The Phillies and reliever Lou Trivino are reuniting on a minor-league deal, according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. The deal includes an invite to major-league Spring Training.
Trivino, 34, returns to Philadelphia after spending the end of the 2025 season with them. The club signed him to a minor-league deal in early August and selected his contract at the end of that month. In ten appearances down the stretch, Trivino had a shiny 2.00 ERA in nine innings despite some less-than-encouraging peripherals, including a 4.06 xERA and a 25.0% groundball rate. The same was true of his season overall. In 47 2/3 innings split between the Giants, Dodgers, and Phillies, Trivino posted a 3.97 ERA against an expected figure of 5.10 and a below-average 33.8% groundball rate.
The fact that he was pitching at all was a positive development considering he missed the 2023-24 seasons entirely. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2023 and attempted to rehab in 2024 before suffering a shoulder injury. Prior to that, he had been a steady reliever since debuting with the Athletics in 2018. In 284 2/3 innings with the A’s and Yankees from 2018-22, Trivino had a 3.86 ERA with a solid 24.5% strikeout rate against a 10.6% walk rate. He was predominantly a fastball pitcher and got positive grades on his cutter and four-seamer early on in his career, including a run value of 14 on the cutter in his debut season.
Trivino’s stuff wasn’t as sharp in his first year back from injury. While his four-seam velocity of 94.8 MPH in 2025 was still above-average, it was down from 95.6 MPH in 2022. His cutter velocity of 91.8 MPH was his lowest since the 2020 season, while his sinker velocity also declined slightly. Meanwhile, his 17.9% strikeout rate and 33.8% groundball rate were both career-worst marks. The latter was troubling compared to his 47.4% groundball rate from 2018-22, including a 52.6% rate in 2022.
The deal is a no-risk flier for the Phillies. While his performance in 2025 was rusty overall, Trivino excelled at limiting hard contact. His average exit velocity allowed and hard-hit rate were both in the 93rd percentile or better according to Statcast. Those qualities alone won’t return Trivino to peak form, but they will play up if he can induce more strikeouts and groundballs. The Phillies have Jhoan Duran, José Alvarado, and Brad Keller headlining their bullpen. If Trivino performs well in Spring Training, he might vie for a middle-relief role alongside Tanner Banks, Jonathan Bowlan, and Orion Kerkering.
Photo courtesy of Eric Hartline, Imagn Images
