Phillies' next move? Wait for developments

For the first time since the day after the World Series, Ruben Amaro Jr. is not looking for anything in particular. Two days before Friday's non-waiver trade deadline, the general manager ended exhaustive searches for a starting pitcher and righthanded hitter, and can now afford to watch and wait.

"Right now we're going to see how things play out for a while," Amaro said. "I don't know if there's much to really improve on right now."

He was essentially correct. The Phillies' roster is solid after the team acquired Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco from Cleveland for minor-leaguers Wednesday, and the team is in position to finish the regular season with two strong months. Still, legitimate questions surround the bullpen, a weakness that could spoil the Phils' potential playoff run. Though Amaro could scour the waiver wire and find other creative ways to hunt for relievers, his strategy is to wait for ailing bodies to heal.

The most intriguing possibility is Brett Myers. After weeks of expressing only the most cautious optimism about Myers' attempt to return as a reliever following June hip surgery, Amaro was more direct Sunday. "I think he'll pitch for us this year," the GM said. "I know he wants to. I have a pretty good feeling about whether he's going to pitch or not. He's progressed pretty good so far."

Myers would be a significant upgrade to a bullpen that has suffered from injuries to Chad Durbin, Clay Condrey and J.C. Romero (and Scott Eyre and Brad Lidge earlier in the season), and inconsistent performances from Ryan Madson and Lidge.

"We need to get healthy" before determining whether to acquire another reliever, Amaro said. "When we get J.C. back and Chad back and Condrey back, and we'll see what happens with Myers, then we'll know if we have to do something."

Durbin (back) is set to make his first rehabilitation appearance tomorrow and Romero is eligible to be activated today. The team is less optimistic about Condrey, who is on the DL for the second time after aggravating an oblique (side muscle) injury.

"He may drift deeper into the month," Amaro said. "We're going to take him slow, because of the nature of the injury. If he has another setback we might lose him for the year, so I don't want to force it."

Because of the impending arrival of Pedro Martinez, who is beginning to sound impatient about his rehab assignment, the bullpen will change in the near future. (He starts for Reading tomorrow.) When Martinez lands in Philly, the team must decide whether to utilize him as a starter or reliever, and whether to remove J.A. Happ or Jamie Moyer from the rotation. Amaro has so far revealed little about the team's plans, other than to reiterate that he signed Martinez to start.

Beyond the bullpen questions, another potential danger for the Phils is at catcher. The organization sacrificed catching depth by waiving Chris Coste and trading Lou Marson in the last month, so an injury to Carlos Ruiz or Paul Bako would be highly problematic.

Even after the deadline Friday, Amaro can upgrade if the injured relievers do not heal or perform, or one of the catchers is hurt. Teams can acquire players eligible for the postseason until Sept. 1, though those players must pass through waivers first without being claimed. Last year, the Phils picked up Eyre and Matt Stairs in this manner, and they traded for Jamie Moyer and Jeff Conine in August 2006.

"We'll try to assess, as we get closer toward September, to see if there is anything we can do prior to Sept. 1, bringing someone else into our system," Amaro said. "We're keeping an eye on the waiver wire, but I don't necessarily foresee anything happening."

Until then, the roster remains strong. One advantage of acquiring Francisco is the team no longer needs to rely on Eric Bruntlett as a primary righthanded pinch-hitter. Despite his unimpressive offensive numbers, Bruntlett is a rare and valuable commodity on defense because he can play every position and is the only backup shortstop on the roster. Now that the Phils have Francisco, they do not have to worry as much about asking Bruntlett to perform in a role unsuited to his skill set.

The Phillies do have to worry about their bullpen. One of the team's greatest strengths last year and an essential component to its playoff success remains its biggest unknown in 2009, and could undermine it in the postseason.