Phillies Trade Idea Lands Guardians' All-Star Closer Emmanuel Clase Amid Bullpen Woes
Phillies Trade Idea Lands Guardians' All-Star Closer Emmanuel Clase Amid Bullpen Woes originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen has emerged as a top priority, with the trade deadline looming. After losing key left-hander Jose Alvarado to an 80-game suspension, replacement closer Jordan Romano has battled inconsistencies, making the need for a dependable late-inning arm ever more present.
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Yahoo Sports MLB Insider Russell Dorsey suggests the Phillies make a surprising deadline move and target Cleveland Guardians' closer Emmanuel Clase.
Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase (48) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants during the ninth inning at Oracle Park.D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images
'Last season, there wasn't a better reliever in baseball than Emmanuel Clase,' wrote Dorsey. 'He was so good that he finished third in AL Cy Young voting, a sign of his sheer dominance during the regular season.' Despite those accolades, Dorsey notes that Clase 'struggled in last year's postseason, and thus far, those struggles have carried into 2025.' The three-time All-Star is 4-1 with a 3.82 ERA across 32 appearances this season — hardly the kind of dominance fans have come to expect.
That said, the former All-Star appears to have put his early-season struggles behind him. 'Over his past 15 outings, he has a 1.88 ERA with seven saves and has looked more like the two-time AL Reliever of the Year,' Dorsey wrote.
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With Clase seemingly back to his best and locked into a team-friendly deal through 2026 — with options for 2027 and 2028 — Dorsey writes, 'This could be the perfect time for a contender to woo the Guardians into trading their longtime closer.'
Acquiring one of baseball's elite ninth-inning arms will not come cheap. But for a Phillies team with serious World Series ambitions and an obvious need at the back end of the bullpen, Clase could be exactly what they are looking for.
Related: Phillies Get Good News on Potential Trade For $50 Million Slugger
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
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