Phillies sign relief pitcher

THERE IS a strong argument to be made that the brightest spot on the Phillies' bleak horizon is their bullpen, where last season they received key contributions from four pitchers younger than 28 years old, three of whom averaged at least 8.4 strikeouts-per-nine-innings.

But the attrition rate for relievers is something they must consider as they attempt to position the team to contend in 2017 and 2018. No sense in running Jake Diekman, Ken Giles and Justin De Fratus into the ground during a last-place campaign, right?

Enter guys like Jeanmar Gomez, whom the Phillies signed to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training yesterday, and who will be a strong candidate to fill one of the final spots in the bullpen come Opening Day. Gomez is your classic long reliever: He does not possess swing-and-miss stuff, but he does eat up innings, and over the last two seasons in Pittsburgh he's managed to post a 3.28 ERA despite his middling peripheral stats (5.7 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 142 2/3 innings in 70 relief appearances and eight starts).

Gomez, a righthander, isn't a flashy signing, but there is a decent chance to see see a lot of him this year. With a rotation littered with question marks, the bullpen could be in store for some significant innings, and it stands to reason that the Phillies would like to avoid overworking their promising young relievers. Along with Gomez, Jerome Williams could provide the Phillies with significant length if he does not open the season in the rotation. Same goes for Cuban righthander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez.

Gomez, who turns 27 on Feb. 10, began his career with the Indians, where he worked primarily as a starter, posting a 5.18 ERA in 206 2/3 innings over 38 starts and four relief appearances. The Pirates acquired him in 2013, and he spent most of the next two seasons working primarily as a reliever.

Pitchers and catchers report to Clearwater on Feb. 18.