The 31-year-old southpaw had been unsigned since the end of the 2025 season after undergoing surgery in October to repair a tendon tear in his throwing arm, but he's made a full recovery from the procedure and recently threw for multiple teams. He'll elect to continue his career with the Phillies, who didn't add to their rotation ahead of trade deadline and are lacking in dependable arms beyond their elite trio of starters (Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo). Cortes will first report to the Phillies' Single-A affiliate in Clearwater, but once he's stretched out enough to handle five innings, he could supplant Andrew Painter (6.43 ERA, 1.55 WHIP over 85.1 innings) as the Phillies' No. 5 starter.
The 31-year-old southpaw had been unsigned since the end of the 2025 season after undergoing surgery in October to repair a tendon tear in his throwing arm, but he's made a full recovery from the procedure and recently threw for multiple teams. He'll elect to continue his career with the Phillies, who didn't add to their rotation ahead of trade deadline and are lacking in dependable arms beyond their elite trio of starters (Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo). Cortes will first report to the Phillies' Single-A affiliate in Clearwater, but once he's stretched out enough to handle five innings, he could supplant Andrew Painter (6.43 ERA, 1.55 WHIP over 85.1 innings) as the Phillies' No. 5 starter.
The 31-year-old southpaw had been unsigned since the end of the 2025 season after undergoing surgery in October to repair a tendon tear in his throwing arm, but he's made a full recovery from the procedure and recently threw for multiple teams. He'll elect to continue his career with the Phillies, who didn't add to their rotation ahead of trade deadline and are lacking in dependable arms beyond their elite trio of starters (Cristopher Sanchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo). Cortes will first report to the Phillies' Single-A affiliate in Clearwater, but once he's stretched out enough to handle five innings, he could supplant Andrew Painter (6.43 ERA, 1.55 WHIP over 85.1 innings) as the Phillies' No. 5 starter.
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