The Phillies have made their first trade of the Dave Dombrowski era. It's not a big one, but the roster rebuild is on the way. After Adam Morgan and Jose Alvarez hit free agency, the Phillies are in need of some left-handed relief. The Phillies added an arm that could potentially be part of the 2021 Phillies bullpen.
ESPN's Jeff Passan reported the Phillies have acquired Jose Alvarado from the Tampa Bay Rays:
Three-way trade with the Dodgers, Phillies and Rays.
Phillies get hard-throwing lefty reliever Jose Alvarado from TB.
Dodgers get lefty Garrett Cleavinger from Phillies.
Rays get infielder Dillon Paulson and a PTBNL from Dodgers.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 29, 2020
The Phillies had to give up a lefty reliever of their own to make the deal.
Garrett Cleavinger came to the Phillies in the trade that sent Jeremy Hellickson to the Baltimore Orioles. The Phillies also took back outfielder Hyun Soo Kim and his contract to make the deal. Cleavinger would make one appearance for the Phillies in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, allowing one earned run and recording two outs. This came after Cleavinger pitched to a 4.35 earned run average in 34 relief appearances in Double-A Reading in 2019.
As for Alvarado, he made nine appearances in 2020, going 0-0 with a 6.00 earned run average. Alvardo is a combined 2-15 with a 3.36 earned run average in 149 career appearances for the Rays, spanning the last four seasons. Alvarado's best season came in 2018, when in 70 appearances he pitched to a 2.39 earned run average. Alvarado is best-known for his high-mileage fastball and sinker.
There will be more to follow, but this could be the first addition to the 2021 Phillies.
