The Philadelphia Phillies rotation continues to improve.
The Phillies are acquiring left-hander Jesús Luzardo in a trade with the Miami Marlins, according to reports, in a deal that could make the Mets’ path to a National League East title a little more difficult .
The Marlins are expected to receive two minor league prospects, shortstop Starlyn Caba and outfielder Emaarion Boyd, according to MLB.com. Miami also reportedly sent minor league catcher Paul McIntosh to the Phillies.
Luzardo went 3-6 with a 5.00 ERA in 12 starts during an injury-riddled 2024 season, but was among MLB’s best strikeout performers over the previous two years.
His strikeout rate of 10.58 per nine innings ranks sixth among pitchers who have totaled at least 250 innings during 2022-23, and he has pitched to a 3.48 ERA during that time. sequence. He has struck out 208 batters in 178.2 innings in 2023.
But Luzardo, 27, spent two weeks on the injured list last April/May with left elbow tightness, and he returned to the IL in June with a lumbar stress reaction, effectively ending his season . His four-seam fastball averaged 95.2 mph in 2024, up from 96.7 mph in 2023.
Last week, Luzardo said he felt completely healthy.
“[I’ve] “I was able to follow my normal progression in the offseason: throwing, running, starting to get off the mound,” Luzardo said at a Miami Marlins Foundation event, according to MLB.com. “I feel really good [with my] elbow, back, whole body, and I’m really getting ready for spring training and hopefully this opening day will be 100% complete, which for now, everything feels really good, and we’re thoroughly.
Luzardo is set to join a Phillies rotation that already includes ace right-hander Zack Wheeler, who finished second in the NL Cy Young Award last season; left-hander Cristopher Sanchez, who finished 10th in the voting; right-hander Aaron Nola, who finished 11th; and left-hander Ranger Suarez, who was an All-Star.
Wheeler, Sanchez, Nola and Suarez have each made at least 27 starts, eclipsed 150 innings and pitched to an ERA of 3.57 or less. Philadelphia’s rotation ERA of 3.81 was third lowest in the Netherlands.
The Phillies went 95-67 and won the NL East before losing to the Mets in the NLDS in four games. Their trade for Luzardo came less than two weeks after the Mets signed superstar slugger Juan Soto to a record $765 million, 15-year contract that they hope will shift the balance in the division.
Luzardo, of Peruvian descent, had long been the subject of trade rumors, and the money-conscious Marlins agreed to part ways with him with two years of team control remaining.
Caba, a 19-year-old from the Dominican Republic who the Phillies signed for $3 million, was Philadelphia’s fourth-ranked prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. Boyd, a 21-year-old with elite speed, ranked 23rd on the Phillies’ prospect list.
