SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – MAY 28: Jesus Luzardo #44 of the Miami Marlins pitches against the San Diego Padres during the second inning at Petco Park on May 28, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
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PHILADELPHIA— Many people can relate to getting a phone call right before a fishing trip. Not as many people can relate to getting traded before a fishing trip.
That was the case for Jesús Luzardo, who found out he was on his way to Philadelphia before fishing with his buddy. While it was surprising in the moment, Luzardo understood. And shortly thereafter, he was preparing himself to become a Philadelphia Phillie.
Arms Race
During his media availability on Monday afternoon, Jesús Luzardo answered a multitude of questions from reporters. It was the first time he was made available since the trade and he could not have been more open to introducing himself. Coming from their division foe, the Miami Marlins, Luzardo expressed his excitement for joining the Phillies.
“Yeah, I’m super excited, you know, like you said, being able to witness the Red October and, (…), being able to pitch in that environment, being on the opposing side. Now, looking forward to being on the home side, obviously, and there’s definitely that home-field advantage. (…) Just being on the Marlins, I (…) always [looked] forward to coming to Philly. I like the food, I like the city, I like the fans. So, you know, it’s obviously somewhere I’m happy to be now.” – Jesús Luzardo
Fans always love to hear players talk up the Philly cuisine. It won’t be long until Jesús gets asked the “who’s your favorite cheesestreak place” during the season. Luzardo pitched against the Phillies in Game One of the 2023 NLWS series. He pitched well in that game, but was opposed by Zack Wheeler. Wheeler dominated, helping lead the Phillies to a game one victory in route to a NLCS appearance.
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Speaking of Zack Wheeler, Luzardo joins a starting rotation of perennial Cy Young contenders such as Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sanchez, and Ranger Suarez. I asked Jesús about his relationship with those players and if he has prior experiences with them.
“Yeah, I don’t really know much about many of them. I mean, obviously I’ve faced them a bunch. Tip my cap, you know, they’re all great competitors, great pitchers, and I like going I used to like going against them. Now I’m gonna like going with them, but I played with Ranger a little bit during the [World Baseball] Classic, and Ranger is the man, you know, we got a good relationship, and every time we face off, you know, we’d say, what’s up in center field? And I’m looking forward to sharing a clubhouse with these guys and learning from them.” – Jesús Luzardo
Oct 9, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson relieves pitcher Ranger Suarez (55) against the New York Mets in the fifth inning in game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Expectations for Luzardo
Jesús Luzardo will enter the 2025 season completely healthy. He missed a large portion of the 2024 campaign in Miami with various bumps and bruises. He feels like himself once again and is ready to improve.
When asked what he could do to improve himself in 2025, he mentioned health as his top priority.
“I think health was the biggest one. I think it hindered me and my ability to do these other things. But now being back to being healthy, I think that there are certain things that I was doing in 22 and 23 maybe in, you know, in the way of attacking guys, or, you know (…) different little things I could do in my game planning, attacking these hitters. So I think, like I said, I would say the health was probably the root of the problem. And now that that’s gone, we can get back to to what it was.” – Jesús Luzardo
If the Phillies are getting the 2022 or 2023 versions of Luzardo, fans will be in for a treat. Jesús Luzardo was fantastic in both years, pitching to a combined ERA of 3.48 in 279 innings pitched. He made 50 starts in those two years and struck out 328 batters.
He won’t have to be a Cy Young-caliber pitcher to be successful with the Phillies. Letting Wheeler and Nola lead the charge will allow him to get comfortable in his first season with the Phils. Joining Ranger Suarez and Cristopher Sanchez will give the team one of the best rotations in all of Major League Baseball next year.
Jesús Luzardo is excited to be in Philadelphia and fans should be invested in his starts. The big splash of the off-season has a chance to tip the scales in their favor as the Phillies take another shot towards winning the World Series.
