212 thoughts on “Phillies Discussion, 7/15/24”

1. Tyler Phillips is such a great story of how this Phillies FO has become elite.
   – Claimed off waivers by DD. Savvy pick up.
   – Phillies developmental staff, which seems to have become elite at developing pitchers, really helped him improve.

   He’s not a star. But he is a serviceable 5th starter that is very productive. Great example of how a FO and developmental staff should work together.

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   1. It’s a nice story, and I don’t want to be a Debbie Downer, but I need to see a much larger sample size even for a potential #5. He hangs a lot of pitches. I need to see more.

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      1. Tyler Phillips is a 4/5, which is a credit to the Phillies because he was likely worse than that when he got picked up. He has enough skill to hang around in a rotation but you’re constantly looking to upgrade from 4/5 pitchers. This is an opportunity for Tyler Phillips to show the Phillies (and other teams) that’s he can be a serviceable big leaguer. But he’s keeping that rotation spot warm for Andrew Painter.

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2. There isn’t a toilet big enough, wide enough or deep enough to flush Sunday’s 3-18, EIGHT homerun debacle.

   The relief pitching which was so good early on has been quite spotty of late. Hope they can get it together.

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   1. Seranthony was due for a stinker and there it was. Not sure why the blame is going to the bullpen when Mercado gave up 6 runs (3 HRs) in 4 innings and Suarez gave up 4 runs (walked 3) in 6 innings.

      Those 2 were the main reasons why the Phillies lost the series to the lowly A’s.

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      1. Mercado has shown why most everyone has pegged him as a bullpen arm and not a starting pitcher.

         He has a good arm and shows some good stuff but also makes way too many mistakes with pitches in the zone. Can get away with that in limited exposure out of the pen but as a starter, he gets exposed.

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         1. The Phillies should move him back to the bullpen ASAP. He was throwing 97 in ST and easily looking like a 7th or 8 inning arm.

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      2. Agree. Strahm had a stretch about a week ago where he was looking shaky, but he’s back to being dependable. Kerkering has done a good job and has battled through iffy control a couple times. And Hoffman has been as good as anyone in baseball.

         3 shutdown relievers is all we realistically need for the playoffs, so I’m pretty happy with our bullpen. I’d be even happier if we can get Alvarado back on track. At this point, Seranthony and Soto are what they are, and then Ruiz is there just to soak up innings.

         I said before this start that I was worried about Ranger and now he says he’s been dealing with back spasms. Back problems are no joke, so that could absolutely be the culprit. We just gotta hope that he and Wheeler come out of the break feeling healthy. If they do, our pitching staff is in excellent position to continue this awesome season they’re having. But I’m going to continue worrying about Ranger until his control comes back.

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         1. There’s no doubt that Ranger is having a crazy year but I’ve always considered him as a 3/4 pitcher because of a lack of an out pitch. His best attribute is his elite command but those type of pitchers aren’t usually 1/2, 2/3 starters unless your name is Mark Buehrle.

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            1. I’m sorry, but Ranger is so much better than that.

               Ranger’s issue is that he is probably tired and a little hurt and has pitched a lot more innings thus far than he has in prior years.

               When he’s healthy and right, he’s an all-star pitcher. Overall, to me, he’s at least a 2. And it’s not like he’s never done this before. Ranger had the best 1.36 ERA in 2021 that nobody noticed. It was over 100 innings. It was a real thing. It happened. And then he did it again for most of this year, until he hit a wall.

               My guess is that Ranger is banged up and tired but he’s not a dude who complains so he just kept going. When they get him right again, I expect him to be excellent again. And I’m still trying to sign him long term because he’s clutch in the postseason.

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               1. That 2021 year for Ranger is looking like an outlier and not really indicative of who he is, similar to Aaron Nola when he posted 9.7 WAR in 2018. You think he’s a 2/3, I think he’s a 3/4, that’s fine. Ranger will probably get around 10-12 more starts, and I think he’ll be very lucky to get 4 WAR. Do I think he’s tired? Probably, but that’s part of being a pitcher. He’ll need to manage that and if he’s not successful, his WAR will reflect that.

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               2. If the industry views Suarez as a 3/4, I don’t see how he’s going to get 6/160 in free agency. That could end up being an overpay similar to the Walker deal.

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               3. @Jim, I think Suarez is a 3/4, but all that matters is 1 other team who feels he’s a 2/3 and boom, he gets paid. Obviously a lot depends on how Suarez performs for the rest of this season and next.

                  I like Suarez but we can’t pay everybody. If Andrew Painter shows next season that he’s still elite, I would seriously consider letting Suarez sign elsewhere.

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               4. That is not an entirely fair criticism. It’s well established in the industry that you don’t just double a pitcher’s innings and expect it not to have any effect. That’s what the Phillies are doing this year with Ranger. He’s never pitched this many innings for this long of a stretch and he’s a little banged up. They are going to need to be careful with him in the second half so he recovers and remains healthy.

                  As for 2021 being an outlier, Ranger pitched exactly the same way for the first three months of the season. His lifetime ERA is 3.28 (the definition of a #2). And his postseason record is 3-1 with a 1.62 ERA – so he’s also clutch in big moments.

