As we head into the 2024 MLB season, the Philadelphia Phillies have the bulk of their players back from last year to make another legitimate run to the World Series. For the majority of them, they have their roles and spots on the team more or less secured for the upcoming season. But for a few of the players, 2024 could be their make-or-break season with the ballclub depending on how they perform.
Here, we take a look at five players who are fighting for their futures heading into the 2024 season.
Yunior Marte
Yunior Marte was acquired by the Phillies from the San Francisco Giants during the 2022-23 offseason. With a fearsome fastball that constantly registers in the high 90s along with a perfect complementary slider in the 80s, Marte has all the tools to be a strong, effective short-relief option out of the bullpen.
On top of that, looking at his advanced statistical metrics, his fastball velocity ranks in the 95th percentile in the league. He has also shown the ability to generate low exit velocities, high ground ball rates and whiff rates above the 80th percentile in the past couple of seasons. It has been quite surprising that he hasn’t fostered as much success as expected in the majors.
In 2023 with the Phillies, Marte pitched to a less-than-stellar 5.03 ERA with a 1.63 WHIP, giving up 22 earned runs, including six home runs, 17 walks, and 38 strikeouts in just 39 1/3 innings in 40 appearances. His ineffectiveness led him to spend some time in the minors, where he performed much better, with an impressive 1.80 ERA and 1.05 WHIP, with 24 strikeouts in 20 innings.
On the plus side, Marte has gotten off to a strong start this spring, having given up just two hits, two walks, and no runs in four appearances. With hopefuls Orion Kerkering and Michael Rucker entering the bullpen picture for 2024, along with incumbents Andrew Bellatti and Connor Brogdon looking to regain their spots on the major league roster, Marte will certainly have his work cut out for him if he wants to be in the Phillies’ plans this season and potentially even beyond that.