It is no secret the Philadelphia Phillies need pitching help, both starting depth and in the bullpen as they continue to recover from losing the arms of Carlos Estévez and Jeff Hoffman last offseason. In a free agency period filled with question marks about where the Phillies may turn, the options only grew after the deadline for tendered contracts passed on Nov. 21.
The intriguing group of non-tendered big leaguers added some more possibilities for Philadelphia and other clubs to take advantage of the new pool of buy-low pitchers. Let's hone in on some of these options that Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and the front office might be interested in.
All three pitchers we've chosen offer upside but carry risk. Still, this could benefit the Phillies by adding pitching depth without using much payroll. They've already made similar depth moves by re-signing Michael Mercado and bringing in Colin Peluse. While none of these moves would qualify as a major offseason splash, fans should welcome any of the three as a potential valuable depth addition.
3 low-risk, high-reward free agent pitchers available for Phillies this offseason
Mark Leiter Jr., RHP
The Phillies could consider a reunion with former Phillies pitcher and draft pick Mark Leiter Jr., who will turn 35 before Opening Day. The one-time starter has found more success as a reliever and fits the type of move Dombrowski has made before, most recently with Joe Ross last winter.
Leiter makes sense for the Phillies as a potential middle-innings arm who also has experience closing out games. He is someone the team could likely sign to a team-friendly deal, which is helpful as the Phillies wait to see what happens with Kyle Schwarber. He is coming off a season with a 4.84 ERA in 59 games, so he has work to clean up no question but has also shown potential at times.
Alek Manoah, RHP
Alek Manoah is more of a minor-league contract type of move. After a fantastic 2022 season in which he contended for the AL Cy Young Award, injury setbacks derailed his career, and he hasn’t been the same since. He spent the end of this past season with the Atlanta Braves, continuing to work his way back from hybrid Tommy John surgery. Turning 28 in January, Manoah has a career 3.34 ERA but hasn't thrown in the big leagues since early 2024.
The right-hander would need to be open to starting the year in the minors as rotation depth or transitioning to the bullpen in hopes of reviving his career. At this point, he doesn’t have many alternatives. This would be another classic Dombrowski “prove-it” signing of a veteran arm looking to bounce back, similar to last season’s Jordan Romano move. Manoah has started in all 75 games of his career so a bullpen move would be new but something that could save a career that's outlook has drastically changed.
Evan Phillips, RHP
Evan Phillips is the most exciting option with the highest upside and has been the most successful when healthy out of the bullpen. His biggest issue in the big leagues has been his injury history. Most recently, the 31-year-old had Tommy John surgery in May after seven scoreless outings with the Los Angeles Dodgers this past season.
The right-hander will miss the start of the 2026 season but might be in play for the end of the year. When healthy, he has been outstanding. In 2022, he posted a 1.14 ERA in 64 games, followed by an impressive 2.05 ERA in 2023 and a 3.62 ERA in 2024.