that will help him find another landing spot with a club who likes the ingredients and has a plan in mind for how to combine them.
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Phillies, Jackson Rutledge Agree To Minor League Deal
The Phillies re-signed reliever Jackson Rutledge on a minor league contract, according to the MLB.com transaction tracker. He was assigned back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he’ll go on the injured list.
Philadelphia released Rutledge last week, a few days after he was designated for assignment to open a roster spot for Derek Hill. That was a procedural move, as players who suffered an injury in the minors cannot be placed on outright waivers. A release was essentially inevitable once the Phillies took him off the roster. Rutledge spent a week on the open market before circling back on a non-roster contract.
The Phillies claimed Rutledge off waivers from the Nationals in mid-May. They immediately optioned him to Triple-A, where he gave up four runs across five innings before the injury. Rutledge has made one MLB appearance this season with Washington. The Pirates put up seven runs against him on April 13.
Rutledge was a first-round pick in the 2019 draft. The 6’8″ righty moved to the bullpen last year after brief MLB appearances from 2023-24. Rutledge struggled to a 5.77 earned run average across 73 1/3 innings for the Nats last season. He hasn’t been much better at the Triple-A level, working to a 5.60 ERA over parts of four seasons.
Phillies Designate Bryse Wilson For Assignment
June 22nd: The Phils made all these moves official today. They recalled Rangel and reinstated Backhus from the IL, with Lazar optioned and Wilson designated for assignment.
June 21st: The Phillies are designating right-hander Bryse Wilson for assignment, per Matt Gelb of The Athletic. Lefty Kyle Backhus is expected to rejoin the club. Righty Max Lazar is also headed back to Triple-A. Gelb adds that right-hander Alan Rangel is a candidate to be recalled and pitch on Monday.
Wilson was added to the roster earlier this week after triggering an upward mobility clause in his contract. He tossed two scoreless innings out of the bullpen on Thursday. Wilson seemed to be a candidate to take over Andrew Painter‘s spot in the rotation. The young right-hander was sent down on Wednesday after a disastrous start against the Marlins. Instead, he’ll head to DFA limbo after one appearance.
The 28-year-old Wilson has spent virtually the entire season in the Phillies’ organization. He joined the club on a minor league deal in December. The veteran righty fell short of a roster spot out of camp and did not pitch well at Triple-A. He was released in early June, but quickly re-upped on a new minor league agreement. There may have been another opt-out situation in play there.
Wilson has been a useful swingman as recently as two years ago with the Brewers. He compiled 181 1/3 innings of a 3.72 ERA with Milwaukee from 2023 to 2024. Wilson scuffled to a 6.65 ERA in 20 games with the White Sox last year. He was on and off the roster multiple times. Wilson was striking out more than a batter per inning at Lehigh Valley this season, but he was having a tough time keeping runs off the board (6.29 ERA). All but one of his 12 appearances came as a starter.
It seems like Rangel will get the first crack at taking over Painter’s rotation spot. His most recent Triple-A start was on Wednesday, so he’ll be on regular rest for tomorrow’s matchup against the Nationals. The righty appeared once in the big leagues earlier in the season, allowing a run over three innings in a late April loss to the Cubs.
Rangel earned his first crack in the majors last season after a lengthy minor league career. He posted an underwhelming 8:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio, but was able to limit the damage, permitting three earned runs over 11 frames out of the bullpen. The 28-year-old has operated mostly as a starter this year. He has a sub-4.00 ERA with a 24.8% strikeout rate in 70 innings with the Iron Pigs.
Backhus has been out since late April with elbow inflammation. He’s made five rehab appearances at Triple-A. The lefty came to the Phillies in an offseason trade with the Diamondbacks. Backhus broke camp with the team, but was optioned in early April. He’d been back with the big-league squad for a couple of weeks before the elbow issue popped up.
Lazar was recalled earlier this week. He made three appearances out of the bullpen, tossing four innings in low-leverage spots. Lazar opened the year on the injured list with an oblique strain. He’s in his second minor league option year. The righty could be back in the majors the next time the Phillies need some length in the bullpen.
