Role as 'other guy' may suit Phillies' Blanton

On Monday, the Phillies' pitchers and catchers will participate in their first workout on a back field behind Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla. The many cameras will capture the Four Aces lightly tossing baseballs beside one another for the first time. Presumably, someone will come up with another nickname for the best rotation this franchise has ever fielded.

The workout will end without anything remotely close to eventful happening. The pitchers will shuffle into the clubhouse and then head for the nearby cafeteria for an orchestrated news conference televised live on MLB Network in which the Four Aces will talk about how excited they are to begin the season.

Oh, and Joe Blanton will be there, too.

That was far from guaranteed in December when the Phillies signed Cliff Lee. Moments after the analysis of Lee's deal began, Blanton's name surfaced as a possible player on his way out of Philadelphia.

But that has yet to happen and Blanton will report to Clearwater with the rest of the pitchers and catchers on Sunday. This week, the Phillies anxiously alerted reporters of a news conference Monday and included Blanton in the announcement.

It could be somewhat awkward, but Blanton and the Phillies will do everything they can to avoid that. The soft-spoken Tennessee native is not one to start a controversy and likely won't have much to say on the topic, other than: "Hey, I'm still here."

For how long is anyone's guess.

"Joe feels great," said Jeff Berry, his agent. "He obviously loves pitching for the Phillies and certainly hopes that continues through 2011 and beyond.

"He also understands the business aspects of this."

It promises to be an unusual spring for Blanton, who in three years has gone from solid midseason acquisition, to World Series hitting hero, to sometimes the brunt of jokes, and now to That Other Guy who could be a trade chip. His current role is that of fifth starter, and he could be the best one in baseball.

If the Phillies continue to pursue a trade, Blanton's value will only increase as the days pass - so long as the righthander is not injured or completely ineffective.

But until the July 31 nonwaiver trade deadline (and even the Aug. 31 deadline), a potential trade will hang over the pitcher's head. Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has repeatedly said he is not comfortable trading Blanton. That doesn't prevent his stance from changing if a team decides to eat a large sum of the $17 million Blanton is owed over the next two seasons.

There is no clear possible landing spot for Blanton as camps open across the majors, but that hardly matters. Pitchers will be injured and others will not be as good as teams expected. Just like it does every season, the heaviest demand on the trade market will fall to starting pitching.

So why should the Phillies cash in that valuable chip before they have to?

The New York Yankees are obviously a possible partner. They will go to spring training with two open rotation spots and a competition among Sergio Mitre, Ivan Nova, Freddy Garcia, and Bartolo Colon.

But the longer the Phillies wait, the more desperate the Yankees could become and the more Blanton could net should other teams show a desire.

There is also this overlooked fact: Blanton is still a pretty decent pitcher. Yes, he missed the first month of 2010 with a side-muscle injury that caused some first-half struggles. But after the all-star break, Blanton had a 3.33 ERA in his 15 starts and struck out 7.9 batters per nine innings. The Phillies were 11-4 in those games.

Now the expectations are even fewer for the 30-year-old. He's not one of the Four Aces, but life as That Other Guy is just beginning. It could be a role made for Blanton.