Dodgers' decision to non-tender star reliever doesn't rule out a reunion in free agency

Upon the non-tender deadline on Nov. 21, in which teams make a decision to keep or let go of their arbitration-eligible players, the Los Angeles Dodgers parted ways with two pitchers. One of those pitchers was Evan Phillips, a premier arm in the bullpen in each of their last three seasons prior to 2025 and a big part of their 2024 World Series winning team.

Adolis García, Jonah Heim, Christopher Morel, Nathaniel Lowe, and Evan Phillips are among 66 players who were non-tendered today and are now free agents. https://t.co/S7hkaC13JP pic.twitter.com/iCc1WYfLCT

Unfortunately for the 30-year-old right-hander, he hit the 15-day injured list on May 7 with right forearm tightness and was eventually moved to the 60-day injured list on May 29 after it was announced that he would undergo Tommy John surgery. He only threw 5 ⅔ innings across seven appearances in 2025 prior to the injury. 

Given the typical 18-month timetable for a pitcher to recover and return from Tommy John surgery, the expectation is that Phillips is going to miss at least the first half of the 2026 season. Phillips was set to earn $6.1 million in arbitration in 2026, and although the Dodgers do not lack funds in any case, that money would be spent better elsewhere considering the uncertainty of Phillips’s health moving forward.

Despite Phillips now being a free agent, there’s a good chance he could still return to the Dodgers. Andrew Friedman, President of Baseball Operations for the Dodgers, was on the record on Friday afternoon stating: “He [Phillips] is going to take some time and look to sign after he throws off the mound when his rehab allows. Evan has been a big part of our past success and we will continue the conversation about bringing him back.”

Friedman was certainly right about Phillips being a big part of the Dodgers' past success, as he was sneakily one of the best relievers in baseball from 2022 through 2024. After spending time with the Braves, Orioles, and Rays from 2018 through 2021, Phillips burst onto the scene in 2022, posting a league-best 1.14 ERA across 64 appearances. He followed that up with a 2.05 ERA in the closer role where he saved 24 games in 2023, and then saved 18 more games in 2024 with a 3.62 ERA. Across those three seasons, Phillips ranked within the top ten among qualified relievers in ERA (2.21), WHIP (0.92), and fWAR (4.3).

His performance in the postseason across the same time frame was even better. In 12 ⅓ innings across ten appearances, Phillips didn’t allow a single earned run while striking out 30.6% of the batters he faced; likewise, opponents were only able to muster up a .140 batting average against him.

The Dodgers are no strangers to returning pitchers to the mound following Tommy John surgery. There shouldn’t be any glaring reasons why they wouldn’t be interested in re-signing Phillips if they believe he can return to his former self. Phillips can be re-added to the 60-day injured list when Spring Training rolls around, so whether it’s the Dodgers or another team, MLB fans should expect him to play things patiently in free agency.