The Philadelphia Phillies have acquired hard-throwing lefty reliever Gregory Soto and infielder Kody Clemens from the Detroit Tigers, the team announced Saturday.
In return, Detroit received infielder Nick Maton, outfielder Matt Vierling and catcher Donny Sands.
Soto, 27, was an All-Star the past two seasons, including 2022, when he went 2-11 for the fourth-place Tigers. Despite that record, he had a respectable 3.28 ERA, although his command has been an issue the past couple of seasons. He walked 34 batters in 60⅓ innings last season while producing a career-high 14.5% walk percentage in 2021.
Soto joins an evolving, formidable bullpen in Philadelphia. The Phillies also added veteran Craig Kimbrel to the mix this offseason, and holdovers Seranthony Dominguez and Jose Alvarado helped the organization to the World Series last year.
Clemens, 26, is a son of former pitching great Roger Clemens. He made his debut in 2022. The Tigers received a couple of players in Vierling and Maton who also helped the Phillies in their march to the Fall Classic last year. Sands spent the majority of 2022 in Triple-A.