It is no secret that the Philadelphia Phillies need to upgrade the bullpen with a minimum of one arm, but hopefully more in the two-to-three range. With the rumor mill circling with just under three weeks until the July 31 MLB trade deadline, one of the most recent names to float to the surface is Reid Detmers of the Los Angeles Angels, who has been tabbed as a good fit for the Phillies (subscription required), according to The Athletic's trade rankings.
The Phillies and Angels have been trade partners in recent history, with notable deals involving Brandon Marsh, Noah Syndergaard, Carlos Estévez last trade deadline, and the most recent offseason trade of Scott Kingery.
This is not the upgrade for late-inning relief, but with the emergence of a good Tanner Banks, Detmers becomes an option for that third left-handed pitcher spot. The former starting pitcher turned reliever could steal the spot of Joe Ross, who has struggled this season, which opens the door for Detmers as the middle-innings man for the rest of the season.
Reid Detmers could offer Phillies improvement in the bullpen in multiple areas at trade deadline
For those who might not know the name, Detmers has been with the Angels for five years now, starting his career as a starting pitcher before moving to the bullpen in 2025. He made 75 career starts before finding himself in 39 games this season, all in relief.
After a slow start to the 2025 season, in an adjustment period to relief work, Detmers has been fantastic since mid-May. He went 22 consecutive outings without allowing an earned run before his most recent two outings, after an impressive June with an ERA of 0.00. The 26-year-old has a 4.25 ERA on the season but, since May 9, has a 1.29 ERA with 37 strikeouts and 13 walks in 28 innings.
His overall Statcast numbers have been better this season out of the bullpen. His barrel rate is down from a year ago; from 10.7 percent, he finds it down to 8.1 percent out of the bullpen. Detmers' whiff rate of 31.7 percent is a career high, as is his strikeout rate of 28 percent, which is well above the MLB average of 21.9 percent. His xSLG at .363 is also his career low from last season at .404.
Reid Detmers since May 9 (25 appearances):
— Brent Maguire (@bmags94) July 8, 2025
26 innings
2 runs (1 earned)
0.35 ERA
1.82 FIP
36 strikeouts
13 walks
18 hits
His 0.35 ERA is the lowest among the 298 pitchers with at least 20 innings in that time. pic.twitter.com/AHpawTBt2H
There is no question that Detmers has been way more effective out of the bullpen. The No. 10 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft has started to adjust well to his bullpen role with the Angels and is in a spot he could continue to improve on if he is set on holding that role down. Detmers is a much-improved player who has quickly appeared as a trade candidate for the Angels. In that outstanding June of an ERA of 0.00, hitters batted just .159 off the left-hander.
The nice part is that he is under team control through the 2027 season with a low cost of only being owed $579K in 2025. This seems like a move Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski would be comfortable making and one fans have seen in the past, similar to Tanner Banks a season ago: a player they like for what he offers, an improving player, and a cheaper option the team believes can elevate to the next level.
With the uncertainty of José Alvarado’s future with the team as well, trading for Detmers would fill a left-handed spot on the 2026 roster as well. This would be a great upgrade, but fans will agree that it's not the only move the Phillies should make. However, it's a solid option to improve the bullpen at the deadline.