Gregory Soto

The Phillies on Saturday acquired hard-throwing lefty reliever Gregory Soto from the Tigers in exchange for two fan favorites who helped them win games last ...

This has been an extremely busy offseason for president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and the Phillies after the team lost in six games in the World Series to the Astros. Dominguez and Alvarado saved games for the Phillies last season, Kimbrel is a future Hall of Fame closer but lost his job with the Dodgers in September after an up-and-down six months, and Soto has been a closer the last season and a half. The Phillies also have lefty Matt Strahm, their first bullpen addition of the offseason. He made $722,400 last season and is projected to see an increase to the $3 million range this year. This offseason is his first of three years of arbitration eligibility and he isn't set to become a free agent until after the 2025 season. The Phillies are trading players who helped them win games last season in Vierling and Maton but they're also bringing back a talented reliever in the prime of his career and under club control.

Phillies Acquire Gregory Soto From Tigers In Five-Player Deal ... The Phillies have continued to strengthen their roster following their World Series defeat last ...

The Tigers have [Eric Haase](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/haaseer01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) and [Jake Rogers](https://www.baseball-reference.com/search/search.fcgi?pid=rogerja03,rogers005jak&search=Jake+Rogers&utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) as catching options, but Sands will join that mix and could be in line to serve as a backup. As such, it’s a solid move from Dombrowski to flip the trio for a player that immediately makes their bullpen stronger, plus Clemens helps replace some of the bench depth sent to the Tigers. Utilityman [Nick Maton](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/matonni01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br), outfielder [Matt Vierling](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/v/vierlma01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) and catcher [Donny Sands](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sandsdo01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) are headed to Detroit in the other end of the deal. That was a solid follow-up to his rookie year in 2021, when he hit .256/.323/.385 over 131 plate appearances. Realmuto](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/realmjt01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) ahead of him Sands was never likely to get an extended look in the big leagues. [Gregory Soto](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sotogr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) and utilityman [Kody Clemens](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/clemeko01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) in a trade with the Tigers. Clemens slashed just .145/.197/.308 with five home runs over 127 plate appearances for the Tigers in 2022. Between these bullpen additions and the signings of [Trea Turner](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/turnetr01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br) and [Taijuan Walker](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/walketa01.shtml?utm_medium=linker&utm_source=www.mlbtraderumors.com&utm_campaign=2023-01-07_br), president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski is being typically aggressive as he looks to take the World Series finalist Phillies one step further in 2023. In Alvarado and Soto, they’ve now got two of the hardest throwing left-handers in the game, with both possessing the ability to reach 100mph. Left-handed hitters hit just .225/.328/.277 against Soto, but perhaps most noteworthy is the fact he’s given up just one home run in his career to a left-handed hitter. He’s found plenty of success in that role, working to a 3.57 ERA over 181 1/3 relief innings, including earning trips to the All Star game in 2021 and 2022. Soto (who turns 28 in February) worked to a 3.28 ERA over 60 1/3 innings for the Tigers last season, striking out batters at a 22.8% clip against a 12.9% walk rate.

The Phillies add a two-time All-Star lefty reliever in Soto as well as utility infielder Kody Clemens.

Marsh struggled against left-handed pitchers last season, but Dombrowksi said the organization does not view him as a platoon player and believes he will improve his left-handed splits. Sands had a short stint with the big league club in September but was behind catcher Rafael Marchan in the organization’s depth chart. “We also like some of the youngsters coming up,” Dombrowski said. This was the result of a number of factors; Alvarado himself credits his work with a Soto has closing experience — he recorded 30 saves in 2022 — and has excelled against left-handed batters in his career, allowing a slugging percentage of just .277 over 213 at-bats. Clemens’ versatility is an asset; while he spent most of his time at second base in the Tigers’ minor league system, he played third base, first base, and the corner outfield spots in the Tigers’ system. The Phillies are hopeful that with some guidance, Soto will make a similar transition into a hard-throwing lefty who knows where the ball is going. “A little bit of control problems, a really good arm. Like Alvarado in the first half of the 2022 season, Soto has struggled with command, posting a 14.5% walk rate in 2021, and a 12.9% walk rate in 2022. On a Zoom call with reporters on Saturday, Dombrowski said conversations with the Tigers about Soto began during the winter meetings in December, but no deal came to fruition. [Phillies](https://www.inquirer.com/phillies/) president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said a few days ago he was mostly done with his roster construction this offseason. Soto, a 27-year-old reliever, is coming off back-to-back All-Star seasons with the Tigers, posting a 3.28 ERA in 2022 through 60⅓ innings.

