Section 215
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Philadelphia Phillies: Five players to reunite with Dave Dombrowski

By George Stockburger

BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: Craig Kimbrel #46 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates a victory after the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays with teammate Christian Vazquez #7 at Fenway Park on April 15, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The Red Sox won 5-3. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA - APRIL 15: Craig Kimbrel #46 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates a victory after the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays with teammate Christian Vazquez #7 at Fenway Park on April 15, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The Red Sox won 5-3. (Photo by Rich Gagnon/Getty Images) /
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Philadelphia Phillies executive Dave Dombrowski loves known commodities.

No matter what you’re buying, having a known commodity is always an advantage, and it’s something Dave Dombrowski, President of Baseball Operations for the Philadelphia Phillies, is all about.

As we previously highlighted, Dombrowski has a history of acquiring players he’s very familiar with. He’s done it with Gary Sheffield, Miguel Cabrera, David Price, and other high-profile players.

Coming into his new role with the Phillies, Dombrowski is tasked with retooling a team that’s failed to meet three years’ worth of playoff expectations. Will his trend of going with players he’s had before carry over into his retooling of the Phillies?

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I’ve gone back and looked at Dombrowski’s recent Red Sox and Tigers teams to find five players he’s had who could help the Phillies in 2021 and beyond.

Philadelphia Phillies need to bring back former Tiger Jose Alvarez

Reliever Jose Alvarez was signed as a free agent by David Dombrowski in November 2012 as a minor league free agent. At this point, Alvarez hadn’t made his big league debut yet and was just 24-years-old when he came up for the Tigers.

Detroit tried Alvarez out as a starter, but he had a 4.62 ERA in his first five starts despite throwing seven strikeouts to only three hits in his big league debut. Alvarez moved to the bullpen, and in March 2014 was traded to the Angels for Austin Romine.

In Los Angeles, Alvarez quietly became one of the best left-handed relievers in baseball before making his way to Philadelphia in December 2018. His success carried over to the Phillies, and he was the lone bright spot in their bullpen last year with a 1.42 ERA before an unfortunate injury put him out for the year.

With such a depleted bullpen it only makes sense for the Phillies to re-sign Alvarez. He’ll turn 32 in May and has aged well for a pitcher, making him an ideal back of the rotation arm once again for the Phillies. He was set to make just under $3 million last year before baseball cut back salaries, so he’s an affordable option on either a one or two-year deal.

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