As the regular season enters its final month, the Philadelphia Phillies are all but certain to participate in postseason play for the third consecutive year. The main question now is their playoff seeding.
At the All-Star break, the Phillies were leading the league and seemed poised to secure the top seed in the National League, ensuring home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. However, as of Tuesday, they trail the Los Angeles Dodgers by one game for the top spot. If the Phillies continue their second-half performance, they risk losing the division title and might end up as a Wild Card team.
While the focus remains on their current season, the Phillies’ front office is also looking ahead to the future. In a recent minor league transaction, the Phillies have traded pitcher David Buchanan to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for cash considerations, according to Matt Gelb of The Athletic.
Buchanan, a right-handed pitcher, began his career with Philadelphia after being drafted in the seventh round of the 2010 MLB Draft. He progressed quickly through their system, reaching Triple-A in his third full season and making his MLB debut in 2014.
During his tenure with the Phillies, Buchanan made 35 starts, posting a 5.01 ERA with 115 strikeouts over 192.1 innings. After a challenging 2015 season, he spent the following year in the minors before being released. He then played overseas, first with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and later with the Samsung Lions in South Korea’s KBO League, where he was a two-time All-Star in 2022 and 2023.
Now, at 35, Buchanan will aim to return to the MLB with the Reds, who are in need of bullpen support.