Philadelphia Phillies: 3 sneaky good free agent signings to make
By David Esser
Anthony DeSclafani, SP/RP
Once regarded as a crucial piece to the Cincinnati Reds’ pitching rotation, right-hander Anthony DeSclafani had a major down year in 2020. His ERA spiked all the way up from 3.89 (2019) to 7.22, he was moved to the bullpen, and he ultimately failed to crack the team’s playoff roster.
However, despite his brutal stretch of games this past season, there’s plenty of reason to believe that he’ll bounce back in 2021. He battled some back issues early on in the regular season, and it was such a small sample size (33.2 IP) that it’s hard to call it a realistic view of who DeSclafani is as a pitcher.
On top of that, his average fastball velocity got up to a career-high 94.9 MPH. Despite his struggles, that’s a pretty promising sign for a guy who only turns 31 in April.
For a team that needs to make multiple additions without spending a lot of money, taking a flyer on someone like DeSclafani makes a ton of sense. He has plenty of experience as a serviceable starter, and he could also slide into a bullpen role with his increased velocity (if he doesn’t work out as a starter).
DeSclafani is also from New Jersey, and the Philadelphia Phillies are expected to land current Reds’ assistant Caleb Cotham as their next pitching coach. It truly is a match made in heaven.
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Like previously stated, the Philadelphia Phillies have a plethora of roster holes to fill and they reportedly don’t want to spend a lot of money to fill said holes. In order to do this, bounce-back candidates and low-risk/high-reward type signings need to be emphasized. The three names I’ve mentioned would be a great starting point.