4 Former Phillies Who Will Fail Miserably With Their New Teams in 2024

Michael Plassmeyer

The 27-year-old left-handed pitcher has made three appearances in the majors, all with the Phillies in 2023. Bouncing back and forth between the Triple-A and the major league, Plassmeyer failed to make a name for himself in the Phillies bullpen, posting a 0-2 record along with a 9.82 ERA. Despite showing plenty of potential early on in his career as a fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft, Plassmeyer has been a minor league mainstay throughout his career.

During his time in the minors for Philadelphia, he struggled with injuries and when he was able to take the mound, wasn't very impressive, posting a 5.05 ERA in 16 appearances for Lehigh IronPigs.

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed him to a minor league deal this offseason. The Pirates obviously need pitching depth with plenty of injuries in their bullpen. However, it still seems highly unlikely that Plassmeyer will break into the rotation.

Craig Kimbrel

The future Hall-of-Famer made sense for the Phillies as a short-term solution last season and he started the year very well, making another All-Star appearance. However, the bottom fell out completely during the NLCS as he blew two leads.

The veteran completely fell apart in Games 3 and 4, being the first Phillies pitcher to lose back-to-back playoff games since Mitch Williams in the 1993 World Series.

Yet somehow, the 35-year-old closer got a bigger deal this offseason than he did last when he signed a one-year, $13 million deal with the Baltimore Orioles. The right-hander will be the highest-paid Orioles player since 2019.

Yes, he is one of the best closers ever and ranks eighth in AL/NL history with 417 career saves. But he is also past his prime and is not as dependable as he used to be. However, the Orioles are paying him like he is. If they expect him to replace Felix Bautista, the no. 1 closer in the game, who will be out for the season with a Tommy John surgery, they are in for a rude awakening.