Phillies Shockingly Named Landing Spot for Giants Pitcher

Jul 14, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; San Francisco Giants hat and glove on the bench against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at PNC Park. Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Phillies Shockingly Named Landing Spot for Giants Pitcher

Originally posted on Philadelphia Phillies on SI
By Nick Ziegler | Last updated Jun 6, 2026 7:00 AM ET

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The Philadelphia Phillies might have gotten off to a terrible start to the season, but the team is playing very well of late.

To begin the season, the Phillies were (9-19), and there was understandably a panic in Philadelphia. However, this is a team that responded in a significant way in May, and they are off to a strong start in June as well.

So far this week, the Phillies were able to sweep the San Diego Padres for the second time in as many weeks, this time at home. On Friday, they kicked off their series with a win against the Chicago White Sox. Now, Philadelphia is five games over .500 at (34-29).

This is starting to look like the team many expected them to be, and they are going to try to continue to chase down the Atlanta Braves in the National League East. Even though the team is playing much better of late, there are still a lot of areas that they could look to upgrade. The lineup is going to be one of those spots, with potentially a need for two bats. However, they could also look to make a surprise move as well to build on their strength.

Mike Axisa of CBS Sports recently named the Phillies as a surprise landing spot for San Francisco Giants pitcher Robbie Ray.

Ray Could Provide Rotation Insurance

It was a bit surprising to see Philadelphia mentioned as a potential landing spot for Ray, but the team might seek some veteran insurance for the unit. Since the return of Zack Wheeler, the rotation has been fantastic, and that has been a major reason for the turnaround.

Southpaw Cristopher Sanchez is coming off one of the best months of all time and has set some records for his performances of late. While those two have been great, there have been some inconsistencies among others in the rotation.

While adding to the rotation isn’t a pressing need by any means for the Phillies, Ray is an interesting option. The southpaw is not having a strong campaign with a 4.45 ERA, but he is a former Cy Young and performed well last year.

As a free agent at the end of the season, Ray wouldn’t require any commitment for the Phillies long term and could provide them some insurance. With Andrew Painter being a rookie and seeing his innings start to rise, getting a veteran like Ray could be the answer to help if that is a concern.

This article first appeared on Philadelphia Phillies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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