The Phillies whittled three players off of their list of potential minor league free agents by re-signing them to one-year minor league deals.
Luis Caicuto, 24, C
The Phillies took Caicuto in the 2023 Rule 5 Draft from the Arizona Diamondbacks. He split the 2024 season between Clearwater and Jersey Shore before hitting .299 with Jersey Shore in 2025. This past season, Caicuto his .244 in 52 games with Jersey Shore and played 11 games at Reading and one with Lehigh Valley. In his minor league career, Caicuto has played 205 games and has seven home runs and 80 RBI with a slash line of .254/.352/.340.
Six of Caicuto’s home runs came this past season and there is some thought he could develop some power. In an organization that could use some catching depth, Caicuto is worth bringing back to the organization.
Connor Gillispie, 29, RHP
The Phillies signed Gillispie as a minor league free agent last winter and he got off to a strong start with Triple-A Lehigh Valley before blowing out his elbow in the first month of the season. The Orioles drafted Gillispie with their ninth round pick in 2019. Tommy John surgery put him out for the season last year and he will likely miss most of the 2027 season.
Gillispie has a short history pitching in the majors with Cleveland and Miami. Between the two stops he has six starts and three relief appearances covering 34 innings during which he has walked 16 and struck out 31 with an ERA of 7.15 and an 0-3 record.
Estibenzon Jimenez, 24, RHP
The Phillies signed Jimenez as an international free agent out of Venezuela. He worked his way into the closer’s role with Double-A Reading after Alex McFarlane exited the job and is now pitching in the Arizona Fall League. In four outings with Surprise he didn’t allow a baserunner in his first three outings that covered three innings. He allowed two runs in a two-inning outing on Tuesday to give him a 3.60 ERA. With Reading this season he made 28 relief appearances and went 5-0, converting all seven of his save opportunities and finishing with a 2.84 ERA.
Jimenez throws a mid-90s fastball and showed progress in his slider and changeup over the 2026 season.
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