Dave Dombrowski made his first trade as Phillies president of baseball operations.
Dombrowski, who promised to be aggressive in filling the worst bull in the majors in 2020, acquired the hard-hitting left-hander Jose Alvarado of the Tampa Bay Rays in a deal involving three teams.
The Phillies send left-handed reliever Garrett Cleavinger to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Alvarado (25) is 6-2 and 245 pounds. He has an electric fast ball that reaches the high 90s, but control has been an issue during his career. In 2018, Alvarado competed in 70 games for Tampa Bay and had an ERA of 2.39 while hitting more than 11 batsmen per nine overs. He has struggled with injuries over the past two seasons, including a battle with shoulder inflammation that limited him to nine games in the 2020 regular season. He has appeared twice for Tampa Bay in the national season.
Alvarado has experience closing games and can get a glimpse of the role. He is eligible for salary arbitration.
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