                  He’s a guy I’d bet on in a big way and he’s going to get a big contract if he shows he’s healthy. If the Phillies don’t sign him (I’m sure they’re working on it), someone else will and will probably get a bargain.

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               5. Ranger: Comes down to the boss John Middleton, does he like him or does he not…I am betting he likes him and signs him. Five years plus one option , n the same neighborhood AAV of Aaron Nola’s.

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               6. Ranger will get less than Nola if they do the deal soon – I’m thinking like 5 years and $95 million with an option for the 6th year. Nola had a really long track record before he got that contract. As you can see, Ranger, as good as he is, has never pitched that many innings whereas Nola is a workhorse.

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               7. It’s hard to find a comp for Ranger amongst the best paid starters in baseball. All have a season high innings load greater than his. Maybe that will change this year if he gets to 180 innings. It’s hard to be seen as 1/2 starter getting paid corresponding $ unless you’re more of a workhorse.

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3. That was a nice audition by Brent Rooker, eh? It’s what I call the “Hinson (as in Roy) effect.” The added price you pay when a player just lights up your team as an opponent. Anyway, with that light show, I agree Rooker probably will cost a top 100 prospect. I view Justin Crawford as incredibly tradeable. He’s probably going to be a starting level major league outfielder – but I highly doubt he’s going to be a star. I could be wrong, but I don’t think so. So, what might Rooker cost? Crawford, Abel, Aldegheri and a guy like Rincon or Saltiban. So do I make that trade? HELL YES! You’ll have 3 more years of control and you’ll have to move Castellanos in the off season, but Rooker is the big, power righty bat they’ve sorely missed since Hoskins went down. He is literally the last missing component of this line-up. If they got him, this offense might be the best in baseball for the rest of the season and it takes so much pressure off the lack of production in centerfield.

   Against Righties

   Schwarber

   Turner

   Harper

   Rooker

   Bohm

   Marsh (CF)

   Realmuto

   Stott

   Castellanos (some games Rojas will start and Castellanos will be out)

   Against Lefties

   Schwarber

   Turner

   Harper

   Rooker (in left)

   Bohm

   Stott

   Realmuto

   Castellanos

   Rojas

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   1. i think that’s an overpay. Defence matters. On his podcast with Salisbury Ruben said he wouldn’t give up any of the big four for him alone but only in a package to get Miller along with Rooker. These are my proposals not Amaro:

      Rooker–Aldegheri, Cabrera, Rincon? That’s #6, 7 and 9 on new BA top 30

      Miller–Caba, Crawford, Abel

      Caba, Crawford, Abel, Aldegheri, Rincon, Cabrera for both. Throw in Mcgarry if necessary.

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      1. When you are going for a title, sometimes you have to overpay. It just is what it is. Because if you don’t another team likely will and then a competitor gets him. If Rooker comes in and ends up being the missing piece to win this team a WS, it wont matter if we gave up a little more than necessary

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4. Catch. Rooker is really good. Guys wondered why they did not stick him in the outfield for at least one game. Think T Mac said he has only played maybe like 14 games on defense. They did say his defense improved after those 2 bombs to center. LOL. He sure can hit. I just do not see them doing anything with Castellanos. I think he is one of the favorites. He sure is not a very disciplined hitter. It was as though he knew the slider was coming and kept swinging at it even though it was several inches off the plate. I would throw it to if I was the pitcher. He was not the only one though. Get some days off and get back ready to go on Friday. I am sure they will see Skenes over the weekend. I would be all in on Rooker and Miller. But no idea what the cost would be. Probably a fortune. Miller, they said was going to Texas though with the Phillies All Stars. Maybe he might make some friends.

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5. II’d be shocked, and likely disappointed if the Phils go all in on Rooker. Early on I was touting him for the obvious reasons before realizing that he wasn’t a day-to-day position player for a bottom feeder team like the A’s. He, like Hoskins, would not be seen by Dombrowski as bringing enough glove to the table. It would be a big swing for the Phils to land Rooker. I think they’ll go smaller for a Randy Arozarena or Lane Thomas whom they can platoon in LF and play for 9 innings in any situation.

   Alvarado is the team’s most expensive piece in the pen. To me on a confidence level he ranks 4th/5th. I hope the Phils add a rental for the pen this month like Carlos Estevez or Tanner Scott.All going well, the Phils could re-sign that pitcher, extend Hoffman, and unload Alvarado this off-season leaving one year of team control on the contract.

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   1. Brent Rooker is a butcher in the field. Rooker played 14 games in the OF and he already has -0.9 dWar. Nick Castellanos has -1.1 dWar, but he’s played in 92 games in the field. Rooker is a DH and the Phillies don’t need that.

      As long as Alvarado doesn’t implode, I think he’s on the team for 2025. Worst case, they turn him into an 8th inning guy.

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      1. Agree on Rooker…130 games in the OF over the last 5 MLB seasons….negative 17 DRS. If the league had an EH along with the DH he would work well.

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      2. The point about him being that bad in the field is a legitimate one. I didn’t realize he was that much of a liability – but, damn, he is literally the perfect fit in that line-up. I heard the Phillies are kicking the tires on Pillar, who would be a cheap platoon partner with Marsh for the rest of the year – there are worse options.

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   2. The only people who would have more confidence in Scott than Alvarado are the ones who haven’t watched Scott pitch.

