Dombrowski on whether the Phillies are done with trading and why Estevez was the target Originally appeared in NBC Sports Philadelphia
When Dave Dombrowski put together his list of relief targets at the trade deadline, the next three months weighed more heavily than the next three years.
They looked at relievers with years of club control, far from free agency, but for the Phillies’ president of baseball operations, it came down to one question.
Which available reliever gives them the best chance to win the 2024 World Series?
They came with Angels closer Carlos Estevez, acquired Saturday night for 22-year-old pitching prospects George Klassen and Sam Aldegheri.
“That does play a role and we’ve seen some guys with control. It’s interesting that in our room we have those types of conversations,” Dombrowski said. “The reality is, for me, we wanted the best player that we felt gave us a chance to win this year. So there may have been some guys that we could have gotten with control that we didn’t think would be that good of a pitcher in the postseason. And we just felt like, this time or in the postseason, he’s the right guy.”
Like Jeff Hoffman, Estevez is a free agent after the season.
“We have a lot of information about him in terms of the type of bulldog attitude he has. We have some people who told us he’ll definitely fit into the Philadelphia mentality,” Dombrowski said.
“Probably a bit more than we’d like to pay for a rental, but who knows, maybe we’ll sign him at the end of the year, you never know.”
Estevez has been on a roll since late May, tying together 18 consecutive scoreless appearances and striking out just five of the last 58 batters he’s faced. He has a big fastball that averages 97 mph and a plus slider. He’s saved 20 games this season and 31 last, and though the Phillies have rarely used a standby closer under manager Rob Thomson, Dombrowski expects Estevez to be used a lot in the ninth inning.
“For us, he’s one of the best relievers in baseball from last year,” Dombrowski said. “He’s a guy who can pitch the ninth inning. We’ll see how Topper in particular uses him, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he pitches a lot of ninth innings.”
“We tried to sign him two winters ago when we signed (Matt) Strahm. We ended up losing him at that time, but we like him a lot.”
The trade deadline is Tuesday, July 30 at 6 p.m. The Phillies’ heavy lifting appears to be behind them with Austin Hays filling their vacancy in the outfield and Estevez joining the back end of the bullpen.
Have they finished adding players to the bullpen?
“We feel very comfortable where we’re at and we feel like we have three guys now that can pitch in the backfield from the right side with Estevez, (Orion) Kerkering and Hoffman,” Dombrowski said. “And then from the left side, we feel comfortable as well with (Jose) Alvarado, Strahm and (Gregory) Soto.
“It’s a long way to go until Tuesday night at six o’clock, but we feel very comfortable with where we are right now.”
What about the rotation, which is currently without Ranger Suarez (lower back soreness) and Taijuan Walker (blister)?
“I think we’re comfortable where we’re at and I think part of that has to do with (Tyler) Phillips throwing the ball well for us,” Dombrowski said. “Ranger, we don’t think he’s had a major injury. Walker made big strides today (in a simulated game). It’s the best he’s ever thrown by far, velocity-wise and split-finger-wise.
“I think we’re at a point where we can hold our ground until those guys get back. Again, if something happens to us in the next few days, I’m not saying we would never do it, but it’s not a situation where we have to do it.”
Phillips had another stellar start Saturday, pitching a complete-game shutout against the Cleveland Guardians. He allowed four hits and just two walks in 25 innings with a 2.16 ERA. The Phillies won all three of his starts.
The Phils won the game 8-0, thanks to a seven-run fourth inning that included two-run homers by Bryce Harper and Brandon Marsh and a three-run shot by Kyle Schwarber. They are 65-39 and have a chance to end their three-game losing streak in the series on Sunday afternoon.
