Phillies Shake up Bullpen Demoting Chase Shugart in Favor of Veteran

The Philadelphia Phillies are shaking up their bullpen during the 2026 MLB season, looking for the right combination of players to bridge the gap for closer Joan Duran.

Right-handed reliever Orion Kerkering has been excellent, but with Brad Keller out with an injury, it has been a revolving door for middle relief lately. And now, the team is once again looking for a spark.

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Right-handed reliever Chase Shugart is being demoted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley after consecutive brutal performances against the Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Mets. He will be replaced in the bullpen by veteran Lou Trivino.

As MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki shared on the Ax, the Phillies have purchased the veteran righty’s contract from Triple-A to join the big league club. This is his second stint in Philadelphia after making 10 appearances for the team in 2025.

Phillies send Chase Shugart to Triple-A, buy out Lou Trivino’s contract

Trivino was very good when his number came up for the Phillies last year. He pitched nine innings with a 2.00 ERA, striking out eight batters. Produced a 230 ERA+ and 3.36 FIP with 0.3 bWAR in such a short period of time.

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The 2025 campaign was the first time Trevino pitched in the Major Leagues since 2023. He actually began the 2026 season with Philadelphia, but was released and signed by the Baltimore Orioles on May 4.

Trevino made two appearances giving up six earned runs in three innings, and was granted free agency on May 12. Four days later, he was re-signed by the Phillies, and is now set to join the big league club.

The good performance he had with Lehigh Valley certainly earned him a promotion to the big leagues. In 22 appearances and 28.1 innings, Trevino had a 1.27 ERA and 34 strikeouts, certainly looking like someone who could help stabilize a sometimes overworked bullpen.

There will certainly be immediate work for Trivino. Shugart was someone that interim manager Don Mattingly had been working with with some regularity, but he has struggled recently, looking like he might possibly be running on fumes.

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He has allowed three runs in three consecutive games against the Pirates and Mets. This resulted in him making three appearances in June alone, during which he scored three runs against him, increasing his ERA to 4.97.

Before his recent struggles, he had a 2.21 ERA during his first 16 appearances in 2026.

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This article was originally published at www.si.com/mlb/phillies/onsi as Phillies Shake Up Bullpen Demoting Chase Shugart in Favor of Veteran.