The Philadelphia Phillies may not have gotten the set-up man most fans were hoping for at the trade deadline, but the two relievers they did get should go a long way toward patching up the middle innings between the rotation and Jhoan Duran. After all, both Brooks Raley and Caleb Kilian were have among the finest seasons of their respective careers prior to being acquired.
Well, about that. Both made their debut with the team on Wednesday night, just two days the Phillies traded for them. To say it was a disaster would be offensive to disasters; they combined to record just four outs while allowing seven runs (six earned), losing a game wherein the rest of the pitching staff combined to toss 9.2 innings of three-run ball.
Better days are surely ahead for the relief duo, but the Phillies can't afford for their lone pitching staff additions to take a while to acclimate to life as part of a contending team. Raley and Kilian hold outsized importance to their playoff chances.
The two relievers the Phillies acquired at the trade deadline's Wednesday night against the Nationals:
— John Stolnis (@JohnStolnis) August 6, 2026
Brooks Raley: 1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 HR
Caleb Kilian: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 5 runs (4 ER), 2 BB, 1 K
Allowed 7 of 11 batters to reach base, with Raley holding a 1-run lead and Kilian…
Success of Brooks Raley, Caleb Kilian will determine how Phillies' 2026 deadline is graded in the future
Raley (1.96 ERA, .556 OPS allowed to left-handed batters) and Kilian (3.59 FIP, 27.5% strikeout rate) have bankable skills that the Phillies surely have plans to exploit over the coming months.
Still, neither is anywhere close to infallible, which makes it a little difficult to buy into the trade deadline strategy. It's no surprise that Brady House and Jacob Young, two right-handed hitters, did the primary damage against Raley, nor was it shocking to see Kilian come undone by a pair of free passes and poorly located pitches early in counts. In other words, they're talented, but their weaknesses are as obvious as their strengths.
Having a closer like Jhoan Duran can cover up a lot of holes in the bullpen, but the Phillies' armor isn't impenetrable. They rank 24th in reliever ERA (4.41) despite placing fifth in reliever fWAR (4.4). Naturally, nearly half of that latter figure is owed to Duran; remove him from the equation, and the team would have the 18th-most valuable bullpen in the league.
There were a lot of premium reliever targets to be had this summer, which is why it's frustrating to assess Dave Dombrowski's haul. Raley absolutely deserves his flowers for the success he had with the Mets this year, but when guys like Luke Weaver and Jeff Hoffman are also moved, it's clear why Phillies fans were disappointed with the front office this week.
Perhaps the decision to focus on offense and build a deadline around Luis Arraez will prove prescient come October, but it's taken just one game to prove why going halfway in on a bullpen remodel may not have been the smartest idea. Raley and Kilian will have to be better in order to keep the regret of an entire city at bay.
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