The Phillies have claimed left-hander off waivers from the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The southpaw was placed on outright waivers by the Rays over the weekend. Fleming, 27, has appeared in each of the past four seasons with Tampa Bay, oscillating between the bullpen and starting rotation. A bout of left elbow inflammation shortened his 2023 campaign, and hes previously had IL stints for calf and oblique strains as well. When healthy, Fleming has at times looked the part of a quality fifth starter or swingman. He logged 51 2/3 frames with the Rays this year and notched a 4.70 ERA with a career-worst 11.8% strikeout rate and against an 8.6% walk rate. Back in 2020, he made his big league debut with 32 1/3 innings of 2.78 ERA ball. On the whole, Fleming has piled up 223 1/3 Major League frames, working to a 4.88 ERA, 14.9% strikeout rate and 7.1% walk rate. In addition to solid command, Fleming owns a ma sive 59 Michael Porter Jersey % ground-ball rate at the MLB level. Although hes split his time fairly evenly between the bullpen and rotation in the big leagues, Fleming has been far more effective as a reliever (3.73 ERA) than as a starter (6.10 ERA). Right-handed opponents have been a challenge in particular; hes yielded a .288/.351/.451 slash to opponents who hold the platoon advantage over him. The Phillies could look to Fleming as depth for the starting staff and po sibly a left-handed option in the pen. Hes out of minor league options, so hed have to stick on the Major League roster on Opening Day 2024 or else be trade or exposed to waivers at some point between now and then. He comes to the Phillies with an additional four years of club control remaining, so if hes able to get things on track and carve out a role on manager Rob Thomsons staff, he could be a multi-year piece. Fleming will be arbitration-eligible as a Super Two player this offseason, and MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a $1MM salary. Tyler Lydon Jersey