Surprising Challenger Emerging for Philadelphia Phillies Free Agent Star Closer

The Philadelphia Phillies will have to fend off a high number of suitors if they want to retain their star closer.

Sep 25, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Carlos Estevez (53) reacts after pitching in the ninth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies are moving through the offseason without making a ton of huge moves to this point, but there are still questions as to who is going to be actually on the roster this year.

Of the many questions surrounding the Phillies, one of the biggest comes in the bullpen.

Having already lost Jeff Hoffman to the Toronto Blue Jays, deadline acquisition Carlos Estévez looks set to be next.

The 32-year-old is coming off what was by far the best season of his career both with the Los Angeles Angels and Phillies. This performance came at the right time as he was set to hit free agency.

In 54 appearances, Estévez put up a 2.45 ERA with a 0.909 WHIP, both marks which were the best in his eight years in the league. With 26 saves, he was a key piece out of both bullpens he pitched for and has demonstrated the ability to be able to close out games in high leverage situations, a main reason he is so sought after.

Both the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs have been linked heavily to Estévez, but now a new suitor is emerging.

According to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, the Detroit Tigers are showing serious interest in a closer, and Estévez may be at the top of their list.

Per Petzold's report, the Tigers are one of at least six teams who are interested in the right-hander, and given that the Cubs and Reds are already known to be in pursuit, it can start to be narrowed down where to where he will end up.

There is certainly the argument to be made that Estévez's 2024 season was at least somewhat of an outlier from the rest of his career, and paying him a contract which will likely exceed a $10 million AAV may not be the wisest financial decision.

There's also the school of thought that when Philadelphia needed him the most in the NLDS against the New York Mets, he gave up the biggest home run of the year to Francisco Lindor in a moment which ultimately ended their season.

Still, the Phillies traded assets for Estévez and his overall body of work with the team was very solid. At the very least, they should make a competitive offer to try to keep him.

However, the longer this sweepstakes goes on, the more teams will enter and the more difficult and unrealistic bringing the closer back actually becomes.