The Philadelphia Phillies have swung a big deadline day trade

The Philadelphia Phillies have traded for Brewers RHP David Phelps.

It was no secret that the Philadelphia Phillies were planning on “buying” leading into this year’s MLB trade deadline, it was just a matter of “when” and not “if”. With just around 30 minutes to spare before the phones went cold, Matt Klentak and the Phils went out and added some extra bullpen help.

According to Ken Rosenthal and Matt Gelb of The Athletic, the Phillies have landed former Brewers RHP David Phelps. The 33 year old veteran is in the midst of an impressive 2020 campaign, in which he’s currently posting a 2.77 ERA, a 0.692 WHIP, and a K/9 rate of 13.9. Without question, he enters Philadelphia as the team’s best overall reliever at the moment.

Phelps has bounced around the league the last few years, but has overall stayed relatively consistent. During stints with Chicago, Toronto, Seattle, and Miami as a reliever, Phelps hasn’t seen his season ERA climb over a 3.50 since 2015 (where he was a starter).

More from Section 215

• 4 Eagles on the Bubble Who Have Clinched Their 53-Man Roster Spots
• Best Pennsylvania Sportsbook Promos: Win $650 GUARANTEED Bonus PLUS $100 off NFL Sunday Ticket
• 3 Punters the Eagles Must Target to Replace Arryn Siposs
• Cowboys Trey Lance Trade Proves How Screwed They Are With Dak Prescott
• Devon Allen Took Britain Covey’s Job on Eagles

Phelps relies primarily on a cutter, sinker, and a knuckle curve when pitching, occasionally rotating in a 95 mph four-seam fastball. Phelps is fairly good a creating fly balls and groundouts, and has just recently developed into a strikeout machine on the mound. For a Phillies team that has so massively struggled with getting big outs, Phelps should surely help in that regard.

What is yet to be determined is where Joe Girardi will utilize Phelps in the bullpen. The team has been running recently acquired Brandon Workman out as the stereotypical closer, but he’s looked far shakier than the team would’ve hoped. Phelps has very limited experience closing ballgames, so it’s likely that he will slot in as a the team’s high-leverage/set-up arm, with Workman staying in the closer spot.

Phelps also has a $4.5 million team-option for the 2021 season. If he ends up working out for the Phillies during the second half of the season, he would be a prime candidate to hang around for next year as well. The Philadelphia Phillies bullpen problem isn’t a short-term issue, so having controllable arms on the roster is huge moving forward.

It hasn’t been reported who the Phillies are sending to the Brewers in exchange for Phelps just yet, so make sure your following site editor and expert David Esser on Twitter (@DavidEsser_) for all your Phillies transaction news.