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Three Reliever Targets for the Philadelphia Phillies at the MLB Trade Deadline

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Mike Lipinski
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Mike Lipinski Sports Editor

Mike Lipinski has been covering Philadelphia sports since 2005. Previous stops include Section 247 Sports, My MMA News, and more. He has been a part of the Sports Talk Philly team since 2019. He is the editor of Philadelphia Phillies content, co-editor for college football covering mainly the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and dabbles in all other sports. Follow him on social media channels -Twitter & Threads- @TheMikeLipinski

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Sports Editor

Published21 Jul 2025

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The Philadelphia Phillies are in the hunt for another trip to Red October and will now be focused on re-tooling the ballclub as the 2025 MLB trade deadline approaches. The Phillies are reportedly looking for controllable bullpen arms to secure a unit that has been anything but spectacular. Here’s a look at three relievers that could find themselves in Phillies pinstripes on or before the July 31 MLB trade deadline.

RHP Felix Bautista

  • Current Team: Baltimore Orioles
  • 2025 Stats: 1-1 | 19 SV | 2.60 ERA | 34.2 IP | 50 K | 1.13 WHIP
  • Career Stats (2022-Present): 13-7 | 67 SV | 2.01 ERA | 161.1 IP | 248 K | 0.97 WHIP

A former MLB All-Star (2023), Felix Bautista is the exact type of right-handed arm the Phillies need in their bullpen. The 30-year-old is primarily a three-pitch pitcher with a sinker, splitter, and a slider. He ranks in the top 10% of the following StatCast categories: XBA (.158), XSLG (.236), WOBA (.218), K-rate (35.2%), and xERA (2.71). Bautista averages 97.2 MPH on his sinker and has nasty off-speed stuff with an 88.9 MPH sinker and 85.5 MPH slider. 

Moreover, Bautista is extremely affordable. Because of a later start, illness, and the COVID-19 pandemic, Bautista didn’t debut until 2023 during his age 29 season. Baltimore bought the first two years of his arbitration eligibility for only $2MM total. He will be due a raise, but the Phillies could choose to buy out the final two seasons of arbitration eligibility and an early year of free agency.

 

RHP Griffin Jax

  • Current Team: Minnesota Twins
  • 2025 Stats: 1-4 | 20 H | 3.83 ERA | 42.1 IP | 67 K | 1.18 WHIP
  • Career Stats (2021-Present): 23-28 | 15 SV | 3.97 ERA | 333.0 IP | 373 K | 1.13 WHIP

A former starter, Griffin Jax has become an integral piece to the Minnesota Twins bullpen over the past few seasons. Since moving to the bullpen in 2022, Jax has a 3.22 ERA with a 31% strikeout rate. Primarily a three-pitch pitcher – sweeper, changeup, and four-seam fastball–  Jax doesn’t rely on the heat. In fact, he only throws his fastball 15.8% of the time with his sweeper (44.2%) doing most of the dirty work. His strikeout rate has risen nearly seven-percentage points over his 31% average sitting at 37.9% for the season. That puts him in the top 1% of pitchers in baseball. 

Like Felix Bautista, Jax started a bit later than most players having spent three-seasons at the Air Force Academy. Minnesota chose to settle with Jax on a one-year/$2.3MM contract for the 2025 season. He still has two years of arbitration eligibility available and could be considerably less expensive than some names on the market. 

 

RHP Mason Miller

  • Current Team: Athletics
  • 2025 Stats: 1-2 | 19 SV | 4.04 ERA | 35.2 IP | 57 K | 1.07 WHIP
  • Career Stats (2023-Present): 3-7 | 47 SV | 3.22 ERA | 134.0 | 199 K | 1.01 WHIP

Mason Miller has been the hot name on the reliever market since earning a 2024 American League All-Star nod as a 25-year-old. The Gardner-Webb product routinely ranks in the top ten percent in a slew of StatCast categories. Known for his 100-plus MPH fastball, Miller is a traditional two-pitch closer with a slider to compliment his heat. Miller has been using his slider more often, 43.5% to 35.0% in 2024, to mixed results. His ERA has ballooned to 4.04 this season and his walk rate is in the bottom one percent seven percent of eligible pitchers. Despite the blip, Miller is significantly better than most pitchers in the Phillies bullpen. 

Like Felix Bautista and Griffin Jax, Miller is cheap from a dollar standpoint with four years of arbitration eligibility remaining. He made a measly $765,000 this season with the Athletics. However, because of that arbitration eligibility, Miller is likely to cost the most in the prospect department. The Phillies would likely have to send multiple Top 10 organization prospects to the A’s to obtain Miller.