Former Blue Jays pitcher gets another MLB shot with Phillies

The 32-year-old right-hander will try to carry over his success from Triple-A to his eighth MLB team

The Philadelphia Phillies made their biggest move of the week when they replaced manager Rob Thomson with bench coach Don Mattingly on an interim basis.

Four days later, the Phillies summoned right-handed reliever Trevor Richards from Triple-A to take the place of left-hander Kyle Backhus. It’s a minor move in the grander scheme of a 162-game season than a managerial firing, but a big one for Richards.

Richards, 32, is a veteran of eight MLB seasons. But he has yet to pitch in the big leagues since July 2025 with the Arizona Diamondbacks. After signing a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, Richards had a strong tryout in spring training.

MORE: Rob Thomson already has job offer after being fired by Phillies

But he was assigned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley after allowed six hits and three runs over eight spring innings, striking out 11 batters. He went 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA in nine appearances for the Phillies’ top farm team.

Now Richards will get his first chance to lock down a major league roster spot since last summer.

Richards is 24-28 with a 4.53 ERA in 295 career games (61 starts) with the Miami Marlins (2018-19), Tampa Bay Rays (2019-21), Milwaukee Brewers (2021), (2021-24), (2024), (2025) and Diamondbacks (2025).