Luis Avilan the final piece to the Phillies playoff puzzle
Another piece has been added to the Phillies, and it could be the final one for this season
Last week I looked at whether the Phillies had made their final deal of the summer after picking up Justin Bour. Despite adding Bour, Wilson Ramos, Aaron Loup, and Asdrubal Cabrera it still felt like there was one more deal to be made to solidify the Phillies as playoff contenders.
Specifically, I noted that the organization needed one more arm, not a superstar like Raisel Iglesias, but a consistent arm like Scott Eyre was in 2008 who came in quietly and pitched effectively.
Luis Avilan appears to have been that final piece Matt Klentak and the Phillies needed to find this season.
In 58 games for the White Sox, who are 30 games under .500, Avilan was 2-1 with a 3.86 ERA.
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More importantly, Avilan held lefties to a .214/.276/.286 slash line, dramatically better than his number against righties, who hit nearly .300 off him this season.
Philadelphia was in dire need of a lefty specialist after Loup and fellow southpaw Austin Davis found themselves on the disabled list this month, leaving Adam Morgan as the only lefty available.
Formerly one of the organization’s top pitching prospects, Morgan hasn’t lived up to expectations with a career 5.00 ERA in 128 games.
Davis strained his lower back, and Loup suffered the same injury to his pitching forearm, leaving a bullpen with mixed success with a mix of talent.
This season the Phillies bullpen has allowed an average of 4.29 runs per game, 14th in baseball. They’ve converted 73% of their save opportunities, second best in the National League, and allow only 28% of inherited runners to score, the sixth-best rate in baseball.
Avilan has inherited 41 runners this season, the fourth-most in baseball, but has only allowed six to score, a 15% inherited runner percentage that’s just 2% behind the best pitcher in baseball with at least 30 inherited runners.
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Avilan will not be the ultimate savior for the Phillies bullpen, but he’s another much-needed piece acquired at a very low cost that will fit into what this team is trying to put together for a playoff run.