Phillies add four to 40-man roster

The Phillies have selected the contracts of the following players to the 40-man roster, the club announced tonight:

Garrett Cleavinger, LHP – The 25-year-old pitched for double-A Reading in 2019, posting a 3.66 ERA and averaging 14.46 SO/9.0 IP in 34 relief appearances. The Kansas native limited left-handed hitters to a .155 batting average and five extra-base hits (all doubles). In his final 18 games (29.2 IP) of the season, Cleavinger posted a 1.21 ERA with 50 strikeouts. Originally selected by Baltimore in the third round of the June 2015 draft, he was acquired by the Phillies as part of a trade for right-hander Jeremy Hellickson in July 2017.

Mauricio Llovera, RHP – Llovera, 23, went 3-4 with a 4.55 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 14 games (12 starts) with double-A Reading in 2019. He averaged 9.92 SO/9.0 IP and tossed 32.2-consecutive homerless innings from May 16 to July 1. Born in Venezuela, Llovera was originally signed by the Phillies as an amateur free agent in December 2014.

JoJo Romero, LHP – After being a non-roster invitee to major league spring training in 2019, Romero pitched for double-A Reading and triple-A Lehigh Valley. During the regular season, the 23-year-old combined to go 7-9 with a 5.82 ERA in 24 starts. The lefty posted a 2.96 ERA and held opponents to a .230 batting average over his final 11 outings of the season, beginning on June 27. A native of California, Romero was originally selected by the Phillies in the fourth round of the June 2016 draft.

Additionally, the Phillies have acquired LHP Cristopher Sanchez in exchange for minor league INF Curtis Mead and selected the contract of Sanchez to the 40-man roster.

Sanchez, 22, went a combined 4-1 with a 2.26 ERA in 24 games (10 starts) for single-A Bowling Green, single-A Charlotte and triple-A Durham in 2019. He posted a 1.11 WHIP and struck out 73 batters over 75.2 innings while opponents hit just .212 against him. The 6-foot-5 lefty also combined to hold right-handers to a .192 batting average with just nine extra-base hits in 177 at-bats. Born in the Dominican Republic, Sanchez was originally signed by Tampa Bay as an amateur free agent in July 2013.

The 19-year-old Mead slashed .285/.351/.462 in 44 games with the Gulf Coast League Phillies East in 2019. He was originally signed by the Phillies as an international free agent from Australia in May 2018.

With the additions of Cleavinger, Llovera, Romero and Sanchez, the Phillies 40-man roster currently stands at 39 players.