The Phillies’ bullpen has spent most of 2026 looking nothing like the group Dave Dombrowski built on paper. But with September here and October creeping closer, the unit has at least started to settle into something recognizable. The ugly stretch is still part of the story, though, and only one reliever from the offseason’s projected core is truly dependable when the game gets tight: Jhoan Duran.
That’s a far cry from where the Phillies expected to be. FanGraphs had them fourth in bullpen quality to begin the season, and the plan was straightforward enough: add a full season of Jose Alvarado, bring in Brad Keller, and lean on Duran, Tanner Banks and Orion Kerkering to form a back five that could hang with anyone.
Instead, Keller suffered a torn UCL in July and may not pitch for the Phillies again, while Alvarado, Banks and Kerkering have all taken turns backsliding. The bullpen’s overall ERA sits at 4.19, which ranks 19th.
Still, there’s been a noticeable turn since August arrived. The Phillies’ bullpen has posted a 3.18 ERA since the calendar flipped, fifth-best in MLB, and the group finally looked like a unit on August 31 in Phoenix. At Chase Field, the relievers mixed veterans and rookies to throw four scoreless innings, stranding two runners and striking out five.
The biggest reason for that stabilizing act is Duran, who has been nothing short of electric since arriving in Philadelphia. One year after the trade that brought him and his entrance sequence to the Phillies, it’s fair to say they won the deal.
Duran has put himself in the conversation as one of the two best closers in the National League. His Baseball Savant page is a wall of red, his five-pitch mix gives him weapons most starters would envy, and his 1.61 ERA would be the best by any full-time Phillies closer since Tug McGraw in 1980.
Behind him, the bullpen picture gets more complicated - and a lot more interesting.
Jonathan Bowlan has gone from unknown to a legitimate late-inning force. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound right-hander arrived with only 37 career games and a mid-90s fastball, but after working with Caleb Cotham and the Phillies’ staff, he’s now touching 100 mph. His 31% strikeout rate ranks eighth among NL relievers with at least 40 innings, and since June his ERA is 1.95.
Alex McFarlane has been even stranger in the best possible way. The Phillies kept him at Double-A Reading until July 18, and since he got the call, he’s barely been touched.
He has allowed one run in 10 appearances despite issuing five walks, and on Monday night he erased two Aaron Nola-inherited runners in the sixth. His average fastball velocity sits at 100.3 mph, fifth among all big league pitchers behind Mason Miller, Edgardo Henriquez, Jacob Misiorowski and Duran.
Brooks Raley gives the Phillies another arm with real upside. His career track record since 2022 is excellent, with a 2.46 ERA over 190 innings, though his 3.52 mark in Philadelphia hasn’t quite matched that standard.
Even so, he’s only been in town long enough to make you think there’s more coming. If he finishes strong, he could move up this list in a hurry.
Tim Mayza has also done exactly what the Phillies needed. After a brief eight-game stint in 2025, he re-signed and immediately helped steady the left-handed side of the bullpen after Banks regressed, Alvarado slipped and Matt Strahm was traded to Kansas City.
He’s handled everything from opener duties to late-game fireman work and has pitched in every inning from one through 10. July was rough - nine earned runs in 10 innings - but August looked like the version the Phillies were banking on, with a 0.84 ERA.
Orion Kerkering, meanwhile, remains the hardest one to pin down. There have been stretches in his Phillies career when he looked capable of climbing all the way to the top tier, but right now his stock is lower than it has ever been.
In high-leverage spots, opponents have a .353 OBP against him, and he’s been at his worst when the spotlight gets brightest. Even so, there’s still some underlying quality there: his average exit velocity allowed is 85.3 mph, fifth among all pitchers with at least 50 innings.
The question is whether the pitcher on the mound now is the same one the Phillies thought they had before last year’s NLDS Game 4 gaffe in Los Angeles.
Alvarado has been just as difficult to read. His 2026 numbers are messy, with a 3.91 xERA and a 3.81 FIP, and his place among relievers in innings versus ERA suggests the results haven’t come close to matching the stuff.
But he has been better lately. Since July 12, he owns a 3.06 ERA over 17.2 innings, and in August his sinker usage jumped by 13%.
At the bottom of the list is Chase Shugart, and even that comes with a caveat. He’s probably not the Phillies’ biggest problem, but he’s also the one reliever in the group who’s hard to praise.
His 4.60 ERA isn’t disastrous, and his 10.8 strikeouts per nine are respectable, but 10 home runs allowed in 45 innings is a brutal number. He can cover innings, and if he makes the postseason roster, it would likely be as a mop-up option in a game that’s already decided.
The Phillies’ bullpen is still not where anyone expected it to be. But after months of uncertainty, the group at least has a shape now.
Duran sits at the top. Bowlan and McFarlane have changed the tone.
Mayza and Raley give the Phillies useful depth. Kerkering and Alvarado are trying to find themselves again.
And Shugart is there to absorb the innings when the game is out of hand.
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