Phillies add Oswalt to already potent rotation

THE ONLY THING missing from the dimly lit conference room was a haze of cigarette smoke and a row of slot machines. Wearing a checkered blazer that hung loosely from his shoulders and a thin shadow of whiskers, Ruben Amaro Jr. looked more like a gambler finishing up a weekend on the Strip than a general manager who had just pulled off his third consecutive trade for a marquee starting pitcher. And considering the string of bold decisions that added Roy Oswalt to a rotation that already includes veteran righthander Roy Halladay and rejuvenated lefty Cole Hamels, the appearance wasn't necessarily deceiving.

"These are human beings, and you don't know how they will perform," Amaro said. "But I like our chances with these three pitchers at the top of our rotation, certainly."

On paper, the Phillies took a big step toward re-establishing themselves as the favorites in the National League when they traded lefthander J.A. Happ and a pair of raw prospects - outfielder Anthony Gose and infielder Jonathan Villar - to the Astros for Oswalt and a reported $11 million yesterday.

Oswalt, a 32-year-old righthander with a 3.42 ERA in 20 starts and a slew of Top 5 Cy Young finishes in his career, waived the no-trade clause in his contract to complete the deal and join Halladay (2.21 ERA in 22 starts) and Hamels (3.48 ERA in 21 starts) in Philadelphia. Starting tonight in Washington, D.C., when Oswalt is scheduled to make his debut, the Phillies rotation will feature the type of three-headed monster many had pined for in the wake of the front office's decision to deal Cliff Lee in December. Approximately 36 of their remaining 60 games will be started by a pitcher who lasts an average of at least 6 1/3 innings and allows fewer than 2.5 earned runs per start.

"He's right in the prime of his career," manager Charlie Manuel said. "He's 32 years old. He's got a lot left, and he's going to help us. We got better today."

Not only do the Phillies believe they have the type of consistent starting pitching that will enable them to claw their way back atop the postseason standings, they have control over that firepower through at least 2012. The Phillies owe Oswalt roughly $5.25 million this season and $16 million in 2011, but the money they will receive from the Astros makes them responsible for only $10.25 million. Oswalt has a $16 million option for 2012, although the Phillies can buy it out for a reported $3 million. That's a modest price tag for a pitcher who, since 2004, has a 3.35 ERA and stellar peripheral rates of 7.1 SO/9, 2.1 BB/9 and 0.8 HR/9.

"This isn't just a move that's made in a vacuum," Amaro said. "This is, in some ways, a move for today and the future, because we do have control of the player for next year."

There are risks. The first, Oswalt's future health, is the type of unpredictable factor that comes associated with any deal. Oswalt has proven plenty durable in his 10 seasons in the majors. He has made at least 30 starts in each of the last six seasons, and is on pace to surpass the 200-inning mark for the seventh time in 9 years. Although he has spent stints on the disabled list in three of the last five seasons, only once in that stretch did he spend more than the minimum 15 days there. That was last season, when he made 30 starts and pitched 181 1/3 innings despite battling a back injury that ended his season on Sept. 16.

Oswalt missed a short stretch in 2006 with a back injury, and has had cortisone injections to combat inflammation.

"The two doctors and the two trainers had extensive discussions," Amaro said. "We did talk to our back specialist . . . we did our due diligence and we felt like there were no structural issues that we should be concerned about. He has had injections. We knew about them, we know about them, but we feel confident that at the very least this player will be able to play at his accustomed level at least through the end of the 2011 season."

Oswalt's agent, Bob Garber, vouched for his health, saying, "He's in great shape. He's healthy. He feels good. A pitcher like Roy, you can pitch for a long time."

The other big unknown is actually more of a certainty. With Oswalt, the Phillies have between $135.35 million and $146.35 million guaranteed to 16 players next season, depending on how much of the $11 million from the Astros they put toward their payroll this season. They entered 2010 with a payroll around $137 million. While Amaro's budget is likely to increase next season, he acknowledged that the Phillies will be counting on cheaper, homegrown players to fill their remaining nine roster spots. The only traditional high-dollar positions unfilled are rightfield, where Jayson Werth will be a free agent, and a No. 5 starter, where Kyle Kendrick could be arbitration-eligible. Top prospect Domonic Brown, called up on Wednesday, is penciled into rightfield, but it remains to be seen how much money the Phillies can spend on fortifying their bullpen and bench.

Amaro said yesterday that the Phillies are almost certainly done adding for this season.

"At some point, these young men are going to have to pitch for us," Amaro said. "We're going to have low-cost, low-salary, low-major league service players. I think if we have enough good quality players who are making the bulk of the payroll, then I think that if we keep doing our job on the development side and the scouting side . . . we're going to have to have those kids step up and play."

So it boils down to this: The Phillies wagered that Oswalt will perform significantly better than Happ through next season, that the $10.25 million they will pay him over that stretch will not cause a glaring deficiency in other areas of the roster, and that the collective return they enjoy will outweigh the long-term potential of Happ, Gose and Villar.

Gose, 19, is a promising outfielder at Class A Clearwater, batting .263; Villar, a 19-year-old infielder, is less highly regarded, and his hitting .272. Between the two of them, however, they have stolen 74 bases and scored 128 runs this season.

There is risk, and there is potential reward. The Phillies have acknowledged both.

For more Phillies coverage and opinion, read David Murphy's blog, High Cheese, at http://go.philly.com/highcheese. Follow him on Twitter at

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