The Philadelphia Phillies’ recent success has been largely due to a Herculean effort from the pitching staff. Cristopher Sánchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesús Luzardo form a three-headed monster, but the back end of Aaron Nola and Andrew Painter is quickly becoming untenable, with Painter already back in the minor leagues.
If things don’t improve, they’ll need to trade for another starter to shore up that massive weakness. Ponying up for an ace like Tarik Skubal wouldn’t be the wisest use of their thin prospect pool, but there are some middle-of-the-road hurlers that could help them out.Â
Phillies trade deadline must have Dave Dombrowski focused on pitching
Robbie Ray
2021 Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray has never been able to replicate that dominance, but he’s still turning in solid performances for the struggling San Francisco Giants. The 34-year-old is in the final season of an onerous five-year, $115 million contract, and has posted a middling 4.42 ERA across 73 ⅓ innings this year.
Ray isn’t anything special at this point in his career, but his run-of-the-mill production would be a massive upgrade for the Phillies. If they’re willing to take on his remaining salary, he probably won’t cost too much in the way of prospects.Â
Brady Singer
Right-hander Brady Singer has had an up-and-down big league career, vacillating between rock solid and underwhelming seasons. The 29-year-old is in the midst of one of those less-than-impressive campaigns, working to a 5.32 ERA over 66 innings for the Cincinnati Reds. Still, he’s coming off of a not too shabby 4.03 ERA 2025 season, and if he can return to anything close to that form he’d be a boon to the Phillies’ staff.
At 35-38, the Reds face an uphill battle to reach the postseason, and would do well to shed the remainder of Singer’s $12.75 million salary before he reaches free agency this winter. If the Phillies are interested it shouldn’t cost much more than a mid-tier prospect to acquire him for the stretch run.Â
Sonny Gray
Sonny Gray has an excellent 3.56 career ERA to go with three All-Star selections in his 14 big league seasons. At age 36, Gray should presumably be running out of gas, but he’s turned back the clock with a 3.03 mark over 12 starts for the Boston Red Sox.Â
He’s a soft tosser who doesn’t have the greatest peripherals, so he’s due for some regression soon, but the right-hander is still a perfectly capable arm for a contending team. Considering his recent success and the fact that he can be retained via team option for next year, the Sox don’t need to trade him, but they may want to given their tragic 29-40 record. Gray may not come particularly cheap, but he would do wonders for the ailing back end of the Phillies’ rotation.Â
Dustin May
Fiery right-hander Dustin May looked like the second coming when he arrived in the big leagues with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but some wacky injuries have hampered him over the past few years and he’s not quite the same electric arm he used to be. The Dodgers jettisoned him last summer en route to their second consecutive championship, and the 28-year-old was forced to settle for a one-year prove-it deal with the St. Louis Cardinals this season.Â
May has seen a revival in 14 starts for the Redbirds, putting up a 4.75 ERA in 81 â…” frames. The Cardinals shockingly find themselves in a playoff spot at the moment, but general manager Chaim Bloom is not one to rush his team out of a rebuild. If Bloom and the Cardinals stay the course, there’s a good chance they put May on the trade block, and the Phillies could probably acquire him for an intriguing youngster or two.Â
Walker Buehler
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski committed malpractice this past winter when he stockpiled zero starting pitching depth, and that came back to bite his team early on. Last year’s waiver wire pickup Walker Buehler had to settle for a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres during spring training and plenty of Phillies fans wondered why Dombrowski didn’t bring him back for pennies.Â
It was a fair question to ask, as the 31-year-old has worked to a solid 4.14 ERA over 14 starts for the Friars, and has been one of the few constants in a rotation beset by injuries. His Padres are currently over .500 for the season, but have been sinking like a rock and may decide to sell at the deadline if they don’t turn it around. If Buehler is made available he should be gettable for a decent prospect package, and could once again help out the Phils as they barrel towards the postseason.
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