Phillies will target big-name outfielders, according to report
The Phillies will target some big-name free agent outfielders this offseason, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
The Phillies will target some big-name free agent outfielders this offseason, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
Heyman says the Phillies will be in the mix for Jacoby Ellsbury, Shin-Soo Choo, Nelson Cruz and possibly Curtis Granderson.
More from Heyman's report:
Philly is said also to be prioritizing relief pitching in addition to outfield help. They are fortunate in that it's a above average year for outfielders on the free-agent market.
General manager Ruben Amaro wouldn't address specific players, and rather succinctly summed up their needs as "catching, pitching, outfield."
The Phillies could certainly use the help. Domonic Brown had a breakout season, hitting .278 with 27 home runs and 83 runs batted in while playing the outfield (according to baseball-reference.com).
However, outfielders not named Dom Brown (Darin Ruf, Ben Revere, John Mayberry, and others) hit just .253 with 30 home runs and 122 RBI in 1,347 ABs last season. That's the kind of production you should expect from one premium outfielder in about half as many at-bats.
For example, here are the career numbers for the four players Heyman mentions, averaged out over 162 games:
Certainly, any of those players would be an upgrade over the current crop of Phillies outfielders, with the exception of Brown.
The question now is how much the Phillies will have to pay to land one of these guys.