Phillies add Vinny Nittoli as pitching depth prior to 28-man roster expansion

With rosters expanding to 28 on September 1st, the Phillies found a pitcher from outside the organization to join the team for the stretch run.

The Phillies traded for right-handed reliever Vinny Nittoli and plan to add him to their big league roster tomorrow, sources tell ESPN. Nittoli intended to opt out of his minor league deal today, but Toronto shipped him to Philadelphia first. He has excelled at AAA this year.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 31, 2022

Now, I’m sure you’re wondering 2 things: Who in the world is Vinny Nittoli and how did the Phillies trade from him after the deadline?

The second is simple. If a player isn’t on an MLB roster, they can be traded after the trade deadline. Jeff Passan provided a follow-up tweet explaining this further.

Players who are not on big league rosters can still be traded after the Aug. 2 deadline. Provided Nittoli is indeed added to the Phillies' roster tomorrow as expected, he would be eligible to pitch in the postseason. For that eligibility, a player needs to be rostered by Sept. 1.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 31, 2022

If the Phillies add him to the roster by September 1st, he’ll be eligible to pitch in the postseason, similar to the waiver trade days.

Phillies newest addition

Now, who in the world is Vinny Nittoli?

First off, Nittoli is a Pennsylvania native, graduating from Pine-Richland High School just north of Pittsburgh. He’s been swimming in the minor leagues for a while as he was drafted in 2014 by the Mariners. Nittoli has appeared in just a single major league game, giving up 2 runs on a 2-run homer back in 2021.

The probable reason Nittoli was about to opt out of his minors deal is that he’s found success this season at Triple-A. Overall on the season, Nittoli has a 3.30 ERA at the level. He’s shown strikeout prowess as his 11.5 K/9 would indicate.

Since signing a minors deal with the Blue Jays, he’s been even better. In 10 games, he has a 2.79 ERA with a 14.0 K/9. He’s recorded 2 saves with Toronto’s Triple-A club.

He had early season troubles and has been fantastic since.

Right-hander Vinny Nittoli intends to opt out of his contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, source said. Since May, Nittoli has registered a 1.94 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 37.2 innings with Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre and Buffalo.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) August 28, 2022

He won’t blow anyone away as his fastball sits around 93 MPH but with what he’s done at Triple-A, he might be a solid addition for the Phillies.

The Phillies will send catcher Karl Ellison back in the minor league swap. Ellison has hit a combined .123 between Jersey Shore and Lehigh Valley this season.

Photo Credit: David Dennis/Icon Sportswire