The Phillies announced that they’ve released veteran right-hander Casey Fien.
Fien, 33, had been on the 60-day disabled list due to an impingement in his right shoulder and would’ve required a 40-man roster spot in the month of September upon his activation from the DL. Instead, the Phils will cut him loose and use that slot to look at other options in the season’s final month.
Philadelphia acquired Fien from Seattle back in early May, but Fien didn’t log much time in the Majors for either the Phillies or the Mariners this year. In a total of 12 innings, he was tattooed for 17 runs on 23 hits and six walks with 10 strikeouts.
Fien had a nice run with the Twins from 2012-15, pitching to a 3.54 ERA with 7.9 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9 in 223 2/3 innings, but he’s now struggled to a 7.19 ERA with the Twins, Dodgers, Mariners and Phillies over the past two seasons. If he’s healthy, though, he’ll likely find some minor league offers this winter, which would afford him the opportunity to break camp with a big league club in Spring Training next year.