      I’m telling you, he’s a ticking time bomb. It’s not a matter of if, it’s WHEN he will implode.

      Now when I say implode, I don’t mean he’ll be HORRIBLE. But he’s worse than Hoffman, and only MAYBE an improvement on Alvarado right now. But he’s going to cost you a prospect haul as though he’s a top-10 reliever, which he simply isn’t.

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      1. Scott has a WHIP of 1.07 which is 11th best among MLB closers — better than Alvarado and notables such as saves leader Ryan Helsley. So your point is lost on me. Hoffman has a WHIP of 0.89 but I wasn’t focused on him.

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         1. Scott has the 4th highest BB% of any qualified reliever. He’s one of only 2 relievers in the bottom 12 in that stat with an ERA below 3.5. The other is COL’s Lambert, another walking regression candidate.

            Does it infuriate you when Soto walks the leadoff guy? Well Soto’s BB% is “only” 12.4% vs. Scott’s 15.3%.

            Scott also has an unbelievably low .176 BABIP and a high 82.1% strand rate. His HR/FB% is also well below his career average. None of which are sustainable. And while his K% is good, it’s not elite. His 27.6% ranks him T-44th, and would be FIFTH for our relievers. And only that high because Alvarado is having an off year.

            But know where he doesn’t rank better than Alvarado? K-BB%. Scott ranks all the way down at 122 for qualified relievers in that at 12.3%, which would place him DEAD LAST of any reliever that we’ve allowed to throw 20+ innings.

            Scott has had a pretty lucky year. But the underlying stats say he’s been about as good as Alvarado or Soto has. And that’s despite Alvarado having a down year.

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         2. He walks more people than Soto. He has the 5th highest BB% and the 122nd worst K/BB% of any qualified reliever. He pairs that good, not elite, K%. He’d be 5th in our ‘pen in K%, and only because Alvarado is having an off year.

            Plus his BABIP and HR/FB% are unsustainably low, while his LOB% is unsustainably high. He’s been good about inducing soft-medium contact, but not so good that he’s going to keep up his current pace. His underlying stats suggest he’s about as good as Alvarado or Soto this year.

            I wouldn’t mind adding him, but he’s not worth what he’s going to cost.

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            1. Meant 4th highest BB%, by the way. The only other pitcher in the top 12 with an ERA below 3.5 is COL’s Lambert, who is also a walking regression candidate.

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               1. Dan. I am not sure Scott is a major improvement. Besides Miller I am not sure there is one out there who may be available. Heyman does not think Miller will be. But I do have concerns with Kerkering, Alvarado, and Hoffman in that crucial game or games. We all saw firsthand what Kimbrel did last year in those situations. I do not think at this time Ser Anthony or Soto can even be in the discussion for end of game situation. Strahm might actually be the best.

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            2. Scott is not very good and he’s not very affordable. I see. What’s beyond reasonable dispute is that he’s a cheaper upgrade over Alvarado, whom I see as a declining resource.

               Before looking into it, I had the impression from you that Scott was putting tons of runners on base and instantly walking a tightrope. Not true at all.

               Some of the stats you cite matter to me; frankly some don’t. I wouldn’t look for Scott or Estevez, whom I like as well, to be an alpha out of the pen. In the best case, a trade deadline rental acquisition pitches well enough to extend. Ideally, Hoffman gets extended. At that point, I’m looking to unload the most expensive reliever they currently have — the shaky Alvarado. It might not be easy.

               What would a reliever rental cost? Maybe a 5-10 range prospect plus someone 10-20. I think Dombrowski, who let Kimbrel get away in the off-season without a replacement, would find that manageable.

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               1. If that’s what Scott was going to cost, I’d be fine with that. But it’s not.

                  Hunter Harvey cost the Royals a prospect that’s ranked in their top 5 AND the 39th pick in the draft, which has to be considered a value at least equal to a top-10 prospect.

                  And Harvey is having a very middling year. So someone is going to give the Marlins a prospect haul for Scott. I don’t want that someone to be us.

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6. Imo Rooker does not make sense for our team and will not be our target:
   1. You simply can not have a corner OF of Castellanos and Rooker. I don’t care how good Rojas is. We tried that with Schwarber and DD clearly saw how bad that was so he traded. Top prospect for Marsh.
   2. Rooker is not a platoon player. He is an every day hitter. He hits both handed pitchers well. Unless Castellanos is in the package for Rooker (extremely unlikely) there is no where to play him on an everyday basis. He is a DH. We already have a great DH.

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   1. I suppose Robert could still be somewhere on their table. Have to admire Dombrowski, the asking price of prospects may be too high, and DD is showing unusual restraint in not succumbing to the temptation. In his younger GM years he probably would have pulled the trigger.

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      1. I could be wrong, but I don’t see Robert as the target either. I think we want a RH platoon player who mashes LHP. Lane Thomas is the perfect target.

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   2. v1. Back in the 70s and early 80s the Phillies had similar outfield as you describe above. Bull in left, Garry Maddox in center and Bake McBride in right. Think Bake was there only part of the time. Maybe Lonnie Smith was out there some as well. The saying then was half of the earth was covered by water and the other half by Garry Maddox. Maddox was a great defensive player. Plus, he hit a little more than Rojas though not a great hitter. Pretty sure though he had the hit in the 1980 NLCS that sent the Phillies to the WS and first title. I do agree that both Rooker and Casty would be a huge gamble. But I would take Rooker over Casty any day at the plate. Just so much more disciplined hitter. I agree if he has only played 14 games in the field this season, he is a DH. Would they consider putting Kyle back in LF? That does not seem like a great idea either.

