Trade Idea Moves Cardinals' Ryan Helsley to Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies' strongest source of struggle this season has been their bullpen, punctuated by blown saves early in the campaign and a lack of efficiency since then. An 80-game suspension for Jose Alvarado, one of the team's most consistent go-to relief pitching options, certainly has not helped things.
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Those struggles have not proved to be too costly, though, as the Phillies possess the second-best record in the National League (46-30), which is also the third-best in baseball. Because of this, the Phillies are expected to be buyers ahead of the trade deadline, with relief pitching serving as a high priority for their front office.
Yahoo Sports' Russell Dorsey sees the Phillies as a team that can contend for some of the top relievers other franchises put on the trading block. He considers the Phillies a potential destination for St. Louis Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley, a star player on a team still in the thick of the playoff race.
Dorsey also believes the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees could be strong fits for Helsley.
St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Ryan Helsley (56) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field.Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
"Since being named the Cardinals' closer in 2022, Ryan Helsley has been the definition of a shutdown closer. The right-hander's 93 saves since then are sixth-most among relievers over that span," Dorsey wrote. "But as with [Emmanuel] Clase, there have been some struggles for the Cardinals' closer this season. Helsley is 3-0 with a 3.96 ERA over, but he has a 5.14 ERA over his past seven outings. A big reason for that is hitters' success against his fastball. The pitch is typically unhittable, but batters are hitting .400 against Helsley's four-seamer this season.
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"There might be some cause for concern with the Cardinals' closer, but Helsley isn't the first reliever to go through struggles. And with his track record being what it is, a contender might well believe that a few tweaks and a change of scenery could be just what Helsley needs."
Helsely has spent the entirety of his seven-year MLB career with the Cardinals, the team he represented in both the 2022 and 2024 All-Star Games. Across 265 big-league relief appearances, Helsley has pitched to a 31-14 record, 2.73 ERA, and 1.13 WHIP, in addition to punching out 345 batters in 289.2 innings pitched.
Related: Phillies Trade Idea Lands Guardians' All-Star Closer Amid Bullpen Woes
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 22, 2025, where it first appeared.
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