The Philadelphia Phillies Acquired left-handed reliever Gregory Soto from the Detroit Tigers on Saturday on a five-man trade. The teams announced the deal on Saturday afternoon, with the Phillies against Soto and the infielder Cody Clemens in exchange for outfielder Matt Vierlingutility drive Nick Matonand receiver Donny Sands.
Soto, 28 next month, has spent the better part of the past two seasons serving as Detroit’s closest. Overall, he amassed a 3.34 ERA (121 ERA+) and a 1.84 takedown-to-walk ratio, with that figure weighed down by his savagery. Indeed, Soto’s walk rate in the 2021-22 seasons (13.7%) ranks second among 22 pitchers with at least 30 saves in that span; alone Aroldis Chapmancurrently a free agent, has walked a higher hitting share.
Nonetheless, the Phillies likely found Soto intriguing in part because of his combination of trickery and deception. He averaged over 98 mph on his fastball last season. He also throws from an unusual release point, one that sees him get a deep extension from a forearm lunge. This combination no doubt helps explain why he hit more than one batter per inning for his career.
Soto is under the control of the team throughout the 2025 season, making him a potential long-term candidate when it comes to relief options.
Soto is the third notable addition the Phillies have made to their bullpen this winter. Dave Dombrowski and Sam Fuld had already signed Matt Strahm and Craig Kimbrel. The latter’s arrival led Dombrowski to suggest that the Phillies would likely enter the season with a closer committee approach.
“To not say [Kimbrel] won’t close the games or say it can’t happen, but it was important to discuss this before,” Dombrowski told MLB.com. “We feel like we have the makings of a really good bullpen. We have quite a few guys who can throw a one-point lead late in the game, which we think is extremely important. “
It’s unclear if the Phillies will change their philosophy with Soto in tow. It seems more likely that manager Rob Thomson enters the season with the intention of mixing and matching based on match and availability.
Clemens, 26, is best known as one of Roger’s sons. He made his league debut last season, hitting .145/.197/.308 (45 OPS+) in a 56-game sample that saw him bat 25 more times than he did. market. Clemens has shown good raw power on the left side in the minors, but his whistling propensity limits his offensive ceiling. He thinks he sees the action as a reserve bat.
The Tigers, for their part, received back three hitters who are expected to see major league action in the 2023 season.
Vierling, 26, is the most accomplished of the trio. He’s hit .260/.309/.374 (91 OPS+) in 151 major league games over the past two seasons while seeing most of his action in center field. The Tigers ostensibly view Vierling as an upside down game based on how hard he hits the ball. Last season, his outing speed ranked in the 86th percentile on average and in the 82nd percentile on maximum, suggesting there’s more juice in his bat than his slant line indicates.
Maton, 25, had an impressive 34-game streak with the Phillies last season, taking his career to .254/.330/.434 (109 OPS+) in 216 trips at the plate. Beware that Maton swings and misses a lot for a player without large scale energy production. Namely, his odor rate in 2022 was 35.4%, well above the league average of 24.7%.
Sands, 26, played three games last season for the big league club. In 57 Triple-A games, he hit .309/.413/.428 with almost as many walks as strikeouts. The Tigers have two other receivers, Eric Hase and Jacques Rogerson their 40-man roster, suggesting Sands could open the year at the minors if the Tigers don’t make another trade or suffer an injury before the start of the season.
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