The Philadelphia Phillies made their biggest splash so far this offseason to address their bullpen needs for 2025. This past week, the Phillies reeled in former two-time All-Star Jordan Romano on a value one-year, $8.5 million deal to help offset the losses of Carlos Estévez and Jeff Hoffman to free agency. In doing so, Philadelphia indicated that they are comfortable with the relief corps they have now going forward, suggesting that they weren’t specifically going to look for more relevant bullpen upgrades for now (subscription required), per The Athletic.
But whenever there is an opportunity to add some valuable depth to the organization at a negligible cost, it is something no team should pass up when presented to them. The Phillies are no different as on Friday, they signed veteran right-handed pitcher Nabil Crismatt to a minor league contract to serve as important insurance for their bullpen.
Phillies sign veteran pitcher Nabil Crismatt as crucial bullpen depth
Crismatt made his MLB debut back in 2020 and has seen time in various organizations, including the New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers. Despite putting up some solid numbers over his five-year MLB career, outside of his 2023 season, he has somehow struggled to maintain a full-time gig in the majors for the past couple of seasons.
Nabil Crismatt, Wicked Changeups. 👌 pic.twitter.com/al4Pjkms8e
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 8, 2022
In total, Crismatt has compiled a 9-6 record with a 3.71 ERA and 1.30 WHIP, with 54 walks and 162 strikeouts in 177 innings pitched over 114 career MLB appearances. More significantly, he posted a 1-1 record with a tidy 2.57 ERA and 1.00 WHIP, with six strikeouts in seven innings of work during the early parts of the 2024 season with the Dodgers.
However, Crismatt was designated for assignment in mid-May and subsequently moved on to the Rangers and eventually back to the Padres organization over the course of the remainder of the season. But for his brief stint that he had with Los Angeles, he now has the distinction of being a World Series champion as a result.
However, for the most part, Crismatt struggled during the minor league portion of his 2024 campaign, posting a 5.81 ERA and 1.61 WHIP, giving up a whopping 51 earned runs on 99 hits with 28 walks and 75 strikeouts in 79 innings of work over 27 games that included 16 starts. The fact that Crismatt was used partly as a starter during his minor league stints means in effect, it gives Philadelphia some much-needed starting pitching depth as well.
Nevertheless, the Phillies certainly hope that he will resemble the solid form he has shown more consistently in the big leagues than the struggling one seen in the minors.