3 Closer rumors surrounding Phillies now that Hector Neris is an Astro

Are the Phillies going to trade for Craig Kimbrel?

Craig Kimbrel has been on the Phillies’ minds for months; they were rumored to be going for him at the midseason trade deadline.

However, the White Sox nabbed him from their crosstown-rival Cubs instead. The only problem? They already had a closer, so they tried to use Kimbrel as a set-up man. It didn’t work, and his dazzling 0.49 ERA over 39 appearances with the Cubs devolved into a 5.09 ERA over 24 appearances with the Sox.

Despite his struggles on the south side, the Sox picked up Kimbrel’s 2022 option. Their strategy in doing this is to find a team like the Phillies who need what the Sox don’t, and made a trade. This way, rather than Kimbrel hitting free agency this winter and leaving the Sox with nothing, they can recoup some of their losses.

The Phillies’ farm system is pretty barren and low-ranking, but insiders are speculating that have enough to put together an attractive package for Kimbrel.

At 33 years old, Kimbrel wouldn’t necessarily be a part of the Phillies’ long-term future. He’ll be a free agent next winter, anyway. But of all the pitchers to take a risk on this offseason, Kimbrel is one of the best bets they can make. He’s an eight-time All-Star, former Rookie of the Year, and World Series champion.

The Phillies have been speaking with free-agent reliever Mychal Givens

According to NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury, the Phillies have had “substantive” talks with Mychal Givens.

After spending the first seven years of his career with the Orioles, Givens was traded to the Rockies at the 2020 trade deadline. He was excellent before the trade (1.38 ERA over 12 appearances), but struggled after (6.75 ERA over 10 appearances).

Givens rebounded this season, and did well enough that he was once again traded at the deadline. After posting a 2.73 ERA over 31 appearances, the Rockies sent him to the Reds, where repeated history by struggling with his new team. Over 23 appearances, he had an elevated 4.22 ERA.

Overall, Givens is a solid pitcher every year. His lifetime ERA is 3.41 over 360 games. He’s finished 113 games and earned 29 career saves.

However, one thing the Phillies should be cautious about is that Givens, while still getting the job done, has been more hittable. He set new career-highs in both hits and walks per nine in 2021, each by a significant margin. Meanwhile, his strikeouts per nine decreased. Phillies relievers struggled with walks this year, and it almost always came back to bite them.

Proven postseason competitor Kenley Jansen would be a perfect fit for the Phillies

For the last 12 years, Kenley Jansen wore Dodger blue. Now, at 33 years old, he’s a free agent with a career 2.37 ERA over 701 games. He was also a back-to-back-to-back All-Star between 2016-2018, a two-time Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year, and has a World Series ring.

Jansen is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. Over 69 appearances, he posted a 2.22 ERA, closed 52 games, and earned 38 saves. He struck out 86 batters over 69 innings.

As a member of the uber-successful Dodgers, Jansen also comes with an enormous amount of postseason experience. He has a career 2.13 ERA over 57 postseason appearances, 92 strikeouts over 63 1/3 innings, and 19 career saves when it mattered most.

With his experience and skill, it would be incredible to have Jansen in red pinstripes next season. He’d bring competitive energy to a team that is sorely lacking.