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      1. Sure, if we could somehow trade Casty (even with a buy down) plust prospects for Rooker, then sign me up for that. I would include Crawrford to get out of Casty contract.

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      2. McBride was an everyday, above average outfielder, mostly in right field, for the Phillies during his tenure with the Phillies from June 15, 1977, to February 1982. We older Phillies fans remember McBride-to-Trillo-to-Boone in the Astros playoff series like Cubs fans remember What’s-his-name-to-what’s-his-name-to-Chance. McBride finished 10th in MVP voting in 1980. Most of Lonnie Smith’s starts came in left field. Dean-to-Evers-to-Chance. I remembered. Dallas Green was the manager and didn’t get along with Luzinski, Boone, Bowa. He got into a fist fight with reliever Ron Reed. I think he had differences with Maddox, too. Amazing they won.

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         1. Bake was pretty good. Plus, pretty consistent hitter. There were many strong personalities on that team. But I was really happy when they won WS. Really not a Casty comparison. Other than play right field. Bull compared to Schwarbs, Rooker or anyone else not great defender. Dallas Green was kind of like the drill Seargent assistant coach I had at South Alabama. He so disliked us northern kids. I always told people he was to us that Seargent Carter was to Gomer Pyle. I always thought Stanky liked that. He played the good guy.

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         2. Jim, Tinker, as in Joe Tinker, to Evers to Chance:

            These are the saddest of possible words:
            “Tinker to Evers to Chance.”
            Trio of bear cubs, and fleeter than birds,
            Tinker and Evers and Chance.
            Ruthlessly pricking our gonfalon^[a] bubble,
            Making a Giant hit into a double^[b] –
            Words that are heavy with nothing but trouble:
            “Tinker to Evers to Chance.”

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            1. Ah, yes. I should have left it as what’s-his-name.

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7. Just saw a Sporting New article with interview Rueben over the weekend. He was asked Phillies biggest need in his thoughts, and he said an 8th or 9th inning guy. Thing that caught my attention was article said Phillies have 14 blown saves That seems like a lot for a team with their record. They surely won some of those games.

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   1. Blown saves can be a misleading stat. One can occur as early as the sixth inning. It doesn’t necessarily mean a loss but can be a tie when a lead was lost. The Phillies blown save leader is Strahm with 4. Hoffman has 3. Kerkering and Alvarado have 2 each. Soto, Dominguez, and Marte 1 each.

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8. When ever Ruben has been asked about improving a team, he ALWAYS says Pitching, Pitching, Pitching…even though he traded Cliff Lee when he got Roy Halliday.

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   1. 🔥… lets not talk about. I still get twisted about it. Same for the DH finally being incorporated when it could’ve been back when the Phillies had Thome & Howard…

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   2. Andy, blame the prior Phillies owners (Giles, Montgomery Group) for that forced trade as Ruben was told it was either Halliday or Lee. Ruben loved pitching and would have never done that trade on his own.

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9. On acquiring Miller… I’d like to have him, but … Kruk made a comment about how straight his fastball is. I agree, but it is sitting 101-104mph. Wilson got a hit off him. I will say .. go for it, if you think Caleb can add some movement to that FB,even if it ticks down to 102 most of the time. His injury history is dicey too… but I’d give up the above trade:

   Caba, Crawford, and Abel. Brutal but … he SO a lot of batters. Helps the defense. The way Rob T manages the bullpen in the playoffs, i feel like they need him, or someone simliar.

   I’d go pitching over OF help at this point. Nothing worse than losing a game the bullpen blows in a playoff game. Need to guard against that the best you can.

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   1. I like Miller a lot but Caba, Crawford and Abel is too much for late 90s Mariano Rivera lol

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      1. yeah that would hurt and if I were the GM, I’d hesitate to pull that trigger. But it might mean the difference between a title or going home early.

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   2. Miller’s arm isn’t going to hold up IMO. TJ is in his near future and maybe it isn’t this season but it is coming…

      He nearly had to have last year…

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10. Tac. I think Miller is the only guy I have seen who might be available that checks most of the boxes. I remember Kruk making those comments. But he absolutely blew Stott and Marsh away with those 104 pitches.

    Game 3 of NLCS still haunts me. Phillies grabbed that 1-0 lead and then Kerkering made like 2 pitches, and it was 1-1 and then the rest of games 3, 4, 6, and 7 are history. I thought that was the game they could have taken total control of the series and let it slide. Just thought maybe better options at that time. I realize he did well in Braves series.

    Cliff Lee deal still hurts. I remember coming home from school and hearing about Halladay and then Lee going out. I forget if they both happened same day. Total bummer though.

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11. I think there are two choices for the outfield. Luis Robert and Cody Bellinger. The only thing holding Robert back is his health. The only thing holding us back from making the trade is prospect cost. With Bellinger, he’s hitting lefties much better than righties this year and I cannot see the cost in prospects being quite as high. Having said that, Robert, in almost half of the at bats of Bellinger has a 1.5 WAR vs. Belli’s 1.1 WAR.

