Phillies announce roster moves
The Phillies have selected the contracts of right-handed pitchers Mick Abel, Jean Cabrera and Moisés Chace to the 40-man roster. Additionally, right-handed pitcher John McMillon cleared waivers and was outrighted to triple-A Lehigh Valley.
Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski made the announcements.
Abel, 23, spent the entire 2024 season with Lehigh Valley and is ranked as the No. 6 overall prospect in the Phillies system by MLB.com. He made 24 starts, which were the second-most in the Phillies minor league system, and tallied a 6.46 ERA (78 ER, 108.2 IP) with 117 strikeouts to 78 walks. A non-roster invitee to Phillies major league spring training each of the last two years, Abel was the starting pitcher for the National League in the All-Star Futures Game and was named an Organization All-Star by MiLB.com in 2023. The Portland, Ore., native was selected by the Phillies in the first round (15th overall) of the 2020 MLB Draft.
The 23-year-old Cabrera split the 2024 season between double-A Reading and high-A Jersey Shore and went 6-5 with a 3.80 ERA (45 ER, 106.2 IP) with 110 strikeouts to 33 walks and a 1.21 WHIP. Among Phillies minor league pitchers (min. 75.0 IP), he ranked fifth in strikeout rate (24.7%), seventh in strikeouts and walk rate (7.4%) and eighth in ERA. Cabrera was named South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week for the week of July 1-7 after tossing 6.0 no-hit innings along with 10 strikeouts in his start on July 4 with Jersey Shore. The Venezuela native was selected as the Paul Owens Award winner as the top pitcher in the Phillies minor league system in 2021 and became the first 19-year-old pitcher to win the award since Carlos Carrasco in 2006. Cabrera was originally signed by the Phillies as an amateur free agent on July 2, 2019.
Chace, 21, began 2024 with high-A Aberdeen in the Baltimore Orioles organization before being acquired by the Phillies with right-handed pitcher Seth Johnson in exchange for left-handed pitcher Gregory Soto on July 30. In 23 total games (15 starts) with Aberdeen, Jersey Shore and Reading, he went 5-4 with a 3.59 ERA (32 ER, 80.1 IP), 124 strikeouts and 40 walks. The Venezuela native was named Phillies Minor League Co-Pitcher of the Month in August after going 3-1 with a 2.59 ERA (7 ER, 24.1 IP), 42 strikeouts, eight walks and a 0.86 WHIP in five starts with the BlueClaws and Fightin Phils. Chace was also named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the week of Aug. 26-Sept. 1 after striking out a career-high 13 batters in 6.0 scoreless innings on Aug. 31 at Somerset. He was originally signed by Baltimore as an amateur free agent on July 2, 2019.
McMillon, 26, was claimed off waivers by the Phillies from the Miami Marlins on Nov. 4, 2024. In 10 relief appearances with the Marlins last season, he went 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA (2 ER, 12.0 IP), 13 strikeouts, a 1.00 WHIP and limited opponents to a .171 batting average (7-41). The Lufkin, Texas, native originally signed as a free agent with the Kansas City Royals on June 23, 2020.
With today’s transactions, the Phillies 40-man roster currently stands at 39 players.