Fresh off a dominant late-season surge with the Dodgers, reliever Evan Phillips is returning to the Braves on a three-year contract to help fill the void left by Raisel Iglesias.
The Atlanta Braves made a major investment in their bullpen Thursday, November 12, agreeing to a three-year, $35 million contract with right-handed reliever Evan Phillips. The deal brings the 32-year-old back to the franchise that originally drafted him as Atlanta looks to maintain one of the National League's deepest relief corps for the 2027 campaign.
Phillips arrives after several standout seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he developed into a trusted high-leverage reliever. Under the terms of the agreement, he will earn $11 million annually in 2027 and 2028 before making $13 million in 2029.
His 2026 campaign offered encouraging signs following a lengthy recovery from Tommy John surgery. Phillips appeared in 31 regular-season games for Los Angeles, going 3-2 with a 3.46 ERA and 33 strikeouts across 26 innings. He was especially sharp down the stretch, posting a 1.46 ERA with 19 strikeouts in 12⅓ innings over his final 14 regular-season outings before tossing five scoreless appearances in October.
That rebound followed a difficult stretch that began with a right rotator cuff injury in March 2025. After a brief return in April, lingering complications forced him back onto the injured list and led to Tommy John surgery on June 4, 2025, ending his year after just seven games. Los Angeles re-signed him to a one-year, $6.5 million contract in February 2026 so he could finish his rehab, and his second-half return gave the Dodgers a reliable bullpen piece for the stretch run.
Before those injuries, Phillips had firmly established himself as one of baseball's top relievers. From 2022 through 2024, he recorded a 2.21 ERA, a 0.92 WHIP, 44 saves, and 206 strikeouts over 179 regular-season innings, giving Atlanta a strong track record to pair with his late-season surge in 2026.
The signing also brings Phillips full circle. Selected by the Braves in the 17th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, he made his major league debut with Atlanta in 2018, pitching in four games before being traded to the Baltimore Orioles in the package for starting pitcher Kevin Gausman. Stints with Baltimore and the Tampa Bay Rays followed before he found his footing with the Dodgers in 2021. Across nine major league seasons, he holds a 19-14 record, 47 saves, and a 3.37 ERA in 281 appearances.
In Atlanta, Phillips joins a relief unit that already features Robert Suarez and Dylan Lee. With closer Raisel Iglesias entering free agency, Phillips gives manager Walt Weiss and the front office another battle-tested option for high-leverage innings as the Braves finalize their roster for 2027.