Two Phillies veterans improve value ahead of trade deadline
Howie Kendrick and Pat Neshek continued to enhance their trade value Sunday ahead of the July 31st deadline.
Unlike the previous evening, when Jeremy Hellickson's trade value dipped with every pitch that left his $17.2-million right arm, some of the other Phillies on the trade market came through Sunday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park.
Veteran Howie Kendrick did what he has done all season – when healthy – delivering the game's biggest hit during the Phillies' 6-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Pat Neshek, the team's lone all-star, also did what he has done all season, providing a scoreless seventh inning. It was the 41st time in 43 appearances that he did not allow a run.
With a healthier Kendrick and more relievers like Neshek, the Phillies might have been in position to pursue manager Pete Mackanin's preseason goal of a .500 record. Instead, the scouts from contending teams have lined up behind home plate as the countdown to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline reaches its final days. They are looking to pick from the carcass of the worst team in baseball.
Surely some contending team has to think that Kendrick could be a valuable piece given what he has accomplished this season. With his two hits against the Brewers, including a two-run single in the fifth that broke a 2-2 tie, he raised his average to .353 and his OPS to .874.
Those numbers would look even better if Kendrick's resume covered 86 games instead of the 36 that the veteran has been limited to by two separate stints on the disabled list. Still, his small body of work has been impressive. When he went on the disabled list with an abdominal strain April 15, he was hitting .333 with an .883 OPS in 10 games. Upon his return at the end of May, he hit .356 with an .878 OPS in 23 games. But he went back to the disabled list June 30 with a strained hamstring and did not return until Friday night. In his first three games back, he has hit .400 with an .800 OPS.
"I was probably in the best shape of my career coming into this year," Kendrick said. "The only thing that's different is that as you start to get older little things happen and it just seems like you don't heal as quickly. Sometimes you wish that this or that would have happened differently, but that's part of the game, too. I think the biggest thing for me is that I've learned to just live with it."
Despite the injuries, Kendrick should still be attractive to a contending team looking to bolster its bench. The Brewers, for instance, could use him. So could the Cubs. So could a lot of teams. Kendrick is 34 and can play second base and left field. He insisted he's not worried about what will happen. He knows if he is traded he is going to move up a lot of games in the standings.
"Well, if I were scouting for another organization, I'd recommend him," Mackanin said after his team won for the fifth time in seven games. "Not only is he a good hitter, but he plays solid defense out there. I'm sure there's a lot of interest in a lot of our guys. Neshek, (Kendrick), even (Joaquin) Benoit. (Daniel) Nava."
It was interesting that the manager did not mention Hellickson, who has a 5.74 ERA in 11 starts since May 24. Of the four names Mackanin did mention, Neshek probably has the most trade value at this point with Kendrick being a close second. None of the above, however, is going to bring back a top-level prospect.
That's OK, however. Get what you can for each of them. Former general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. got Nick Pivetta in exchange for Jonathan Papelbon two years ago when the whole world knew the Phillies just wanted to get rid of the unstable closer.
This trade deadline is not about what the Phillies are going to get. It is about the opportunities they need to create for the final two months. Value or not, Hellickson needs to go so either Ben Lively or Zach Eflin can move into the rotation for the final two months of the season. At this point, Lively is slightly more deserving of another big-league chance.
Neshek and Benoit need to be moved to create a more important role for Luis Garcia, who made the most of his opportunity to close Sunday by picking up the save with a perfect ninth inning. You could argue he should remain in that role instead of Hector Neris.
Another guy Mackanin did not mention Sunday was first baseman Tommy Joseph, who also should be traded before the deadline. To his credit, Joseph rebounded from an abysmal April and has put up respectable numbers since then. But it's time to see how Rhys Hoskins can perform at first base in the big leagues. He has earned that chance and that is how the Phillies' rebuild would be best served.
It is going to be a busy week for general manager Matt Klentak and it will be fascinating to see how different the Phillies' 25-man roster looks a week from now.