Phillies acquire Luzardo from Marlins

December 22nd, 2024

The Phillies have acquired left-handed starter Jesús Luzardo and catcher Paul McIntosh from the Miami Marlins in exchange for minor league outfielder Emaarion Boyd and infielder Starlyn Caba.

Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski made the announcement.

Luzardo, 27, has appeared in 105 games and made 89 starts over parts of six seasons for the Oakland Athletics and Marlins. Last season, he made 12 starts for Miami and posted a 5.00 ERA (37 ER, 66.2 IP) with 58 strikeouts. In 10 of his 12 starts he combined to post a 3.28 ERA (21 ER, 57.2 IP).

In 2023, he made 32 starts for the Marlins as they made the postseason and went 10-10 with a 3.58 ERA (71 ER, 178.2 IP). He had 208 strikeouts on the year and posted a 30.0 percent strikeout rate while averaging 10.48 strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched.

From 2022-23, Luzardo made 50 starts with a 3.48 ERA (108 ER, 279.0 IP) while averaging 10.58 strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched. There were 62 pitchers in baseball (15 left-handers) who made at least 50 starts from 2022-23 and among that group of 62, Luzardo ranked sixth in strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched (second among left-handers), trailing only Spencer Strider (13.66), Blake Snell (11.83), Shohei Ohtani (11.66), Kevin Gausman (11.06) and Dylan Cease (10.99).

A native of Lima, Peru, Luzardo was originally selected by the Washington Nationals in the third round of the 2016 MLB Draft.

McIntosh, 27, played 117 games for double-A Pensacola last season and slashed .246/.340/.385 with a .725 OPS, 32 extra-base hits (18 2B, 2 3B, 12 HR) and a 10.4 percent walk rate (50 BB, 480 PA). He made 116 starts, splitting his time between catcher (45 starts), designated hitter (37 starts) and left field (34 starts).

A native of Atlanta, Ga., McIntosh played collegiately at Motlow State Community College (TN) and West Virginia University. He was originally selected by the Nationals in the 34th round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Motlow State.

Caba, 19, was originally signed by the Phillies as an amateur free agent in January of 2023. He played 116 minor league games across three levels for the Phillies from 2023-24.

Boyd, 21, was originally selected by the Phillies in the 11th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of South Panola High School (MS). He appeared in 198 games across three levels from 2022-24.

To make room for Luzardo on the 40-man roster, the club designated left-handed pitcher Tyler Gilbert for assignment.