The Philadelphia Phillies have franchise-altering decisions to make this offseason. Ranger Suárez, J.T. Realmuto and Kyle Schwarber are set to become free agents and are likely in for big paydays.

The Phillies will have to make decisions about the futures of other players within the organization, but one should be a no-brainer. José Alvarado has a one-year, $9 million club option for the 2026 season that the Phillies shouldn’t hesitate to pick up.

José Alvarado looks to shore up Phillies’ bullpen for remainder of regular season

The Phillies let both Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez walk in free agency after the 2024 season, both of whom signed contracts worth $11 million per year with their new teams. In turn, the Phillies took a chance on two-time All-Star closer Jordan Romano, signing the veteran to a one-year, $8.5 million contract.

As the calendar is set to flip to September, Phillies fans are ready to celebrate the end of Romano’s contract with the team. After his recent four-run inning debacle in the 13-3 loss to the New York Mets on Monday night, Romano’s ERA ballooned to 8.23 on the year.

The Phillies’ bullpen has been a major weakness this season. Although better as of late after the addition of Jhoan Duran, the bullpen owns the seventh-worst ERA (4.45) and seventh-highest batting average against (.251) in the majors.

José Alvarado must regain trust to have option picked up by Phillies

Since joining the Phillies in 2021, Alvarado has been heavily relied on out of the bullpen. He’s been used for many save opportunities and in countless high-leverage situations.

Although his command can get him in trouble at times, Alvarado has proven to be one of the better late-inning relievers in baseball. He owned a career-best 1.74 ERA in 2023 with 11 holds, 10 saves and 64 strikeouts in 41 1/3 innings.

Alvarado had a rollercoaster season in 2024, mainly because of command issues, but the left-hander bounced back in 2025. Before his 80-game suspension for violating the MLB’s drug policy, Alvarado owned a 2.70 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 20 innings pitched and was a perfect 7-for-7 in save opportunities.

Alvarado made his first appearance with the Phillies since his suspension on Aug. 20. As he returned to the clubhouse, the veteran issued sincere apologies to his teammates, coaching staff, the organization and the fans. He vowed to help the team win games, even though he’s ineligible to pitch in the playoffs as part of his suspension, and so far has appeared in four games in which he’s allowed three hits, two walks, one earned run and recorded three strikeouts in three-plus innings.

The Phillies are a much better team with Alvarado’s triple-digit ability and nasty cutter coming out of the bullpen late in games. As long as the organization trusts him, Alvarado and Duran should be closing out games for the Phillies in 2026 and be one of the top reliever duos in the majors.