The Philadelphia Phillies are riding a six-game winning streak after sweeping both the Minnesota Twins and Miami Marlins, pulling themselves to within 4.5 games of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East.
Philadelphia has shown significant improvement since the trade deadline, but its bullpen remains an area of concern.
After adding Nestor Cortes on Wednesday, the Phillies made another pitching move Thursday by claiming right-hander Andrew Hoffmann off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Hoffmann, 26, was added primarily to provide additional bullpen depth and was immediately optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, the Phillies recalled infielder/outfielder Felix Reyes from Lehigh Valley and placed him on the 60-day injured list with a right-wrist fracture.
Although Reyes’ injury is an unfortunate development, Philadelphia is hoping Hoffmann can eventually provide another pitching option during the stretch run.
The right-hander has already reached the major leagues but has struggled during his limited opportunities.
Hoffmann owns a 6.85 ERA over 23.2 career MLB innings, including a difficult 7.71 ERA across 11.2 innings this season.
His minor-league numbers have been more respectable, with a 4.69 ERA over 407 innings, although he has also struggled recently, posting a 6.08 ERA in 13.1 innings at Triple-A this year.
Hoffmann was once considered a promising pitching prospect in the Kansas City Royals organization, similar to Phillies pitcher Jonathan Bowlan.
While he does not possess one standout elite skill, he has developed as a relatively well-rounded pitcher.
Philadelphia’s pitching development staff, led by Caleb Cotham, has helped several pitchers improve, giving the organization reason to believe Hoffmann could benefit from a change of scenery.
For now, Hoffmann will remain in the minors while the Phillies continue evaluating their bullpen options.
With Philadelphia surging at the right time and still chasing Atlanta in the NL East, the waiver claim represents a low-risk opportunity to add pitching depth and potentially uncover another useful arm for the postseason push.
