Matt Moore signing could finally bring balance to the Phillies rotation

Outside of bringing in a starting shortstop and continuing to bolster the bullpen, the other major area of need that the Philadelphia Phillies needed to address following the re-signing of J.T. Realmuto was that of the starting rotation. The team was initially projected to run Vince Velasquez as the fifth starter, and with Spencer Howard set to be on an innings limit in 2021, a guy like Ivan Nova could ultimately see some run as a starter as well.

While the Phillies first three starters are very good, their back-end definitely had some major questions to it.

The Phillies have snagged LHP Matt Moore on a one-year deal.

While he still has a fair amount of questions surrounding his game as well, the recently signed Matt Moore brings an element of balance to the team’s rotation that they haven’t experienced in quite some time. Moore, an All-Star way back in 2013, was signed to a one-year deal worth approximately $3 million, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic.

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Moore had a strong first couple of seasons in the majors with the Tampa Bay Rays, before ultimately being traded away and fizzling out. Following rough stints with the Giants, Rangers, and Tigers in 2017, 2018, and 2019, Moore took his talents overseas to Japan, where he was able to rebuild his status as a major league quality arm. Pitching in the “Japan Pacific League“, Moore posted a 2.65 ERA and 1.103 WHIP across 78.0 innings. His K/BB rate sat at an impressive 4.05, and his K/9 rate at a 10.3

Moore throws a four-seam fastball that sits around 92-93 mph, a curveball with a knuckle grip, a cutter that tends to generate quite a bit of swings and misses, and then a changeup that sits in the mid to low 80s as well. His curve tends to generate a healthy number of fly balls compared to the league average, while his cutter and changeup are his main strikeout pitches.

Moore is the definition of a “bounce back candidate”, someone who the Phillies are ultimately hoping plays above that $3 million evaluation. Moore pitched in the AL East when both Joe Girardi and Dave Dombrowski worked there, and newly promoted GM Sam Fuld even played with him for a bit in Tampa Bay. The Phillies front office/coaching staff has a unique connection to Moore, making the attraction to the left-hander make a little more sense.

$3 million isn’t anything to scoff at in today’s current free agent landscape. The Phillies must believe Moore has some gas left in the tank, which isn’t an outlandish thought considering the fact that the veteran is still just 31 years old. If Moore can end up being a reliable back-of-the-rotation lefty for Joe Girardi this season, he’d provide a real sense of balance to a rotation that’s been dominated by right-handers for the past few seasons.