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Philadelphia Phillies: 5 players who might be due for a rough 2021 season

By David Esser

Sep 14, 2020; Miami, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Andrew McCutchen (22) reacts after striking out against the Miami Marlins in the eighth inning of the game at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 14, 2020; Miami, Florida, USA; Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Andrew McCutchen (22) reacts after striking out against the Miami Marlins in the eighth inning of the game at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports /
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Philadelphia Phillies Jose Alvarado
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 14: Jose Alvarado #46 of the Tampa Bay Rays reacts again the Houston Astros during the seventh inning in Game Four of the American League Championship Series at PETCO Park on October 14, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Jose Alvarado, RHP

Another player coming off an injury-riddled 2020, Jose Alvarado is entering a Phillies bullpen that desperately needs some sense of consistency in it. Seeing as one of Dave Dombrowski’s first moves as president of the Philadelphia Phillies was going out and trading for the hard-throwing lefty, the general assumption is that Alvarado projects to play a pretty big role in Joe Girardi’s bullpen this season.

Alvarado was once a top reliever in all of Major League Baseball, as he posted a 2.39 ERA across 64 innings for the Rays back in 2018. However, the left-hander hasn’t really been that same caliber of pitcher since. His ERA spiked up to 4.80 during the 2019 season, and he pitched just nine  regular season innings in 2020 due to injury.

Not only are the Phillies expecting Alvarado to bounce back from his injury struggles, but they’re expecting him to pitch more like the 2018 version of himself as opposed to the 2019 version of himself.

Now for what it’s worth, Alvarado is still just 25 years old so there’s plenty of reason to believe that he can get back into consistent throwing shape. However, like mentioned with Matt Morre previously, being thrust into a division that boasts some of the best left-handed hitters in all of baseball will be no easy task for Alvarado. If the former Tampa Bay Ray can’t get on track early on in 2021, it’ll be a long season for him and the rest of the Phillies bullpen going up against the juggernaut that is the NL East.

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