For Jesús Luzardo, the upcoming season isn’t just about pitching for the Phillies; it’s a high-stakes audition for a nine-figure contract that could define his career. The 28-year-old lefty is about to become a free agent, and the Phillies’ rotation is falling apart around him.

Zack Wheeler is hurt, Ranger Suárez is gone, and now Luzardo has to show that he deserves a nine-figure salary. One season could make or break his career. Luzardo’s way of thinking shows how much stress he’s putting on himself.

“There’s really only one option. It’s either you make it, or you don’t,” Luzardo noted. “It’s something I like to live by.”

Even though he pitched a career-high 183 ⅔ innings in 2025, he hasn’t let his success make him lazy.

The $11 million Philly added, “I feel now, just as good, or better than I did last year,” showing that he was ready for the challenge ahead.

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It makes perfect sense to have a do-or-die attitude when so much is at stake.

Luzardo is going to the Phillies’ rotation for the last time this year. Zack Wheeler is recovering from thoracic surgery and won’t be ready for Opening Day, and Ranger Suárez left as a free agent. Luzardo hurt his back at the end of the 2023 season with the Marlins, but he returned strong in 2025. Now he is one of two rotation anchors, along with Cristopher Sánchez.

His sweeper became his best pitch, with a 43.7% whiff rate and opponents only hitting .178 against it.

Caleb Cotham, Luzardo’s pitching coach, says that the key to staying elite is that he is always changing.

“He’s always trying to find that edge and the stretch to ‘What’s next? What can I do to get a little better?” Cotham exclaimed.

“And I think it’s important. That’s why guys like him stay in pace with the league, because the league’s always getting better. Hitters are always getting better.”

Luzardo is already working on his next new approach, a changeup with a new grip to make the pitch more reliable.

Last season, he mostly threw the changeup to right-handed hitters, who only hit it for a .224 average. Cotham, who went to see Luzardo once during the offseason and again this week during a bullpen session, said that his style is similar to Zack Wheeler’s, who is always changing.

Yet, as Luzardo tries to improve his game on the major league roster, the cost of getting him still haunts Philadelphia’s future.

The Phillies pay a steep prospect price to acquire Jesús Luzardo

Baseball America’s most recent rankings put the Phillies’ farm system at number 20, where it has been for years. One reason for this is the aggressive trades that brought players like Jesús Luzardo to the team.

“Miller, Andrew Painter, and Justin Crawford give the Phillies an enviable trio, but trades have sapped the system of depth,” the report stated.

The “win now” strategy has cost the prospect pipeline a lot.

Philadelphia lost shortstop Starlyn Caba and outfielder Emaarion Boyd in the Luzardo deal. Then the Minnesota Twins made some trades that brought in closer Jhoan Duran and center fielder Harrison Bader. They gave up pitchers Mick Abel and Geremy Villoria, outfielder Hendry Mendez, and catcher Eduardo Tait.

The organization considers Miller, Painter, and Crawford as their three most valuable prospects. The recent draft selections, Gage Wood, picked 26th overall and ranked as the fifth-best prospect, and Matthew Fisher, selected in the seventh round and ranked as the ninth-best prospect, demonstrate strong development.

The Phillies also signed Francisco Renteria, who is a 17-year-old international outfielder.

While the farm system could achieve improvement through prospect development, the organization needs to wait because it lacks the time to build this capacity.