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Phillies Sign Kolby Allard To Minor League Deal
The Phillies have signed left-hander Kolby Allard to a minor league deal, reports Matt Gelb of The Athletic. He’ll head to Triple-A Lehigh Valley and provide the Phils with some non-roster pitching depth.
Allard, 28, just opted out of a minor league deal with the Guardians. He had been pitching well at the Triple-A level prior to getting out of that deal. He had thrown 30 2/3 innings for Columbus, allowing 4.11 earned runs per nine. He struck out 22.4% of batters faced, gave out walks to 7.2% of opponents and induced grounders on 45.3% of balls in play.
The lefty doesn’t throw particularly hard, averaging around 90 miles per hour with his four-seamer and sinker. But he has nonetheless been able to find some major league success at times. He had a 2.63 earned run average in 65 innings with Cleveland last year, though he had some help from a 79.2% strand rate. His 3.54 FIP and 4.41 SIERA pointed to him being a regression candidate. For his big league career as a whole, he has a 5.47 ERA over parts of nine seasons. That includes a 10.38 ERA in a small sample of 8 2/3 innings with the Guards earlier this year.
For the Phillies, the back of their rotation is a big question mark right now. The first three spots are golden, as they have Zack Wheeler, Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo in those. Aaron Nola is struggling but there’s not much the club can do about that, given his contract and status in the organization. Andrew Painter has been in the rotation all year until this week. He has a 7.06 ERA for the season. His struggles finally became too much to bear yesterday, as he was sent down to the minors.
Bryse Wilson was added to the roster today. He could take a rotation spot or be used as a long reliever. Alan Rangel and Jean Cabrera are on the 40-man roster, though Cabrera has a 9.39 ERA on the farm this year. Rangel’s 3.99 ERA is more palatable but he has just 14 innings of big league experience.
The Phillies have reportedly been exploring the market for back-end starters. Even if they don’t put anything together soon, they will likely enhance their efforts to add starting pitching as the deadline draws nearer. For now, Allard gives them an experienced depth arm who has been putting some decent numbers lately. If Allard eventually gets a roster spot, he is out of options.
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Adolis García To Undergo Season-Ending Surgery
The Phillies announced that outfielder Adolis García will undergo right latissimus dorsi repair surgery on Wednesday, June 24th. The recovery period is six to eight months, so he will miss the remainder of the season. He is expected to be ready for the start of the 2027 schedule. He is already on the 60-day injured list and will stay there for the rest of the campaign. He will be a free agent at season’s end.
García’s injury was clear at the moment it occurred, as seen in this clip from MLB.com. In a game against the Blue Jays last week, García came up throwing as George Springer tried to score from third on a fly out off the bat of Kazuma Okamoto. García made a strong throw, though Springer was safe on the play. Immediately after the throw, García was in obvious pain. He received attention from the training staff and then departed the contest.
Two days later, the Phillies placed García on the 60-day injured list, indicating they knew pretty quickly that he was going to miss at least a few months. Now he’ll miss even more than that and won’t be a factor in the second half.
The news closes the book on Philadelphia’s planned switch in right field for 2026. They had Nick Castellanos in that position for many years and he was still signed through this year but it was clear all offseason that they would be moving on from him before the campaign kicked off. They signed García to a one-year, $10MM deal in December and then released Castellanos in February.
That pivot has not worked out. Moving on from Castellanos was sensible enough. His numbers had been declining for a while and he hit .191/.221/.339 for the Padres this year. But García couldn’t meaningfully patch that spot. He hit .195/.270/.329 while striking out at a 32.4% pace before this shoulder injury wiped out the rest of his season.
The Phils are reportedly on the look for outfield help and they will almost certainly do something prior to the trade deadline. They still have Brandon Marsh and Justin Crawford in two spots. Marsh is having a good season but Crawford has a .238/.293/.330 line in his first 222 career plate appearances. Since García’s injury, the Phils have been using a platoon of Gabriel Rincones Jr. and Edmundo Sosa to cover another spot. Sosa has a .234/.269/.378 line on the year and Rinconces has a .071/.071/.286 line through 14 plate appearances.
