Phillies Add David Robertson to Bullpen

The Philadelphia Phillies were one of the worst teams in baseball in 2017. However, they were able to make a huge turnaround in 2018. The additions of a few key free agents and the emergence of some talented young players made the Phillies one of the surprise stories of 2018. They have visions of making the playoffs in 2019. They are one of the wealthiest teams in baseball and have a lot of money to spend. There are some rumors that predicted the Phillies would sign both Manny Machado and Bryce Harper. That is highly unlikely at this point. However, the addition of David Robertson has shown that the team is very serious about improving itself.

David Robertson has been one of the best relievers in the American League for a long time now. He did not have one of his better seasons in 2018. However, it was still good enough to entice the Phillies to give him a two-year contract for a guaranteed $23 million. According to al.com, this includes a $2 million buyout for the 2021 season. Robertson gained fame as a setup man for Mariano Rivera during the legend’s final few seasons. He then took over the closer role for the Yankees when Rivera finally retired. This is when he truly became a star. He then signed a 4-year contract with the White Sox for very big money as a free agent.

This is the first big free agent signing that the Phillies have made since the end of the 2018 season. They have been talking to a number of big name players. However, they have not been able to nail down any of them until Robertson. The reliever saved himself more than $1 million by acting as his own agent. This is a very unusual move that is rarely seen among professional athletes that are making millions of dollars every year. However, Robertson fired his own agent because he was not happy with the quality of representation he was receiving. The result is that he saved the money he would have paid to an agent if he had one.

Robertson once again served in the setup role for the Yankees in 2018. His job was to get the game to Aroldis Chapman. He did a very good job of doing this. The Phillies expect Robertson to pitch innings that are very important in the upcoming season. However, he might not be the closer.