The business of baseball is ready to get back into full swing with MLB free agency underway. While free agents are now able to sign anywhere, it’s doubtful we’ll see anything more than a small flurry of activity between now and the Winter Meetings in December. That being said, the Philadelphia Phillies had a very busy day on Monday.

The waiver wire was quite active on the first day of free agency, with five Phillies minor leaguers being outrighted off the roster and allowed to walk via free agency, including right-handed pitchers Yunior Marte, Luis Ortiz and Freddy Tarnok, left-handed pitcher Kolby Allard and infielder Rodolfo Castro. The departures of Marte and Castro don’t come as much of a surprise as the Phillies opted to keep Castro at Triple-A all season, and Marte bounced back and forth between Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia with high frequency in 2024.

The Phillies also made some additions on Monday, adding minor league pitcher Alan Rangal to the teams 40-man-roster, making a trade with the Detroit Tigers, and claiming another player off the waiver wire. With the Phillies continuing to focus on pitching depth, let’s take a look at right-handers Devin Sweet and John McMillon.

The subtraction of four organizational arms on Monday opened up the need for the Phillies to import some pitching via trade or elsewhere, and they wasted little time on both accounts. After relying heavily on minor league pitching depth in 2024, the Phillies decided to bring in two pitchers with limited MLB experience to compete for a bullpen job in spring training.

Devin Sweet, 28, was acquired for cash considerations in a deal with the Detroit Tigers on Monday afternoon. Sweet made his MLB debut for the Seattle Mariners in 2023, and pitched briefly for the Oakland Athletics this past season. Overall, Sweet is 1-0 with a 10.38 ERA in seven MLB appearances for both clubs. Signed as an undrafted free agent out of college in 2018, Sweet will add experienced upper minor league pitching depth to the organization.

John McMillion, claimed off of waivers from the Miami Marlins, also comes to the Phillies with limited MLB experience, but the 26-year-old has put up impressive numbers over his first 14 MLB appearances. After getting into four games with the Kansas City Royals in 2023, McMillon got a longer look for the rebuilding Marlins this year, getting into 10 games and going 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA, with 13 strikeouts and five walks in 12 innings of work. The 2019 11th-round draft pick should receive a decent look in spring training based on his stellar numbers in limited MLB action.

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