Miami Marlins need to replace Tyler Phillips, but which one?

To say the Miami Marlins have extracted the most from their pitching to this point would be an understatement. 

Somehow, someway, despite all the injuries, Miami has made it work to this point. Having two pitchers like Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez certainly helps. Max Meyer's All-Star breakout has been essential, as has Joe Mack emerging as the caliber of catcher that the entire pitching staff can implicitly trust to perform his job. 

However, it wouldn't be too hard to argue that the most indispensable part of this has been Tyler Phillips. 

At one point, Miami was down to two healthy starting pitchers. All season long, Phillips has been an absolute weapon, following up on his strong 2025 campaign as well as any Marlins fan could have dared hope for. His ability to actually make the transformation from bulk reliever to starter, after moonlighting as a high-leverage guy, has been a godsend for Miami. As long as his arm remains attached, it would appear that he can do whatever the front office asks him to, and do it well to boot. 

Yet the time has come for the Marlins front office to replace him. As soon as possible. 

No, this isn't about the fact that Phillips had the temerity to not be awesome last Sunday afternoon on short rest. Plenty of blame to go around in that loss. You'd be reading this same article whether he had thrown nine perfect innings or given up nine earned runs.

Well, alright, maybe the tone would be a little different if he'd thrown a perfecto. Still, you'd be reading something like this.

Part of the problem is that, just like Meyer and Perez, Phillips is looking at a massive innings increase from the prior season. If he makes it into the third inning of his next start, he'll have topped his total IP for the entire 2025 campaign. That's a huge workload jump, and for a team looking to compete that is already stretched very thin on pitching, load management is going to be a major issue. Fans have already seen that with Perez being pulled early from an actual bid for perfection and Meyer being both pushed back from his regular start and opting not to participate in the All-Star Game. 

Most of the issue here is about that thin pitching depth though. The Marlins can't afford to lose Phillips. Really, they can't afford to lose anyone, but Phillips is on the short list of real tragedies. They simply can't lose Phillips. 

More to the point, they can't afford to lose him again. 

For if you think about it, the team already did lose him once, removing one of their most effective weapons from the bullpen to press into service as a starting pitcher. Other names in the 'pen have stepped up, sure, but with Anthony Bender out and Peter Fairbanks continuing to be as consistent as the South Florida weather, help is needed. Frankly, as a contender, it would have been needed anyway. 

Same goes for that starting rotation. If Miami does make the playoffs, they may well only need Alcantara, Perez, and Meyer starting games. But to get there? It's going to take a full staff. 

Which is why, for me, Phillips is the swing piece in the middle of all this. He can do either job, and do it well. If he keeps starting though? He could be clearing his career high before September. Putting him back in a relief role, or even limiting him to a more traditional opener workload, feels more likely to result in his arm being available all year. However, that absolutely would have Miami shopping for a starting pitcher, and probably two. 

Either way, it boils down to the Marlins needing a Phillips replacement. That, and the team recognizing that some preventative maintenance is needed in this particular case. All season long they have found a way to plug holes as they come up. That's to their credit, but a healthy Phillips has been key to that. Miami would be wise to take some steps to help ensure their most versatile pitcher stays that way.

The only question is which Phillips they are able to replace—the starter or the reliever.