    I don’t think that acquiring either one of these players is a wrong answer, but I do feel that Robert is the best answer.

    Either one you pick will not stop us from signing Soto this winter.

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    1. Avoid Bellinger for now….a broken hand is a lot longer recovery than a 10 day IL stint…his grip on the bat will be adversely affected probably until August or later.

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12. Romus. I have a question. Rooker looks like a good athlete. Why is he not a better outfielder? Some of these guys who they put out there are infielders, and they cannot judge fly balls. Dodgers had a couple of those last week. Plus, some do not have strong enough arms. One of the guy’s last week said either Lasorda or Larussa had poor outfielders play deeper. They said easier to come in on a ball than go back. I see that all the time with these travel kids. They always take 3 or 4 steps in and then realize that was not a good move. I am amazed how many players today cannot track a fly ball. The good guys are really good. The bad guys really bad. I do not remember back in my day guys not being able to track a fly ball. Line drive right at you was the hardest to judge. Maybe we practiced it more than they do today.

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    1. They probably do not even use fungo bats anymore in practice.

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       1. Romus. I believe you are correct. You mentioned that once earlier. I never see them at games. One thing on that with travel teams. Usually, no infield or outfield prior to games plus most never practice. They may hit a few ground balls before game on their side of field. No time with all the games needed to be played.

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13. Romus. I just saw this. Fans Side has an article with Miller to Phillies and being converted back to starting. Says he is open to that like Hicks and Crochet have done. Only a hypothetical but says this would increase his value. Article says Phillies have been the team most mentioned with Miller this season.

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14. Over the years of watching prospects, one of the biggest red flags in minor league stats for a position player is the handed splits. Basically, if a player can’t hit LHP in the minors, hitting LHP in the majors is going to be a huge challenge. There are examples of players who have improved their handed splits at the MLB level, but it is not common and it takes time.

    There are plenty of examples of players whose minor league stats do not show any bad handed splits but then the player struggles to hit LHP at the major league level. Brandon Marsh is a good example of this. He had no issues with LHP in the minors. But I am talking about the reverse. Where a player struggles against minor league LHP and then comes up to the majors and is magically able to hit LHP.

    All that is to say, keep expectations in check for Eduardo Tait at this trade deadline. Yes, he is 17 and it is impressive what he is doing against pitchers older than him. But he is in the FCL and so the age range is really not huge. There are a lot of 18yo in the FCL. Tait has really struggled against LHP. Yes, he is young and it is a small sample, but his handed splits are concerning:

    • vs LHP: 43 PAs. Line: .189/.302/.270 (.572 OPS)
    • vs RHP: 141 PAs. Line: .351/.397/.575 (.972 OPS)

    He is mashing RHP but really struggling agains LHP. It is a small sample. And maybe it is an unlucky BABIP. But he has only 1 XBH against LHP in 43 PAs (2%), while he has 19 XBH in 141 PA vs RHP (13%). Nothing here is to suggest that he isn’t a very good prospect. And he is young. But IMO he is NOT untouchable at this trade deadline. I subscribe to the belief that MLB teams have a small window of truly having a realistic chance to win the World Series. And they should do what they can to maximize that window. I would absolutely trade Tait in the right deal at the deadline. I would not give him away for a rental or a marginal player. But I would definitely include him in a package for a difference maker.

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    1. Does anyone think the advanced pitching machine technology will help batters in both minors and majors get more reps against LHP and help them out???

       since the lack of experience and not as many LHP to compete against is sometimes an issue at minor league level

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       1. Good thought. Maybe so. I really don’t understand why some players can’t hit against certain handed pitchers. It may be do to their natural swing mechanics vs the run of a pitch. Not sure.

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    2. “I do not think the Phillies should trade Aiden Miller under any circumstances. However, I would absolutely deal Crawford for Miller, and I’ve come around to the idea of trading Painter for Miller as an alternative, too.

       To be clear, I would not trade TWO of those prospects for Miller. But I would do one of them.”

       https://www.thegoodphight.com/2024/7/17/24199790/the-phillies-should-give-up-andrew-painter-for-mason-miller

       This is where I am at too. IMO, I would go all in for Mason Miller and a RH outfielder who mashes against LHP that we can platoon with Marsh, example Lane Thomas. Those two additions and we are the clear favorites for the WS.

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       1. Unless your plan is to turn Miller into a starter moving forward I would never trade a potential #1/2 starter (Painter) for a bullpen arm, regardless of how dominating his is out of the pen.

          There is significant more value getting 160 dominant innings from a starter vs. 80 dominant innings from a bullpen arm.

          Both pitchers have had arm issues early in their career (Painter’s TJ was more significant) so health concerns exist for both.

          Ask yourself a simple question. Would you trade Jared Jones for Miller? Would you trade Christopher Sanchez for Miller?

          For all of you WAR lords out there. Jarid Jones has produced 1.8 WAR so far in 2024. Miller 1.6. Sanchez 1.9

          For me, Painter’s potential as a #1 starter is not something I’m trading for a closer.

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          1. If any current prospect is elite, I’m not trading them, end of story. So I’m not trading Andrew Painter.

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          2. I think you undervalue closers. The top 3 closers in 2023 valued 44, 39 and 39 saves …… that goes under the win column. If you win 95 that is 42% of your wins.

