Jeff Hoffman being signed as a starter will take Phillies out of the running

One of the top players leaving the Philadelphia Phillies is relief ace Jeff Hoffman, who hit the open market and immediately became one of the best available arms out there. He and Carlos Estévezbecoming free agents leaves a massive hole in the Phillies' bullpen, but the interest in bringing both hurlers back appears to be there.

It's hard not to see why Hoffman would be welcomed back with open arms. The right-hander made it into a career-high 68 games in 2024, earning 10 saves while posting a 2.17 ERA, 2.52 FIP and 188 ERA+ across 66 1/3 innings of work. He made his first All-Star Game along the way while striking out nearly 13 batters per nine innings on the season.

Jeff Hoffman being signed as a starter will take Phillies out of the running

Hoffman is a highly-ranked free agent in most industry-wide lists as the offseason gets underway. In one such list, ESPN's Kiley McDaniel put him 22nd on his top-50. One nugget in the blurb on Hoffman that is especially noteworthy is that there's "industry buzz" that Hoffman could be the latest pitcher to undergo the reliever-to-starter transition.

Hoffman began his career as a starting pitcher, making a total of 50 starts between 2016 and 2022. He had yet to develop his wipeout slider and spent a solid chunk of that time in Coors Field, so his 5.64 ERA becomes a bit more understandable. His numbers all across the board as a starter were rough, but it's not an insane thought that he could return to that role, just not with the Phillies.

This concept has become increasingly popular over the past few years. Most often, relief pitchers with four- or five-pitch arsenals could conceivably be built up to a starter's workload either gradually during a season or, more commonly, during an offseason where they can train more frequently.

Pitchers such as Jordan Hicks, Seth Lugo, Zack Littell, Reynaldo Lopez and Garrett Crochet are some of the more recent and notable examples.

As far as the Phillies' interest in Hoffman goes, there's little to no shot they'd bring him back as a starting pitcher, especially with the state of their rotation. Should Hoffman eye such a gig in free agency, the Phillies would effectively be removed from the running.

Behind the Wheeler-Sánchez-Nola-Suárez quartet, the Phillies certainly do need another starter to throw into the mix. Taijuan Walker is a gigantic question mark heading into next season and Spencer Turnbull, the perfect fifth starter, has hit the open market alongside Hoffman and Estévez.

Since Hoffman's undoubtedly going to be asking for a (well-earned) significant paycheck from whichever team signs him this offseason, the Phillies would be better off allocating those funds to bringing Estévez back or addressing their need(s) in the outfield.

Don't forget about that Andrew Painter guy, too. Signing Hoffman to the multi-year deal he'll certainly be looking for would do nothing but block Painter, who's gradually closing in on a highly anticipated big-league debut.

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