Inside The Phillies

New Philadelphia Phillies Reliever Reveals Thoughts on New Role

New Philadelphia Phillies reliever Carlos Estevez is coming in with the perfect attitude.

Tyler Maher

Jun 28, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Carlos Estevez pitches.
Jun 28, 2024; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Carlos Estevez pitches. / Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports
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Carlos Estevez is joining the Philadelphia Phillies at a good time.

After spending the first eight years of his career with a pair of moribund franchises (the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Angels), Estevez is finally joining a winner. The Phillies have the best record in baseball and are hungry to win the World Series this year after falling short the last two Octobers.

While Estevez had the ninth inning to himself with the Angels, he understands that may not be the case on his new team. Accordingly, he's willing to adapt and pitch wherever Rob Thomson asks him to.

In a pregame interview before Monday's series opener against the New York Yankees, Estevez spoke to the media about his new role with Philadelphia.

“Honestly, in a group like this, however I can put a grain of sand to this beautiful beach that these guys built here, I’m down for whatever, man," Estevez said.

Besides being an absolute gem of a quote (someone's been spending a lot of time on the West Coast), Estevez's comments reflect the ideal attitude and approach that any team would want a newcomer to have. The Phillies have already played outstanding baseball for four months, so they don't need a savior or someone who's going to rock the boat. They just need a team player who's willing to fit in and do his job to help the team win.

Prior to being traded to Philadelphia, Estevez was 1-3 with a 2.38 ERA, a 0.74 WHIP and 20 saves for the Angels this year. He was an All-Star last year, so he's already earned some impressive accolades.

But now that he's 31 and has spent nearly a decade in the big leagues, Estevez is done with losing. He wants to win, and he sounds willing to do whatever he can to help.

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Tyler Maher

TYLER MAHER

Tyler is a writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. He grew up in Massachusetts and is a huge Boston sports fan, especially the Red Sox. He went to Tufts University and played club baseball for the Jumbos. Since graduating, he has worked for MLB.com, The Game Day, FanDuel and Forbes. When he's not writing about baseball, he enjoys running, traveling, and playing fetch with his golden retriever.

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