             The #5 starter in mlb, if he makes every start will make 34 starts and if he does as well as Sanchez has done the 1rst half and repeats that the 2nd half will end up with 14 wins. 15% of your wins.

             Additionally, you are dealing with an adjective “potential” which means he can turnout like Nolan Ryan or Spencer Howard and no one knows which it will be even those who get lucky!

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             1. That’s a flawed way to evaluate a closer. Getting a save isn’t even close to the same as winning the game. Counting total saves makes no sense but rather how many games do they save vs. blowing the save.

                Alvarado leads the team with 13 saves. Did he win those games?

                Also, not talking about a #5 starter. Sánchez in 2024 isn’t performing as a #5, he’s an All-star level starter and is more valuable than Miller to the team.

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       2. Trying to reconcile to your book of “values”. Seriously, which side of the value scale is higher?

          Rojas vs Crawford

          Sanchez vs Painter

          Aidan Miller vs your player

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          1. Long post -This is where DD’s job gets tough. It’s not a black & white issue, there is a lot of gray. Let’s think back to when the Phillies were in their golden run – 2007-2011. In retrospect, you wouldn’t have picked the 08 team to be the team to win it all. Also, once you learned the 08 team did win, you’d expect them to have won another one. For all intents and purposes they should have. Fast forward to this run, The loss to the Astro’s in the WS, was the 08 team imo. At this point, we have to argue how open in the window? Not just the Phillies window, but others rebuilding teams,like The orioles, who scare the crap out of me. What does their chances look like? I dont’ want to give up prospects like any of you… BUT… you might have to roll the dice on Miller when consider the Phillies window vs other teams. If it was Skenes, we’d all trade it all. He’s not available but Miller might be. Technically, with 3 SP locked up, and Ranger likely to resign IMO, that makes Abel is 100% available. So isMcGarry, Claussen, and others. … Painter is the only one you have an argument for. Over the past deadlines, teams like the Dodgers seem to ALWAYS be able to hang onto their top prospect, so im thinking Painter is safe do to that precedent. The next in line is Miller. To me, Crawford is 100% available, and really anyone other than Aidan Miller. So just ask yourself … its 2011, woudl you try to extend that teams window by holding onto the prospects or are you giving them a huge push for the playoffs? You can’t take the present for granted, tomorrow is not promised to anyone … & middleton’s checkbook can erase a lot of mistakes…. Make Crawford, Abel, and Caba available for Miller. Pass on Rooker, the team needs defense too. Go get Thomas from WAS. No regrets.

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          2. It’s not absolute. It is relative. Rojas is valuable to us because he is an elite defender next to one of the worst RF in baseball. We have an elite offense. So it is a trade off I would make. Crawford is a prospect with real risk. He has a high ceiling but is unproven.

             Painter has a higher ceiling than Sanchez. But there is real risk to Painter. No guarantee he is the same pitcher post surgery. Many pitchers struggle with command post TJ.

             The age old debate is risk/ceiling/probability of reaching the ceiling. Fans always put a near 100% probability of reaching my the ceiling. So we hate trading prospects. But reality is it is no where close to that high. Mason Miller is currently the best reliever in baseball. Our team is exceptional. Adding an elite closer to our already great pen shortens games. I am not excited about losing prospects. I would love to keep them. But I also want to win a WS

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             1. Thompson wants Miller, guaranteed. The way he manages the bullpen in the playoffs. If he doesnt get Miller… it’s going to have to put in Soto…. Do you want Soto in the game or Miller? Sure Miller is towards the end but … Adding MIller would likely bump Soto to minimal appearances.

                Alvarado, Strahm, Soto

                Hoffman, Kierkering, Sir A, and Miller

                Paired with Wheeler, Nola, Ranger, and Sanchez…

                and Rojas Roaming in Center… (at least late in games)

                Bye Abel, Bye Crawford, Bye Caba or Tait

                It’s sucks but … so does not maximizing your window.

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             2. V1, I think I am slowly, and somewhat reluctantly, coming around to your point of view regarding the worth of potential in prospects vs the value of a proven major league player. You look at prospects in much more depth than I do, (for example, Tait’s splits), and obviously are much more of a student of the game than I am. I still feel it would be pretty hard to give up either Painter or Miller unless the return is very good right now, and under control for at least three years.

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                1. Thanks Dave but I am not perfect with my assessments. Projecting the future is an inexact science for sure.

                   I will say that both Painter and Miller scream elite prospect. Imo more so than Crawford. But last year many thought that Abel was untouchable. Now he is a second or maybe third piece in a big trade.

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       3. Respect your guys opinions, but the arguable best closer in baseball, Clase has had a WAR of 2.3 and 1.7 in 2022 and 2023. A number one or two starter, which Painter clearly projects to be, is typically worth at minimum double that number. Also remember that Miller elected no surgery for his UCL injury last year. How long until throwing 103 mph affects that elbow? I am not trading Painter (who projects as a future ace) for a closer, no matter how good he looks. Crawford is up to number 33 prospect on BA. If Oakland would consider a deal around him and Abel plus one of our intriguing low A prospects, then I am game, but Painter just cannot be moved for someone who isn’t a controllable starter or position player. Just my opinion on it. A package of Miller and Rooker together makes it a little harder. I would probably include Miller for that, but I just cant part with a guy that was the best right handed prospect in baseball last year, injury or not.

