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2019 Phillies in review: The bullpen reinforcements

The mid-season acquisitions of Mike Morin and Blake Parker did not propel the Phillies to the playoffs

Miami Marlins v Philadelphia Phillies
Blake Parker wasn’t awful, but he also wasn’t cut out for a key role in the bullpen
Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images

The numbers

Mike Morin: 28 IP, 12.7 K%, 6.8 BB%, 5.79 ERA, -0.3 bWAR

Blake Parker: 25 IP, 31.6 K%, 6.1 BB%, 5.04 ERA, 0.0 bWAR

The good

They were cheap - Both men were members of the Twins, but the team soured on them. Morin was traded for cash, while Parker was released and then signed by the Phillies.

They were durable - Morin appeared in 29 games after joining the team in mid-July, while Parker got into 22 games after arriving on August 1.

They weren’t the worst relievers on the team - Both pitchers pitched well after first joining the team.

My nephew really likes Parker - I don’t know why, but he insisted that Parker was the team’s best reliever.

The bad

As it turns out, winning teams like the Twins don’t often let high-quality relievers go for basically nothing. Perhaps because they were so frequently called upon, there were a few rough outings for both men. It was especially notable when they were used in high leverage situations.

The future

Both pitchers were outrighted by the Phillies and opted to become free agents. It’s possible that the team will attempt to re-sign them as depth pieces, but if either one ends up pitching key innings in 2020, then something has (once again) gone horribly wrong.