At Wednesday’s Philadelphia Sportswriters Association gala, comedian Joe Conklin made a joke on former Phillies closer Craig Kimbrel, which made the audience laugh.
Even though Kimbrel had terrible postseason luck, there were times in what ended up being his only season with the Phillies when he performed exceptionally well. That enabled the Phillies to get through a summer in which Seranthony Domínguez was largely unsuccessful and José Alvarado missed two periods due to injury. Kimbrel was a workhorse out of the bullpen above all else; with 71 appearances this season, it was his highest since 2011.
Granted, making 71 appearances during the regular season probably contributed to a postseason meltdown for the 35-year-old Kimbrel. But now that Kimbrel is a member of the Baltimore Orioles, manager Rob Thomson will have to make up for the 69 innings Kimbrel logged in 2023. Some of that could still come externally, although both Josh Hader and Robert Stephenson signed elsewhere Friday. One way or another, there will need to be multiple somebodies who step up internally to help make up for Kimbrel’s loss.
It’s tough, because there were times … well, for most of the year, he pitched very well,” Thomson said of Kimbrel before Wednesday’s PSWA dinner. “But it was just a situation where we’ve got [Orion] Kerkering … we’ve got some other guys that don’t have [minor-league] options that have been really good for us in the past. So I think we can fill that void, although Craig was very good for us.”
Kerkering, like Kimbrel, hit a wall in the NLCS. Had one of the two been able to come through against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Phillies probably would have played in the World Series for the second consecutive season.
There’s every reason to think the 23-year-old will play a key role in the Phillies bullpen in 2024, although it would probably be wise to remember he began last season at Single-A and made just four regular season appearances between Triple-A Lehigh Valley and the majors. In other words, hope for the best, but don’t plan like there’s no possibility that he struggles at some point this season.
One veteran reliever the Phillies absolutely need to be able to rely on more consistently in 2024 is Gregory Soto. Acquired in a trade last offseason from the Detroit Tigers, Soto had an uneven first season with the Phillies. His 4.62 ERA would lead you to believe he struggled. The reality is 23 of the 31 earned runs he gave up last season came across eight multi-run outings. Those outings were bad, no question. But Soto was often dominant in his 61 other appearances in 2023. Left-handed batters hit just .127 off of the southpaw. If he can limit the blowups, Soto could take on some of the eighth and ninth-inning opportunities now available because of Kimbrel’s departure.
Thomson said this week that the Phillies believe visa issues that caused Soto to be three weeks late to Spring Training last year won’t be a problem this time around. That’s among the factors that the Phillies hope will help the 28-year-old pitch at a higher level this season.
“I think it’s going to help immensely,” Thomson said. “And the fact that it’s his second year here, so he’s a little more comfortable. He knows the guys, knows Clearwater, knows the complex. I think you’re going to see an uptick with him.”