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          1. 1. Painter had Tommy John surgery. https://www.inquirer.com/phillies/phillies-andrew-painter-tommy-john-surgery-injury-20230725.html

             2. You are assuming 100% probability that he reaches his projection. That is rarely the case. There are a lot of top 100 prospects who never reach their peak projection. That said, I understand if you won’t trade him. All good. He is a rare prospect for sure.

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15. forgive the name spelling errors – Thomson & Klassen

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16. I have seen Mason Miller a handful of times on my Extra Inning deal. I even look now if I see them leading late in a game. I am all in on Miller. You win with difference makers. At this point in time, he is a difference maker. I do think down the line he will demand the opportunity to be a starter again. I told my son today that if I could have one Skenes or Miller, I would take Miller. Both are great. But I like Miller better down the road. Just my two cents.

    In respect to Phillies window. I am not sure on which team is comparable to those 08-11 teams. Phillies should have won at least 1 more. As I watched game last night, I got to thinking Phillies were 1 win from WS and they would have beat Rangers. I firmly believe that. This year team may be better, but they have Dodgers and Ohtani who also is a major difference maker, Braves will still be a threat, and then you have Yankees, Orioles, Guardians, etc. It is going to be much more difficult now that it was last fall. My opinion.

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    1. Don, harder road for sure, but a better team.ESPECIALLY if DD adds a bullpen arm & RF

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17. I was checking out MLB trade rumors and it says that the Phillies have interest in Tommy Pham. The article also says this:

    “Because the Phils are paying the tax for a third straight year and in the second tier of penalty ($20MM to $40MM over the $237MM tax threshold), they’ll pay a 62% tax on any dollars added to the payroll.”

    and this:

    “Adding Pham and the remainder of his modest base salary would result in an additional $750K of tax penalties, bringing his theoretical luxury hit for the club to $1.96MM (the exact number will be impacted by which team pays the assignment bonus and the actual timing of a potential trade, of course). That’s of particular benefit to the Phillies, who would see their top pick in the 2025 draft pushed back 10 places if they reach $277MM in tax considerations. At present, RosterResource projects the Phils at $261.6MM worth of luxury obligations.”

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    1. I can think of two contracts that could be shed without any serious adversity to the team….Walker’s and Casty’s…..and go a long way in obtaining additional valuable players.

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18. I just expect a platoon LF for Marsh and another bullpen arm, that is not Miller. They’re adding on the fringes and it shouldn’t cost us high prospects although there will be some pain involved. Aldegheri and Bergolla seem like guys who could be moved because they’re attractive to other teams.

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    1. If the Phils go get a reliever, I think it will be a high end, late inning guy. They have a lot of available options already – Alvarado, Hoffman, Kerkering, Strahm, Soto, Dominguez, and Sanchez for most of October. The reality is they just need 3-4 of those 7 guys to be lights out with all the off days. Obviously if you can add Miller it just lowers the bar massively of what you need from the list above.

       When you think about why we lost last year, I think it’s fair to say the two biggest reasons were a) a few of our hitters just chasing everything and going ice cold, and b) Kimbrel. Not that he will be, but part of DD’s thinking has to assume that Nick becomes a black hole in the lineup in October and if he does, that’s when playing Rojas really hurts offensively. For me, my #1 priority would be a bat that has a higher contact rate and is a more consistent run producer, particularly against the higher end pitching you see in October. If Nick is going to play, I’d love to see him batting 7th, 8th, or 9th, not 5 or 6.

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19. Just saw a list of the top 10 guys most likely to be traded by deadline. Phillies are still mentioned with Robert and Miller. I am surprised White Sox and Tigers are listed moving Crochet and Skubal. Tigers are not that far off, and Skubal is really good. Doubt they get guys back who replace him. Crochet is already way over innings pitched before. Chisholm is mentioned most with Yankees. BTW Skubal mention most for Orioles. Dodgers are mentioned for some of the others. Not much time left so we will know soon enough. Here is one for you. Zack Eflin. I had not seen his name out there before. He is mentioned for Dodgers.

    Romus. Walker and Casty do not make the top 10. Maybe they are sleepers in trade talks. LOL

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    1. Don…unfortunately no team will want them with those contracts tied to each….next two years….$38M AAV combined….sheeesh! That is Met-like in return on investment.

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       1. Romus. Maybe Cohen will take them off of the Phillies hands. I saw a playoff projection last night for NL. It had Phillies 1, Dodgers 2, Brewers 3, Braves 4, Dbacks 5 and Mets 6. The surprise to me is no Cards. I think they make it is some fashion. They are right at the top since sometime in May. They are good right now. Cost us our guy Hellsley.

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    2. Don53 – have seen Eflin mentioned in a number of trade pieces – mostly to the Dodgers. Tampa has his contract next year and it goes up to $18 million – that’s what they are paying the whole team now !!!! He is gone for sure. They are only paying him a modest amount now.

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    3. The Tigers are far off.

       Pitching wise, Skubal is a stud, Olson is decent but Flaherty is a FA next season. So the Tigers will need to re-sign Flaherty, hope that Mize recaptures his 2021 form and hope that Maeda doesn’t implode again. That’s a lot of hope and the pitching side is better than the hitting side if you can believe that.

