Phillies GM Matt Klentak traded for Enyel De Los Santos, and the return is impressive
Phillies 13th-rated prospect by MLB Pipeline Enyel De Los Santos made his sixth start of the season, and yet again did not disappoint.
The 22-year-old righty threw seven shutout innings, allowing just one hit, two walks, and collecting six strikeouts. De Los Santos’ seven-inning performance was his longest of the season after failing to pitch through the sixth more than once.
The sole prospect acquired for shortstop Freddy Galvis from San Diego this offseason, De Los Santos has impressive early, pitching with a combined ERA under one for the IronPigs.
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Despite his impressive start with Lehigh Valley, don’t expect De Los Santos to arrive in Philadelphia anytime soon. While injuries to Jerad Eickhoff, Mark Leiter Jr., and Ben Lively have caused a shakeup one month into the season, Zach Eflin and Nick Pivetta have performed above expectations. Pair them with aces Aaron Nola and Jake Arrieta, and the space in Philadelphia’s major league rotation is limited.
Vince Velasquez will continue to get every opportunity start in the major leagues despite his rollercoaster career. Consistently fighting high pitch counts, Velasquez has worked out of the seventh in 20 of his last 22 starts dating back to last season.
Velasquez throws an average of 3.96 pitches per plate appearance, tied for the 24th out of 135 qualified major league starters, and 29.3% of his pitches that are strikes are fouled off. He’s also below the league average in first-pitch strikes with just over 59%.
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Eickhoff will likely take a spot in the rotation when he returns from a lat injury, but Gabe Kapler hasn’t committed to that idea.