Conventional wisdom has long expected the Philadelphia Phillies to take an aggressive approach ahead of the July 31 trade deadline.
The core of the team that lost in the 2022 World Series remains, but several key members of that group – Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner, JT Realmuto, Nick Castellanos, Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola – are on the wrong side of 31. Additionally, Schwarber and Realmuto are among several players on expiring contracts, and other starters such as Bryson Stott, Alec Bohm and Brandon Marsh will be up for arbitration.
As they say, the window is closing.
However, being aggressive at the trade deadline doesn’t necessarily mean free-spending, and questions have lingered over Philadelphia’s willingness to dig into its supply of prospects. But in a recent article for The Athletic, Matt Gelb cited officials with other teams indicating that the Phillies “want to shop this July in a more expensive aisle than the rental one.”
Farm System Gives Phillies Pieces to Acquire Talent Like Emmanuel Clase & Steven Kwan
Dealing from a farm system that USA Today rated fourth-best in baseball entering the All-Star break, the Phillies certainly have some enticing players to use as trade chips. While most analysts agree that the team’s top prospect Andrew Painter, ranked ninth among all MLB prospects, will likely not be made available, the co-hosts of “The Phillies Show” podcast believe that any other players in the franchise’s top 30 are up for grabs.
During the latest episode, Todd Zolecki, Jim Salisbury and Ruben Amaro Jr. discussed the significant needs for the Phillies to address and the potential for the them to utilize their top-heavy prospect pool in trade talks. Zolecki noted that Philadelphia now has six players listed among MLB’s top-100 prospects, given the recent addition of High-A second baseman Aroon Escobar.
“Yeah, he’s gone,” Amaro exclaimed.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if [shortstop Aidan] Miller, [outfielder Gabriel] Rincones [Jr.], [pitcher Mick] Abel, all three of those guys are in play, and probably more. [Catcher Eduardo] Tait, others. I think there’s guys that are going to be in play. It’s as simple as that. You want to get a player to help you, you’re going to have to give something up for it.”
“I think they’ll try to hold on to Miller and [Justin] Crawford with every fiber of their being,” Zolecki said
“Whatever you do, it’s going to hurt, but you got to fix this thing,” Salisbury surmised. “You got to get a shutdown arm out in that bullpen, and I am very confident they will, because they know they have a ticking odometer on the nucleus of this team. They know they have a great starting rotation, and they know they got to win [a World Series title].”
The Phillies also know they need more than just one high-end reliever. With glaring offensive deficiencies in center field (Johan Rojas and Brandon Marsh) and left field (Max Kepler), Philadelphia would be wise to bring in a better outfield bat as well.
Perhaps both roster holes could be filled with a single move.
Phillies Would Address Multiple Needs With All-In Trade for Emmanuel Clase & Steven Kwan
One idea that has been growing in popularity around the rumor mill – furthered by a recent article from ESPN’s Jeff Passan – has Philadelphia approaching the Cleveland Guardians to inquire about closer Emmanuel Clase and outfielder Steven Kwan.
Clase has 20 saves with a 2.91 ERA so far this season, after three consecutive seasons of 40-plus saves and a career ERA of 1.82, while Kwan, in his fourth MLB season, has been a remarkably consistent offensive performer and currently sits amazingly close to his career slash line of .285/.357/.396. Both players are 27, and both have a few years of team control remaining, with Clase under contract through 2028 at $26 million per, and Kwan signed through 2027 at less than $20 million for two more seasons.
Acquiring the duo will not be cheap, and Christopher Kline of FanSided proposes that a package of Abel (No. 5 Prospect), Escobar (No. 6 ) and Rincones (No. 11) might get the job done. “The Phillies Show” co-hosts would likely laugh off that idea as another one of Amaro dismissed as “these crazy, ridiculous, stupid ideas that are out there.”
“I mean, listen, it’s okay to be bold and to think big, but it’s good going to deplete your system,” Amaro stressed.
Which is OK for the right deal, because that’s what the system is for.
“In that dream scenario, Clase and Kwan, I mean, it would start with Miller and Crawford for sure,” Zolecki said.
“And then it would keep going. Miller, Crawford, Abel, etc. Tait has a great contract, too,” Amaro added.
“You get [Kwan] and Clase and you can give them seven players. I throw in Crawford and Miller and all those guys because guess what? They’re big leaguers who are performing right now today and guys who can win.”
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