The Phillies have claimed right-hander Jackson Rutledge off waivers from the Nationals, according to a team announcement. Rutledge has been optioned to Triple-A.
The Nationals designated Rutledge for assignment on Tuesday as part of a move to clear space for Max Kranick. In 2025, Rutledge threw 73 1/3 innings with a 5.77 ERA, a subpar 19.7% strikeout rate, and nearly two home runs allowed per nine innings. Under normal circumstances, he never would have lasted the year in the Majors, but the rebuilding Nationals could afford to give him reps. This year, Rutledge allowed seven earned runs on six hits in just 1 1/3 innings in his only appearance on April 13th. The club optioned him to Triple-A afterwards and kept him there until designating him for assignment.
Rutledge was a first-round pick by the Nationals in 2019 and has spent his entire career before today in their system. He has a 6.29 ERA in 103 big league innings from 2023-26. Rutledge’s recent minor league track record isn’t much to speak of either. He made 27 starts at Triple-A in 2024 but had a 6.40 ERA and a 13.7% walk rate. After spending most of last year in the Majors, Rutledge has a 3.38 ERA in 13 1/3 innings at Triple-A this year, albeit with middling peripherals including a mere 1.7% K-BB rate. He relies on his cutter as the primary fastball, also mixing in a splitter and sinker with pretty average velocity.
The Phillies are off to a middling 18-22 start, but their bullpen is a strong suit overall. The group’s 5.3 combined fWAR is tied for fifth in the Majors. Meanwhile, their 4.68 ERA is over a run higher than their 3.66 xERA, signaling positive regression in the future. Orion Kerkering and Chase Shugart both have ERAs under 2.00, while Jhoan Duran, Brad Keller, and José Alvarado remain a formidable back-end unit (ugly initial results from Alvarado notwithstanding). Rutledge obviously can’t compete with those arms, but there’s no harm in keeping him in Triple-A as a depth option. He has just over a year of service time and one option remaining, so he can be brought up and shuffled out if the club needs a fresh arm for a day.
Photo courtesy of Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images
