11:59am: Morosi adds that the deal is agreed upon pending medical reviews.
11:55am: Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports the Tigers are close to acquiring Nick Maton, Matt Vierling and Donny Sands from the Phillies in exchange for Soto and Kody Clemens.
11:34am: The Phillies are “working on a trade” to acquire a left-handed reliever Gregory Soto from the Tigers, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
The deal adds a quality left-arm reliever to Philadelphia’s bullpen, which has already added a fellow lefty Matt Strahm and right-hander Craig Kimbrel this off-season.
Soto, 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. In the process, he notched 30 saves for the team. The strikeout rate represented something of a dip for Soto, as it sat at 27.5% just a year prior.
Signed out of the Dominican Republic back in 2012, Soto came up through the Tigers’ system as a starting pitcher. He’d make seven starts for Detroit in his rookie year back in 2019, but was rocked to the tune of an 8.49 ERA and has been a reliever ever since. 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.
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. Whether or not Soto handles the closing duties in Philadelphia remains to be seen, but they’ve got an ideal late-innings arm to shut down any left-handed power threats late in the game.
Soto mixes a fastball which touches triple-digits with an 89 mph slider, as well as a very occasional changeup. As evidenced by his career 13.1% rate, walks have been the biggest issue for Soto during his career. Even with the below-average walk rate Soto has been a valuable relief arm, but if he can tighten up the free passes he has the stuff to blossom into an elite late-inning arm.
Soto has between three and four years of service time, so the Phillies will pay him a first year arbitration salary that Matt Swartz estimated to be $3.1MM. The Phillies will then control him via arbitration for the 2024 and ’25 seasons.
They’ll also pick up Klemens, a utility infielder who got his first taste of the big leagues in 2022. The son of long-time pitcher Roger, Klemens slashed just .145/.197/.308 with five home runs over 127 plate appearances appearances for the Tigers in 2022. The 26-year-old did hit a much more robust .274/.327/.535 line at Triple-A.
More to come.
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