DETROIT, MI – JULY 13: Pitcher Evan Phillips #59 of the Los Angeles Dodgers sits in the dugout after giving up two runs and allowing the Detroit Tigers to tie the game in the ninth inning at Comerica Park on July 13, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. The Tigers defeated the Dodgers 11-9 in the 10th inning. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images)
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The Los Angeles Dodgers don’t have to do much to enter next season in a strong position to win their third straight World Series championship.
The team will have the majority of its superstar roster back, with Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and Shohei Ohtani returning to lead the batting order and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow set as leading members of the rotation.
On Wednesday, news surfaced that the team also agreed to a reunion with veteran utility player Miguel Rojas in another sign of its plans to run it back next season with largely the same group of players.
However, one area of the team that will need some significant change seems to be the bullpen.
“Their bullpen is coming off a season in which it posted a 4.27 ERA, 21st in the majors,” Alden Gonzalez wrote for ESPN. “A solidified closer, or at least one leverage arm capable of handling the ninth inning on a championship team, will be what they spend the most time on in the coming weeks. And though the trade option remains their ideal path, free agency is primed with standout closers.”
Even after late-inning pitchers Raisel Iglesias returned to the Atlanta Braves and Devin Williams opted to join the New York Mets, there are several available free agents who might serve as a closer upgrade for the Dodgers. Most notably, reigning All-Star Edwin Diaz is available after opting out of his contract with the Mets.
And while the Dodgers could be exploring a deal for an addition like Diaz, it seems they also have their sights set on a reunion for a reliever that they cut just a few weeks ago.
“Another reliever on the Dodgers’ radar, per a source: Evan Phillips, who the Dodgers elected to non-tender last month rather than pay him a projected $6.1 million in his final season of arbitration,” Major League Baseball insiders Fabian Ardaya and Katie Woo reported for The Athletic. “Since arriving in Los Angeles in a 2021 waiver claim, Phillips, 31, has been one of the better relievers in the sport, carding a 2.22 ERA in 201 appearances in a fireman role before undergoing Tommy John surgery this past summer.”
Despite his success with the franchise, Phillips was cut from the Dodgers because he is not expected to return from his surgery until well into next season at the earliest. But it seems the Dodgers could be searching for a way to bring him back at a discounted price. And, given their needs in the bullpen and expectations of a deep playoff run, that could be a major winter win.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterchawaga/2025/12/04/dodgers-eye-surprise-reunion-with-veteran-after-harsh-cut-insiders/
