6 more former Phillies players still without a job as spring training looms

There are a lot of free agents still on the market, including these former Phillies who haven’t found a home for 2025 with spring training looming.

Former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Noah Syndergaard
Former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Noah Syndergaard | Elsa/GettyImages
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Noah Syndergaard 

It is kind of disheartening to see how the once all-mighty Noah Syndergaard (a.k.a. Thor) has fallen. After finishing fourth in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2015 and becoming a first-time All-Star in his sophomore season, Syndergaard appeared to be headed towards stardom as the next big MLB ace with the New York Mets. 

However, injuries began to take a toll on Syndergaard, most notably a torn UCL in 2020 that ultimately required Tommy John surgery to repair. As a result, Syndergaard hasn’t been the same dominant pitcher he once was. Nevertheless, he appeared to have a decent bounce-back season in 2022 when he posted a solid 3.83 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 15 starts with the Angels. 

That was enough to convince the Phillies to recruit him for the playoff run that year, as they acquired him from the Angels at the trade deadline. Syndergaard finished with a 4.12 ERA and 1.32 WHIP with 31 strikeouts in 54 2/3 innings with the Phillies during the regular season. He went on to perform admirably during the playoffs, posting a 3.24 ERA and 0.84 WHIP, with one walk and eight strikeouts in 8 1/3 innings pitched in four postseason appearances. However, the Phillies moved on from him following the conclusion of the World Series despite his decent showing.

Things have definitely changed a lot since then. Syndergaard was out of baseball this past season since no teams picked him up in free agency last offseason. However, he is determined to make an MLB comeback ahead of the 2025 season as he plans to showcase himself once again with hopes of catching on with an organization. As Syndergaard could likely be had at just a minimal cost, perhaps the Phillies should even re-consider him as a valuable pitching depth insurance option.

Overall, all of these former Phillies candidates may fall in a slightly lower tier in free agency in comparison to the previous five that we touched on. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that they could still play a useful role on any aspiring team in the league. As a result, don’t be surprised that some, or perhaps even all of them, will end up with a new home by the time all is said and done. Either way, hopefully they will all get the chance to further their MLB careers and provide an impact with their respective new teams.

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