José Alvarado really appears to be in the best shape of his life

Saying that someone is "in the best shape of their life" in Spring Training is typically viewed as a lazy story that you only write if you can't come up with something better. However, it may actually be true in José Alvarado's case.

Just a couple weeks before pitchers and catchers are due to report to Clearwater, Alvarado posted a workout video to Instagram that appears to show him significantly slimmed down from a year ago: 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jose Alvarado (@josealvarado46)

In case you forgot this hilarious moment, Alvarado said this of what type of shape he felt he was in during Spring Training last year: 

"bro I feel like a fat boy. I'm fucking fat." -Jose Alvarado pic.twitter.com/w15DS5C7fw

— Absolutely Hammered (@ah_pod) March 18, 2024

The Phillies will be counting on Alvarado to rebound in 2025, as they try to replace Jeff Hoffman and likely Carlos Estévez as well. 

Though he had two injured-list stints with left elbow inflammation, Alvarado was one of the nastiest relievers in baseball in 2023 when he was on the mound, posting a 1.74 ERA and 2.41 FIP across 42 appearances. But in 66 games a year ago, Alvarado finished with a 4.09 ERA and 3.80 FIP. What's most concerning is that after posting a 14.29 K/9 in 2022 and 13.94 in 2023, Alvarado regressed to 9.19 last season. He's had trouble at times in his career throwing strikes, but his most valuable trait has been that his repertoire is so filthy that when he can convince hitters to swing, they rarely make contact. That wasn't the case a year ago. 

Relievers are a year-to-year proposition in most cases, but Alvarado is still only 29 years old and is making $9 million in the final guaranteed year of his contract. Post-Hoffman, the Phillies need Alvarado to be a major part of the back end of their bullpen with the likes of Jordan Romano, Matt Strahm and Orion Kerkering. Being in such good shape should bode well for Alvarado as he tries to do that. 

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