Former Phillies reliever Héctor Neris signs with Braves

Former Phillies reliever Héctor Neris is back in the National League East as he officially signed with the Atlanta Braves on Monday, according to the club’s transaction log. The 35-year-old joined the Braves on a minor-league deal with an invitation to major-league spring training.

Neris, a right-hander with a heavy fastball-splitter combination, is an 11-year big-league veteran who spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Phillies. He made his debut in 2014, throwing one inning, then emerged as a bullpen mainstay in Philadelphia the next season. Neris certainly had ups and downs in his Phillies career, complete with some stellar seasons, some lackluster ones and a pivotal Triple-A demotion and bounceback in 2018. But Neris was a productive pitcher overall with a 3.42 ERA and 84 saves in 405 appearances with the Phillies.

After his time in Philadelphia, Neris signed with the Astros and was a key bullpen piece for the Houston club that defeated the Phillies in the 2022 World Series. He followed that up with the best season of his career in 2023 with a 1.71 ERA in 71 outings.

Neris signed with the Chicago Cubs last season, but he was released in August. He signed with the Astros once again to close out the year. After a season in which he posted a 4.10 ERA in 62 games, Neris was unable to find a guaranteed major-league landing spot for 2025. With the Braves, he’ll compete to break camp with the team for the duration of spring training. And if he ends up pitching for Atlanta, the Phillies will see plenty of their old friend, who has not allowed a single run against his former team in seven appearances between the regular season and postseason, in divisional games.

I serendipitously ran into a few friends that day, but the best part of the day was sharing it with my parents. Like many Phillies fans, our roots ran deep. My paternal grandfather actually died of a heart attack at the Vet before the Black Friday game in the 1977 playoffs (the game itself surely would’ve done him in if those 600-level ramps didn’t do it first). My maternal grandfather (also an enormous Phillies fan going back to the Baker Bowl days) passed away the summer of 2008. My mom snuck out of work to see the 1980 parade at around the same age I was in 2008. My Dad had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s just a few years prior, and we got to enjoy that day while he was still able to…he’s still with us but he wouldn’t be able to do it today. It is, quite literally, a once-in-a-lifetime moment. A Philly team may win another championship (really!) and I may go to another parade, but that one will always be the first and the best. – Kevin W.

Went down the parade with my parents and a family friend (don’t make fun of me, I was a freshman in high school.) I was still pretty small so it felt like the biggest thing in the world trying to move through the crowd. I remember being down outside the Bank as the buses made their way through the route. Never made it in the stadium for the speech but heard about it on our way home. I will never forget going out trick or treating that night dressed as Chase Utley only to have an old lady yell at me because of what he said at the Parade. What a day. – Jack F.