The Philadelphia Phillies’ rotation keeps getting better.
The Phillies are acquiring hard-throwing left-hander Jesús Luzardo in a trade with the Miami Marlins, according to reports, in a deal that could make the Mets’ path to a National League East title a bit more difficult.
The Marlins are set to receive a pair of minor-league prospects in shortstop Starlyn Caba and outfielder Emaarion Boyd, according to MLB.com. Miami is reportedly also sending minor-league catcher Paul McIntosh to the Phillies.
Luzardo went 3-6 with a 5.00 ERA in 12 starts during an injury-riddled 2024 season but was among MLB’s best strikeout artists over the previous two years.
His strikeout rate of 10.58 per nine innings ranked sixth among pitchers who totaled at least 250 innings over 2022-23, and he pitched to a 3.48 ERA during that stretch. He struck out 208 batters in 178.2 innings in 2023.
But Luzardo, 27, spent two weeks on the injured list this past April/May with left elbow tightness, and he returned to the IL in June with a lumbar stress reaction, ending his season. His four-seam fastball averaged 95.2 mph in 2024, down from 96.7 mph in 2023.
Last week, Luzardo said he felt fully healthy.
“[I’ve] been able to go through my normal offseason progression: throwing, running, starting to get off the mound,” Luzardo said at a Miami Marlins Foundation event, according to MLB.com. “Feeling really good [with my] elbow, back, whole body, and just really gearing up for Spring Training and eyeing down that Opening Day to be 100% full-go, which for now, everything feels really good, and we are full-go.”
Luzardo is set to join a Phillies rotation already featuring right-handed ace Zack Wheeler, who finished as the NL Cy Young Award runner-up last season; lefty Cristopher Sanchez, who finished 10th in the voting; righty Aaron Nola, who finished 11th; and lefty Ranger Suarez, who was an All-Star.
Wheeler, Sanchez, Nola, and Suarez each made at least 27 starts, eclipsed 150 innings and pitched to a 3.57 ERA or lower. Philadelphia’s rotation ERA of 3.81 was the third-lowest in the NL.
The Phillies went 95-67 and won the NL East before losing to the Mets in the NLDS in four games. Their trade for Luzardo came less than two weeks after the Mets signed superstar slugger Juan Soto to a record-setting 15-year, $765 million contract that they hope will shift the balance in the division.
The Peruvian-born Luzardo had long been the subject of trade rumors, and the money-conscious Marlins agreed to part with him with two years of team control remaining.
Caba, a 19-year-old from the Dominican Republic whom the Phillies signed for $3 million, was Philadelphia’s No. 4 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. Boyd, a 21-year-old with elite speed, ranked No. 23 on the Phillies’ prospect list.
