Philadelphia Phillies Bolster Bullpen in Bold Trade Idea From Former MLB Executive

The Philadelphia Phillies have had a few glaring areas of weakness emerge over the first month of the 2025 MLB season.

Their lineup has a few more holes than anticipated, with players struggling early on, such as third baseman Alec Bohm. Center field remains an issue with Brandon Marsh struggling out of the gate.

With Edmundo Sosa and Johan Rojas playing so well, there isn’t as much urgency to make a change to the lineup right now.

The same cannot be said about the bullpen, where the president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, has already admitted the team has a pressing need for another right-handed reliever.

Major losses were suffered in the offseason when Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez both departed in free agency, agreeing to multi-year contracts with the Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals.

The Phillies didn’t do a ton to replace them over the winter, signing Jordan Romano, who was non-tendered by the Blue Jays, and Joe Ross.

Orion Kerkering, who dominated in 2024, was an in-house option to be elevated to more high-leverage situations. He earned the opportunity with how he performed last year.

Unfortunately, nothing has gone to plan with the right-hand side of the bullpen, with Romano and Kerkering both struggling to regain their previous excellent form.

It is a massive concern for a team with aspirations to contend for a World Series as their three most reliable relief pitchers currently are all southpaws; Jose Alvarado, Tanner Banks and Matt Strahm.

On the lookout for right-handed relief help, Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required) has pitched a trade idea to address their need.

Philadelphia could make a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals, acquiring their closer, Ryan Helsley, in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Mick Abel.

“Helsley, an impending free agent, is not expected to re-sign with the Cardinals, who should deal him between now and the trade deadline. Dombrowski and Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak are two of the longest-tenured front office executives and have had a strong relationship for decades. So, how about a trade of Helsley for Abel straight up?” the former MLB executive wrote.

Helsley has been one of the best relief pitchers in baseball since 2022. He has made the National League All-Star team twice and led the MLB with 49 saves last year.

His ERA of 3.75 thus far this year isn’t nearly as impressive as what he has done the last few years, but he would be a massive upgrade for the backend of the bullpen, giving manager Rob Thomson another option to split up his lefties.

Swapping Helsley for Abel straight up could be seen as a steep asking price, but Bowden has suggested that this deal be done by giving the Phillies a chance to extend Helsley before completing the trade.

Locking him in long-term would make surrendering one of their top prospects easier to swallow than trading him away for a few months' rental.

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