Elite Reliever Predicted To Land With New Team Could Be Philadelphia Phillies Target

The Philadelphia Phillies top two relievers will hit the open market this offseason.

Aug 9, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Andrew Kittredge (27) pitches during the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

If the Philadelphia Phillies were to lose any of their pending free agents this winter, this season will likely be their best opportunity to win a World Series.

The core will remain intact over much of the next decade, but the marginal pieces could be the deciding factor. Two players who hit the open market and fit that description are Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estevez. 

Hoffman and Estevez are clearly the two best right-handed relievers in the Phillies bullpen, so losing both of them in the same offseason would be a major blow.

While this franchise has proven throughout the past few years to be willing to spend money on any player they want, the reality of the situation is that they could lose both of them if things don't go as planned. 

If that were to happen, Philadelphia would have to get creative in replacing them. Replacing both seems nearly impossible because of how valuable they've been, but other relievers on the market could help them win games. 

Of those is Andrew Kittredge of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Kittredge will hit free agency this winter and was recently predicted by Mark Powell of FanSided to play for a different team in 2025.

"The market for productive back-end relief pitchers is abundant. Bullpens have never been more important, as managers watch pitch counts for high-end starting pitchers like hawks, hoping to avoid a dreaded elbow injury late in the season. Kittredge has been dependable for the Cards this season, though he unfortunately will not get to pitch in the postseason. He has a 2.92 ERA in 64 games pitched. If St. Louis can keep Kittredge at an affordable asking price, they will, but this team has too many holes to fill to spend that much money on relief pitching. That's where the Cardinals and Kittredge don't match up."

Kittredge hasn't been as dominant as Hoffman and Estevez in 2024, but he's still posted a 2.92 ERA, 145 ERA+, and has struck out 62 hitters in 64 2/3 innings pitched.

Depending on the price, he'd be the ideal target for a team like the Phillies if they lose Estevez and Hoffman.

A lot has to play out over the next few months, and ultimately, the front office can't focus on it too much with the current task at hand.

However, when the winter months hit, it's something they'll have to figure out.