As MLB spring training camps get underway this week, there are a mass of veteran free agents still looking for homes. With many likely to sign minor-league deals as camps ramp up, two former Philadelphia Phillies relievers have found new teams, or rather one new team, for 2025.
On Tuesday, Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that right-hander Dylan Covey and left-hander Jake Diekman both agreed to minor-league contracts with a non-roster invitation to spring training with the division rival Atlanta Braves. The pair was spotted, along with Chad Kuhl, in Braves' spring camp.
Chad Kuhl, Jake Diekman and Dylan Covey are in camp as non-roster invitees — now official and happened after Braves announced NRIs.
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) February 11, 2025
Ex-Phillies Dylan Covey, Jake Diekman get another shot on minor-league deals with Braves
Covey, 33, has already had an eventful offseason traveling around the National League East. After opting free agency following the 2024 season, he was one of the first free agents to sign a new contract, inking a one-year deal with another NL East rival, the New York Mets. Despite looking like he had a job lined up all winter, the Mets designated him for assignment earlier this month.
Covey's last major league action came in 2023, when he posted a 3.77 ERA and 1.51 WHIP in 43 innings split between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Phillies. Despite looking like he would be a piece of the bullpen puzzle in 2024, Covey's season was derailed by injury. He pitched well in his minor league action after returning to the mound but never got a sniff with the big club last year.
Diekman, 38, was a Phillies 30th-round draft pick in 2007 and spent the first three and a half season in red pinstripes, from his debut in 2012 until he was traded as part of the Cole Hamels trade to the Texas Rangers partway through the 2025 season. With the Phillies, Diekman pitched to a 3.84 ERA over 173 1/3 relief innings.
Since his time in Philadelphia, Diekman has been around. He appeared in games with the Rangers, Arizona Diamondbacks, Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays before spending 2024 with the Mets. He struggled in his 32 innings in New York last season, posting a 5.63 ERA and 1.47 WHIP before being released in early August.
Now both former Phillies will have a chance to make the Braves bullpen, which was a strength of the club in 2024. So at this time, there's a small chance the Phillies will see them on the mound in the NL East again this season.