The Philadelphia Phillies acquired two-time All-Star closer Gregory Soto from the Detroit Tigers in a trade Saturday. After adding Soto, here's a look at ...

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The Detroit Tigers have acquired three position players in a trade with the Philadelphia Phillies: Nick Maton, Matt Vierling and Donny Sands.

"We are confident in his ability to help our pitchers in the strike zone, and we also saw some flashes of more juice in the bat in Triple-A. And he feels comfortable on the grass and in the dirt." "(He) is another versatile position player who has a history of controlling the zone," Harris said of Maton. "We also think that he brings some athleticism, versatility and speed that can really enhance our overall offensive unit in 2023," Harris said of Vierling, whose sprint speed ranked in the 97th percentile last season. Vierling, 26, has played 151 big-league games over the past two seasons, hitting .260 with eight homers, 27 walks (6.2% walk rate) and 90 strikeouts (20.7% strikeout rate). Soto has a 4.13 ERA with a 13.1% walk rate and 23% strikeout rate across 186 games (seven starts) in parts of four MLB seasons. "The bullpen was an area of strength for us, but we have to address the areas of weakness, too," Harris said. "We have to reshape the offense. "Two of them have performed in the big leagues. Over the past two seasons, has a 3.34 ERA and has recorded 48 saves in 52 opportunities for an elite 92.3% save rate. "All three players have performed at a high level in the upper minor leagues," Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said Saturday. [Gregory Soto](https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sotogr01.shtml), who has served as the Tigers' closer for the past two seasons, has been traded to the Philadelphia Phillies, the team confirmed Saturday afternoon.

The Tigers should be happy they traded Soto for Vierling, and they received two more players who could also prove useful.

Since he bats left-handed, he also has value as a pinch hitter, and he’s been more than adequate against southpaws in the majors in a tiny sample. Vierling has always had good exit velocities, but he hit the ball into the ground far too much until 2022, when work he did with the Phillies to get the ball in the air more started to pay off, with his average launch angle going from 6.3 degrees up to 12 degrees and his ground-ball rate dropping from 53.8 percent of his balls in play to 41.4 percent. He had some bad luck on balls in play and did pop the ball up more often last year, but he hits the ball hard, consistently, has hit good velocity and has even shown he can handle changeups. He walked 12.9 percent of hitters last year, right in line with his career rate, and survived a big drop in his strikeout rate (27.5 percent in 2021 to 22.8 percent last year) with a huge tumble in his home run rate (from 0.99 HR/9 in 2021 to 0.33 HR/9 in 2022), which isn’t the sort of thing that usually changes that much without some alteration in a pitcher’s repertoire. [Tigers](https://theathletic.com/mlb/team/tigers/) are a bad major-league team right now, so they did what bad major-league teams should do — they traded a decent but hardly elite reliever for young position-player talent, sending [Gregory Soto](https://theathletic.com/mlb/player/gregory-soto-4MOEFKokIfAVuJ0S/) to the [Phillies](https://theathletic.com/mlb/team/phillies/), along with [Kody Clemens](https://theathletic.com/mlb/player/kody-clemens-hn8dkZtMlbMysaqe/), for three hitters, led by [Matt Vierling](https://theathletic.com/mlb/player/matt-vierling-u9l8wjXNkrc1NuLP/). He had 30 saves in 2022, which makes him a guy who had 30 saves, and nothing more, because saves are about as useless a measure of a pitcher as you can find.

The Philadelphia Phillies obtained lefty reliever Gregory Soto from the Detroit Tigers on Saturday as part of a five-player swap. The teams announced the ...

Maton, 25, had an impressive 34-game run with the Phillies last season, boosting his career slash line to .254/.330/.434 (109 OPS+) in 216 trips to the plate. He's batted .260/.309/.374 (91 OPS+) in 151 big-league games over the last two seasons while seeing most of his action in center field. In 57 Triple-A games, he hit .309/.413/.428 with nearly as many walks as strikeouts. To wit, his whiff rate in 2022 was 35.4 percent, or well above the league-average mark of 24.7 percent. Last season, his exit velocity ranked in the 86th percentile in average and in the 82nd percentile in maximum, suggesting there's more juice in his bat than his slash line indicates. He made his big-league debut last season, hitting .145/.197/.308 (45 OPS+) during a 56-game sample that saw him strike out 25 more times than he walked. It's unclear if the Phillies will change their philosophy with Soto in tow. [Philadelphia Phillies](https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/teams/PHI/philadelphia-phillies/) obtained lefty reliever Gregory Soto from the Detroit Tigers on Saturday as part of a five-player swap. Nevertheless, the Phillies likely found Soto intriguing in part because of his combination of stuff and deception. We have quite a few guys who can pitch with a one-run lead late in the game, which we think is extremely important." "We feel like we have the makings of a real good bullpen. Overall, he amassed a 3.34 ERA (121 ERA+) and a 1.84 strikeout-to-walk ratio, with that figure weighed down by his wildness.

