Jeff Hoffman
A serious surprise out of the bullpen in 2023, Jeff Hoffman showed similar prowess to his old namesake Trevor.
In April of this past year, the man who was once a part of the package that sent Troy Tulowitzki to the Toronto Blue Jays was signed to a minor league free agent deal by the Phillies. He quickly made his way to the majors after some live batting practice versus star hitter Bryce Harper during his rehab stint, which impressed him.
While there were definitely growing pains, the 30-year-old extremely overperformed. His .158 batting average against (BAA) was good enough for third-best in the league last year, only behind two premier relievers in Devin Williams and Josh Hader.
Jeff Hoffman's 2Ks in the 4th...and is fired up. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8ua4PaDOl2
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 21, 2023
Over the course of 52 innings, Hoffman worked his way from being a mop-up, low-leverage guy to at points, being a set-up man for Thomson with injuries to stars like Seranthony Domínguez and José Alvarado. The power-righty posted a 2.41 ERA while only allowing 29 hits and striking out 69. He ended the season with a 0.917 WHIP.
Again, Hoffman is another guy who stepped up and was a key catalyst in making the Phillies' bullpen one of the best in the league this past season. He'll be in his last year of arbitration in 2024, looking to continue his excellence from this past year.
Grade: A-