The first thing I said to him was, 'You're going to sign with the Dodgers, right?'...I sat there for the entire two-hour event and talked up the Dodgers to him the whole time. I don't know if I had a hand in it or not, but I like to say that I was one of the first ones to go heavy and hard after him that he should be a Dodger.
He left in free agency for the St. Louis Cardinals, and in the years since, he has converted to being a full-time reliever. This past season, he was traded to the Boston Red Sox at the trade deadline, thriving in a low-leverage role as the Red Sox made the playoffs. Now, Matz appears determined to tour the entirety of the AL East. According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, Matz is joining the Tampa Bay Rays on a two-year contract in free agency.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been connected to multiple relief pitchers, but have yet to land one of their targets. That list included Devin Williams, Raisel Iglesias and Ryan Helsley, who all signed new contracts. Edwin Díaz remains in play as the top available option, but the Dodgers are unlikely to meet his demands. Outside of Díaz, Robert Suarez is the best relief pitcher still available in free agency.
Evan Phillips, for example, became a free agent when the Los Angeles Dodgers declined to offer him a contract through the arbitration system. The right-handed reliever is recovering from the Tommy John surgery he underwent in June, a timeline that could put him back in action around the time that playoff contenders are searching for bullpen help at the trade deadline,
The left-hander had a bounce-back season with the Rangers after having a disappointing 2024 season with the Milwaukee Brewers (4.73 ERA, 3.14 FIP and 1.19 WHIP in 64.2 innings pitched). This year, Milner recorded a 3.84 ERA, 3.39 FIP and 1.27 WHIP in 70.1 innings pitched, which was an adequate result for a middle-of-the-pack reliever. The 34-year-old used a sweeper, sinker, change-up and four-seam fastball in the past year, with the sweeper (35%) and sinker (33%) being his top two pitches.
The MLB free agent class for relief pitchers got stronger with longtime Tampa Bay Rays closer Pete Fairbanks joining the group after the team declined to pick up his 2026 option worth $11 million. The right-hander is coming off another solid season as he went 4-5 with a 2.83 ERA, 3.63 FIP, 1.04 WHIP and 27 saves in 60.1 innings pitched across 61 appearances. Fairbanks is part of a talented class of relievers that includes Edwin Díaz, Robert Suárez, Raisel Iglesias, Ryan Helsley, Kenley Jansen and Kyle Finnegan, among others.
