The arms (and bats) race
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The arms (and bats) race
David Murphy
We'll start this afternoon with a point of reference:
The first major trade of 2008 came on July 7, when the Indians shipped CC Sabathia to Milwaukee in exchange for top outfield prospect Matt LaPorta, lefthander Zach Jackson and righthander Rob Bryson.
But it is never too early to start talking trade deadline, so I caught up with Ruben Amaro Jr. to get a general feeling of where the Phillies will be looking over the next couple of months. The Phils do not discuss specific trades publicly, so you aren't going to get any names out of Amaro. But generally speaking, the Phils will be looking to upgrade.
The organization's philosophy over the past few seasons has started with a simple dictum: you can never have too much pitching. As my esteemed colleague Paul Hagen pointed out in a story two days ago, the Phillies added Kyle Lohse in 2007 and Joe Blanton in 2008, and both players submitted key contributions to the team's ensuing playoff run. This year is different in years past in that the Phillies do not have a glaring opening in the rotation. That might seem counterintuitive, given Phillies starters' struggles during the first couple months of the season. But Cole Hamels is not going anywhere, and Jamie Moyer received a heavy investment from the club in the offseason, and Blanton is coming off his best start of the season, and J.A. Happ pitched well against the Yankees, and Brett Myers spot is safe as well.
Now, a lot can change over the next month. Myers is having an MRI on his ailing right hip today. If he is lost for any extended period of time, that would seem to drastically alter the Phillies' motivation to add another starter. Similarly, if Moyer or Happ or Blanton has a rough June, that would increase pressure to add another arm.
My point is, right now, it is difficult to gauge exactly how badly the Phillies need another starter.
The same can't be said about their need for another bat on the bench. I would be surprised if the Phillies don't find a way to add a right-handed bat over the next couple of months. Right-handed pinch-hitters are just 6-for-35 this season with two RBIs. Currently, the final spot on the bench is occupied by a player - John Mayberry - whom the team still feels is better served by getting regular at-bats in the minors.
The Phillies' quest for a right-handed hitter has been a long one. They tried to convince Ty Wigginton, Nomar Garciaparra and Gary Sheffield to assume the role. They looked at Kevin Millar and Andruw Jones. Problem is, it was impossible to convince a free agent to sign with the team with the number of potential at-bats that appeared to be available. Rare is the player like Matt Stairs who is happy with three or four pinch-hit at-bats a week and an occasional start.
When it comes to trades, however, players don't have much of a choice. So it would seem that the Phillies best chance at adding such a hitter will come over the next couple of months. There will be plenty available. Who, exactly, is on the block will become clearer as teams realize they have fallen out of contention over the next month. The point is, though, that the Phillies will be monitoring their options closely.
Again, it is early, too early to identify a hitter or pitcher who will be a realistic target of the Phils. But their wish list is pretty apparent: a right-handed bat with power or speed, and a starter.
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The Phillies are hitting .277 with runners in scoring position this season, thanks in large part to the addition of Raul Ibanez to the line-up and the rejuvenation of Carlos Ruiz and Pedro Feliz.
So it's tough to give the team too much grief for its performance last night. But their struggles with men on base were a big reason why they weren't able to overcome Myers' three-run sixth inning.
Three times the Phillies had a runner on third base with less than two outs. And three times they were unable to drive him in with either an out or a hit.
All told, they were 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
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We'll try to get you some news on Brett Myers' MRI later today. Stay tuned.
The only complaint I have with Charlie over the years is that he doesn't give out enough days off to his starters. He doesn't take them out when they are going good, and he doesn't sit them when they are playing bad, claiming that they need to play through it. At 36, Ibanez will inevitably slow down from his torrid pace if he doesn't stay fresh. He and Weth coud us a break right now. Enter Mayberry.— RAS- Make that 'regulars' as opposed to 'starters'— RAS
The Phillies should concentrate all their trade ammo in a deal or deals for pitching. With the wild-card race, how many teams will be sellers this early and how many of them will have a quality right handed bat off the bench available for trade? Even then, will that bat be a substantial upgrade over John Mayberry Jr? If he is, then he will either command a huge dollar amount in his existing contract or will command a high price in terms of players traded to obtain him. Either way, the Phillies should use all their personnel and budgetory bullets into deals for starting pitching— s1360m
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- Murph, totally agree. We had a tough time getting any of those free-agent RH bats to come here because they knew they wouldn't get much playing time, but with a trade, we should have more success since the player usually has no say in that. DeRosa is a possibility. We almost got him as part of that Cubs 4 way deal for Peavy and he's having a solid season. He can play pretty much every infield position as well as LF and RF so he's versatile enough that Manuel could find him enough ABs.— JimG
- RAS Why would you take out a player when he is hot? If you have a hot bat, you play him.— phigglesfan75
- And who is the best starter that will become available? Peavy has a limited no-trade clause and probably isn't going to waive it to come to Philly. The Jays don't appear to be willing to trade Halladay. After that, there are no real stand-outs. You've got guys with varying lengths of contracts, salaries, injury concerns, etc. They have to be smart about things and no simply make a trade to make a trade or to please the always impatient fanbase.— JimG
- RAS, Ibanez DH'ed 2 games vs the Yanks. But I do agree that starters need to rest more. An example would be Victorino. Why not have Werth play CF once every 2 weeks and have Stairs get a start. You could bring Victorino in late in the game but he is the type of player who cannot play 162 games— 93phils
- So what if they paid Moyer in the off season right now you're starting to look at him as a number 4 or 5 starter and maybe not being on the post season roster if he continues to decline. They could also include Park and or Happ in a deal for a Number one starter (along with prospects) so that would open up a spot. This dude needs to think things out a little more nefor he writes them down it's just cheesy not 'High Cheese' whatever that is.— allrightknight
- Even though Ibanez is hot, he needs a rest now and then to keep him fresh over the long haul. If you play him every day, he will fade. In economics they call it the Law of Diminishing Returns.— RAS
- ras this is baseball not economics,you just dont sit a hot bat,i see your point but as long as he's hot he has to play— bdawkisgod
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- I'm not so sure the Phillies are out of the running for Peavy. He wants to play in the NL and for a contender. We certainly fit that bill. Of course he may not want to play on the East Coast or in a hitter's ball park like the Bank BUT as options to play for a winner in the NL get fewer and fewer the Phillies may look better and better. Having said that I'm not sure I'd like to see us give up what Peavy would cost. We've finally got our minor league teams stocked with some good players and getting Peavy might ruin the system.— Doubtful
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