The Tigers received Matt Vierling, Nick Maton and catcher Donny Sands from the Phillies in exchange for Gregory Soto and Kody Clemens.

“You’re never entirely confident that young players are gonna hit in the big leagues, but you’re a little more confident when you’ve seen flashes of them performing in the big leagues already,” Harris said. But the Tigers have filled their most important needs: a left-handed hitting infielder in Maton, a right-handed outfielder in Vierling and catching help in Sands. We’ve done a lot of work to add to our pitching and defense to stabilize this group, and we have to reshape the offensive identity. Harris also said the Tigers have been hard at work on adding another left-handed reliever — perhaps on a minor-league contract — to the bullpen mix to help replace Soto. “We really like his ability to help our pitchers in the strike zone,” Harris said. Acquiring these three players cost the Tigers Soto, their up-and-down closer who has shown flashes of dominance but also frustrating lapses in command. He was a high-level athlete in high school and has maintained that athleticism all the way to the big leagues.” In Maton, the Tigers get another intriguing skill set. Vierling, though, played in 12 postseason games for the Phillies this past fall and has all the ingredients needed to become a productive player. “I think it’s 97th percentile sprint speed in the big leagues. The trick will be seeing if the Tigers can unlock all those tools and help Vierling develop into an MLB regular. Translation: He hits the ball hard, has a strong arm and borders on elite speed.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies acquired All-Star reliever Gregory Soto and utility player Kody Clemens, son of seven-time Cy Young Award ...

PHILADELPHIA -- The Phillies continued to bolster their bullpen on Saturday, acquiring two-time All-Star Gregory Soto from the Tigers in a five-player deal.

As the team battled injuries down the stretch, the relievers put up a 4.99 ERA in August and a 4.62 mark in September. [Paul Casella](mailto:[email protected]) is a reporter/editor for MLB.com based in Philadelphia. From that point through the end of July, the 'pen posted a 3.51 ERA, good for the eighth-best mark in MLB. Maton, meanwhile, provided valuable innings in August and September as the Phillies navigated key injuries down the stretch. Still, Soto figures to help a Phillies bullpen that -- while it stepped up during the club's 2022 NL pennant run -- put up a 3.97 ERA overall last season. Clemens, the son of seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, provided similar versatility in Detroit last season. [Kody Clemens](https://www.mlb.com/player/665019) in exchange for outfielder Matt Vierling, utility player Nick Maton and catcher Donny Sands (the Phillies' [No. But prior to signing Kimbrel, the Phillies made sure His four-seam fastball averaged 98.7 mph last season, making it the second-fastest qualified pitch by any southpaw -- behind only new teammate José Alvarado's sinker (99.6 mph). Soto certainly adds to that group, though he tends to make things interesting. “He was thrilled to join us. “We like the players we gave up.

The Phillies discussed Gregory Soto a month ago and couldn't work out a deal, but they did Saturday. Dave Dombrowski discussed the addition.

"We think (Marsh) can continue to grow against left-handed pitching and he will hit left-handed pitching," Dombrowski said. "People look at our ballclub now, they look at the arms we have out there, they're happy to contribute at the back end. Soto has been a closer for most of the last two seasons but isn't going to step into that role here. It gives us a lot of depth right now in the organization from a pitching perspective. But we just felt the opportunity to add another back-end arm that we really, really like, that we also have control over for three years, that it made us better going into the season." The Phillies traded outfielder Matt Vierling, utilityman Nick Maton and catcher Donny Sands to Detroit for Soto and utilityman Kody Clemens.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Philadelphia Phillies acquired All-Star reliever Gregory Soto and utility player Kody Clemens, son of seven-time Cy Young Award ...

The 25-year-old Maton hit .250 with five homers and 17 RBIs in 86 games over two seasons in Philadelphia. The 26-year-old Vierling hit .260 with eight homers and 38 RBIs in 151 games over two seasons with the Phillies. The 26-year-old Clemens made his major league debut in Detroit last season, and hit .145 with five homers and 17 RBIs in 56 games.