For García, it’s a rough position to be in. He had some strong seasons with the Rangers from 2021 to 2023, helping that club win the World Series in the final of those three seasons. His numbers slipped from there, as he slashed .225/.278/.397 over the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Texas decided to move on, non-tendering him after last year.
His strong defense and his past success were still enough to get him his aforementioned deal with the Phillies but he performed poorly and will still be recovering from this surgery when the offseason begins. It’s widely expected that there will be a lockout at the start of December, like there was in the 2021-22 offseason. That winter saw a rush of transactions before and after the lockout. If that happens again this time, García might be trying to draw some attention amid that frenzy with some kind of showcase after he is recovered.
Photo courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images
Phillies Select Bryse Wilson
The Phillies announced that they have selected Bryse Wilson and recalled righty Seth Johnson. Left-hander Tanner Banks was optioned in a corresponding move. There was already one vacancy with righty Andrew Painter being optioned yesterday. The 40-man had a vacancy for Wilson with outfielder Adolis García being placed on the 60-day injured list last week.
Wilson, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in the offseason. He was released in June, perhaps after triggering an opt-out clause, but then re-signed with the club on a new minor league deal. It was reported yesterday that Wilson had triggered an upward mobility clause in that deal.
It’s understandable why the Phils would give him a roster spot. The back of their rotation has become an issue. They started the year with both Taijuan Walker and Andrew Painter in rotation spots. When Zack Wheeler was able to return from his surgery recovery, Walker was jettisoned. Painter held his spot but his struggles mounted. His outing yesterday bumped his earned run average for the year to 7.06, which led Philly to kick him to the minors.
The Phils have a strong front three in Wheeler, Cristopher Sánchez and Jesús Luzardo. They aren’t getting good results from Aaron Nola but he’s not going anywhere due to his contract and his stature within the organization.
Wilson could be a candidate to fill Painter’s spot, at least for a while. Wilson has some big league track record, both as a starter and a reliever. He has appeared in 163 games, 57 of those being starts. He has logged 461 innings, allowing 4.82 earned runs per nine. His 16.6% strikeout rate isn’t strong but he has limited walks to a 7.5% pace.
This year, his results have been trending up. For the year as a whole, he has a 6.29 ERA in 54 1/3 Triple-A innings, but with most of the damage coming early on. He has a 3.94 ERA since the start of May, with a 24.1% strikeout rate, and his past three outings have been scoreless.
The Phils are reportedly searching the market for back-end starters. They have an off-day on Friday, so they may not need to decide on a fifth starter right away. For now, Wilson gives them a length option in the bullpen, but he could perhaps make a start next week if they don’t find any other options. Alan Rangel and Jean Cabrera are spot starter candidates on the 40-man, although Cabrera has a 9.39 ERA on the farm this year. If Wilson is nudged out of the club’s plans at any point, he is out of options.
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Bryse Wilson Triggers Upward Mobility Clause
Right-hander Bryse Wilson has exercised an assignment clause in his minor league contract with the Phillies, report Charlotte Varnes and Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The Phils will need to make him available to other teams, and if any other club is willing to add him to the MLB roster, Philadelphia either needs to promote him themselves or let him depart.
Wilson has spent the entire season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. He was briefly granted his release in early June, presumably after exercising an opt-out, but quickly re-signed on a new minor league deal. That’s common practice, as it allows a player to negotiate a higher salary and/or additional upward mobility opportunities that weren’t present in the first contract.
The 28-year-old Wilson has a 6.29 earned run average across 54 1/3 innings for the IronPigs this season. His 23.5% strikeout rate and 52% grounder percentage are better than the ERA would imply, as Wilson has been victimized by a .373 average on balls in play. His recent results have been better. The 6’2″ righty hasn’t allowed a run over his past 12 innings.
Wilson has a near-5.00 ERA over 461 MLB innings. He has logged most of his big league work in long relief while holding a Triple-A rotation spot all season. Philadelphia granted Wilson his release rather than add him to the MLB roster a couple weeks ago, but they’re now without a fifth starter after optioning Andrew Painter on Wednesday afternoon.
