Sep 14, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Kyle Backhus (43) pitches to Minnesota Twins first base Kody Clemens (18) in the ninth inning at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Blewett-Imagn Images Matt Blewett
In their third bullpen move in the last 24 hours, the Phillies acquired left-handed reliever Kyle Backhus from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league outfielder Avery Owusu-Asiedu.
After Matt Strahm's return to Kansas in Friday morning's trade, José Alvarado and Tanner Banks were the only left-handed relievers on the Phillies' 40-man roster. Backhus joins the Phillies bullpen as the projected third lefty reliever.
Backhus, 27, made his Major League Debut with the D-backs in June 2025. In 32 games and 25 1/3 innings, he posted a 4.62 ERA with 22 strikeouts and made two saves.
The side-arming lefty's 2025 season was a bit of a roller coaster. Backhus' 1.23 ERA in June impressed, but by the time September rolled around, he was gassed. Following a 16.20 ERA in just 1 2/3 innings pitched across four September appearances, Backhus was optioned on Sept. 18.
However, Backhus was excellent against left-handed hitters, holding them to a .139 average and a .503 OPS in 2025. Backhus isn't guaranteed to begin the season on the major league roster – he has three options remaining – but the Phillies will likely want to use that strength against lefties to their advantage.
Following that trade, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski provided some clarity on the bullpen's 2026 outlook, and the roster spots that may be up for grabs during Spring Training.
"Assuming health, we have six guys that are pretty well set at this time that I would think would be part of our bullpen," Dombrowski said on Friday.
Those six pitchers include four righties – Jhoan Duran, Orion Kerkering, and new additions Brad Keller and Jonathan Bowlan – and the aforementioned two lefties in Alvarado and Banks.
Outside of those six, between the pitchers already in the organization and the number of new arms the Phillies have added in the offseason, Dombrowski sees a Spring Training battle brewing.
Dombrowski named Max Lazar, Nolan Hoffman and Seth Johnson as in-organization arms who can "blend into the big leagues from the minor league system." All three spent time on the Phillies' 26-man roster during the 2025 season.
Then there's RHP Yoniel Curet, whom the Phillies acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays in a Winter Meetings trade on Dec. 10. The Phillies also purchased the contract of RHP Zach McCambley from the Miami Marlins during the Rule 5 draft.
If that wasn't enough, Dombrowski plans to extend big league camp invites to "lesser free agent type guys," and he mentioned the Phillies have "younger arms that we like that we'll invite to big league camp."
Holy logjam, Batman.
With all those arms in mind, and the last two Phillies bullpen spots up for grabs, Dombrowski forecasted a competition in the Phillies' near future.
"Whoever performs the best between all those individuals can fill the 12th and 13th spots (in the bullpen)," Dombrowski said. "Really, the one thing that's common with all of them is that they have an option available, so we have the ability to use the back end of the bullpen to move guys up and down."
The Phillies like that flexibility. They also feel they have depth in the bullpen after the flurry of offseason moves. But nothing is promised, so all those pitchers, including Backhus, will have to pitch their way into an Opening Day roster spot.
"It'll be interesting to see who steps up and does it in the spring, and I wouldn't be surprised if there's quite a battle for spots 12 and 13," Dombrowski said.
