It’s been beautiful while it’s lasted
When Bryce Harper encouraged the Phillies to sign Jeff Hoffman after facing him instead of a rehab assignment in 2023, no one knew the impact one player would have. A relative unknown prior to last season, Hoffman transformed into the Phillies’ most important bullpen arm and earned himself his first All Star appearance.
2024 Stats: 68 G, 66.1 IP, 20 R (16 ER), 89 K, 16 BB, 48 H, 6 HR, 188 ERA+, 2.1 fWAR
The Good
If 2023 Hoffman was great, 2024 Hoffman was stellar. No one expected this turn of events, but the Phillies found and unlocked something in him that turned him into one of the most dominant bullpen arms in baseball. Among qualified relievers he ranked in the top ten in fWAR and his .195 AAV and 0.96 WHIP were both among the top 35. Over the last two seasons, he’s top-ten among MLB relievers in WAR, ERA and FIP with a 33.4 K%.
Jeff Hoffman, K’ing the Side. pic.twitter.com/VRK0KqfRtF
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 4, 2024
Hoffman was one of the franchise record eight players named to the All Star Game this year, and his nomination was well-deserved.
Jeff, you’re the man pic.twitter.com/8OyRphFgfn
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 11, 2024
The Bad
His last few appearances were the only blip on Hoffman’s career year. He allowed ten earned runs in just 2.1 innings between the final game of the regular season and the three NLDS games. While his implosion alone wasn’t what killed the postseason run, it certainly didn’t help. Having just a handful of bad games over the course of a full season is the mark of a very valuable player. Unfortunately for the Phillies, his few bad games came at the absolute worst time possible.
The Future
Despite his postseason struggles, it’s looking like Hoffman will be headed elsewhere this winter. The Phillies didn’t offer him a QO, and there are plenty of other suitors interested in him. He’s most likely to accept a starting position with another team.