Phillies Have Explored Trades For Back-End Starter
The Phillies have made some early inquiries on the trade front for a back-of-the-rotation starter or swingman, report Charlotte Varnes and Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The back half of Philadelphia’s rotation has been an issue all season, culminating in today’s move to demote rookie righty Andrew Painter to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
The top half of Philadelphia’s rotation is excellent. Cristopher Sánchez has an argument as the best pitcher in the National League. Zack Wheeler has made a remarkable return from thoracic outlet surgery, posting a 2.01 ERA while averaging more than six innings over his first 10 starts. Jesús Luzardo has rebounded after getting blown up a few times in April.
Aaron Nola is locked into the fourth rotation spot by default, but he’s carrying an ERA around 6.00 for a second consecutive year. Nola has also become too homer-prone in the back half of his career. The final rotation spot now seems wide open. Alan Rangel and Jean Cabrera are their only other healthy starters on the 40-man roster.
Rangel has six games of MLB experience, all out of the bullpen. He has a 3.74 ERA with solid strikeout and walk marks across 65 Triple-A frames this year, but he has only completed five innings in one of his last five minor league starts. Cabrera has an ERA north of 9.00 in Double-A and Triple-A. Minor league signees Tucker Davidson and Bryse Wilson have underwhelming numbers in Lehigh Valley.
It’s understandable the Phils would want to gauge the market and see if any viable back-end starters shake loose. Actually making a move is easier said than done this far ahead of the deadline. The Rockies are the only team more than 10 games out of a playoff spot.
Colorado would surely listen on any starter, but their entire rotation has gotten hit hard. Old friend Michael Lorenzen has an ERA above 7.00. Tomoyuki Sugano had an alright ERA early in the year but ugly underlying marks. Ryan Feltner has pitched well in three of his last four outings and is the most desirable trade target in the Rox’s rotation. He’s arbitration-eligible for two more seasons after this one and would probably require the Phillies to part with a mid-tier prospect.
Antonio Senzatela has found a new gear working out of the Rox’s bullpen. An acquiring team could try to lengthen him back out midseason, but that’d be a gradual process over a few weeks. Senzatela might also wind up being Colorado’s top deadline trade chip, so they could prefer to hold him until late July to try to drum up more interest from teams seeking bullpen help.
The Angels, Royals, Giants, Tigers and Red Sox are all double digit games under .500 and trending toward selling. Those teams don’t have much expendable back-end starting pitching. There’s no shortage of bigger name trade candidates (e.g. Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Sonny Gray, Reid Detmers, José Soriano, Robbie Ray), yet they’re not likely to be seriously available until close to the deadline if at all.
Drew Anderson, who began his MLB career in Philadelphia almost a decade ago, is having a nice year in long relief for Detroit. They could trade him but have a $10MM club option if they’d prefer to keep him around for 2027.
Philadelphia isn’t going to want much to do with Adrian Houser’s two-year, $22MM contract. Tyler Mahle is a rental on a $10MM salary and could be available already, but he has an ERA above 6.00 due to an elevated home run rate. Mahle is also on the injured list with a left hamstring strain; he made a rehab start yesterday and should be back on the MLB roster in a week or two. The Nationals have a couple former starters (Brad Lord, Mitchell Parker) pitching in long relief. Impending free agent David Peterson has had a miserable year with the Mets and is a clear change-of-scenery candidate.
The likeliest outcome is that the Phillies monitor the DFA market for the next month until trade season really gets underway and puts more mid-rotation names on the market. Randy Dobnak and Connor Seabold are among depth arms who have changed teams this week.
The current state of Triple-A pitching is bleak. Miami has kept lefty Braxton Garrett in the minors for the majority of the season. Cardinals non-roster lefty Bruce Zimmermann has pitched pretty well in Triple-A for a second straight year without much of a path to a rotation spot in St. Louis. Carlos Carrasco has managed decent results while bouncing on and off the Braves’ roster all year. The Phillies (or any other team) could break that cycle by placing a claim the next time Atlanta designates him for assignment, but they’ve already passed on multiple chances to do so.