       Hitting wise, the Tigers are a mess. Greene is a star, Vierling is replacement level, and everybody else either stinks (Baez in particular) are trying to develop at the ML level (Keith).

       The Tigers need to get a Juan Soto-like haul for Skubal to accelerate their plans.

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       1. Guru. Believe it said Tigers are like 6 games out of wild card. I consider that close enough. Plus, Skubal has two more arbitration years. I have no idea when, but Max Clark will get to Detroit in the not-too-distant future. He is an absolute stud to keep building around. I agree if they trade, they need a great haul. Maybe Orioles have enough guys to pull it off. They got Burnes.

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          1. Even if they make the playoffs, they’ll get torched so what’s the point of making the playoffs?

             The Tigers had 2 #1 picks that turned into Mize and Torkelson. That’s unfortunate. Max Clark is 19 at low A. He’s at least 2/3 years away. The Tigers core should be Greene, Jobe and Clark. But we’re talking about 2026 or 2027. So the Tigers need to trade Skubal now.

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             1. That would be a shame. The whole purpose of developing players is to have them become the next Tarik Skubal. When you start trading those younger guys, you become like the Pirates or the A’s – you might be really good for a year two, but then the wheel turns and you’re rebuilding again. I don’t know how you keep rooting for a team like that – it’s tough.

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                1. One of the reasons why the Phillies won in 2008 was that all of the home grown talent were there at the SAME TIME: Rollins, Utley, Howard, Hamels.

                   The Tigers have Skubal and Greene, Olson is decent but not much else. It would have been a much different story if Mize and Torkelson panned out. But they didn’t and the Tigers need to make a choice.

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20. Romus. Here is something for your analytical mind or anyone else. Article on trade guys said Robert is a 5 WAR guy. Then next sentence states he has never played over 100 games in a season. Isn’t that a difficult match or am I missing something? He must be really good in those 100 or is WAR only based on games a player plays in during the season. Not the entire season.

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    1. One aspect of WAR, which some find a flaw with, is that longevity seems to benefit total WAR of a player…be it longevity in a career or total games played within one season. In his case he was outstanding for those 100 games…Trout is the same way over the last 3/4 years taken into account his injury time. And yes…WAR is calculated on the games a player plays in…does not take into account the games missed due to injuries or suspensions. They will do a projection over a 162 game season…but that is speculated.

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       1. So technically if he played like 150 games or so he could be a 7.5 to 8 WAR guy. I see you guys discuss it all the time but really was not aware how it is calculated. I am old fashioned. The eyeball test. I can tell from my front row seat in living room Mason Miller is pretty good. I am still a bit puzzled how he and Skenes gained 15 to 20 mph on fastballs in relatively short period of time. Both are young and both only back a few years were mid 80s guys. Hmm. Must be something in the water at Air Force and Waynesburg State.

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          1. There are good backstories for both.

             Skenes was originally a catcher at Air Force – so he changed position and then developed quickly – like REALLY quickly.

             Miller had juvenile (type 1) diabetes and weighted 150 pounds. When he put on 70 “good” pounds he was throwing around 100 mph.

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             1. catch. I am aware of their stories. Thanks. The one thing I did not get till believe it was one of the national games was that he was able to leave Air Force after 2 years for LSU. I played high school with a kid who also went to Air Force, and he had a 4-year commitment I thought back then. It did not matter. He made a career of it and even got high up to where he had the red phone number in the White House. I see him at our class reunions every 5 years. Good guy. They said had Skenes stayed a 3rd year he would have had to stay at Air Force. Skenes and many others now in baseball and softball are big winners of the NIL today. IU had the top softball home run gal a year ago and this year she hit a home run in the CWS to help win a game for Stanford. Right now, it is a yearly free agent situation for these kids. Soon scholarships may become a thing of the past. I knew Miller’s story. Still surprised he was able to do so much so quickly. I taught middle and high school kids for 36 years and saw some of those diabetic situations with kids. Not a fun thing. I am really happy for him and if somehow, he landed in the Phillies lap it would not disappoint me.

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21. As we sit here today we have the best record in baseball. I wouldn’t be looking to trade any of our top prospects unless something maybe happens on the injury front or maybe something falls in your lap.

    Just me but I’m letting it play out. Its one of the most expensive teams in the MLB and if that’s not good enough Middleton might want to assess a different problem.

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    1. I have no idea what Wilson brings in LF. He’s athletic has great at bats, walks and has some HR pop. I’d try and play a lot of games with he in LF and Marsh in CF then make late inning defensive switches using Rojas.

       I’ve always said Marsh is not a CF but a LF and an everyday player but for now you can likely get away with it for a few weeks.

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       1. Rojas is the CF. Marsh will platoon in LF with someone not on the team yet.

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    2. I look to what Dombrowski has done as an indication of what he will do. He looked at the roster this past off-season and saw a need to add Merrifield. That move didn’t work out but it didn’t make the need go away. Teams line up left-handed pitching against the Phils now and will continue to do so in the playoffs if nothing changes.

       Chance of the Phils adding a right-handed bat by the trade deadline: 90 %

       Dombrowski’s teams have relied on high end closers. Kimbrel wasn’t the answer and was allowed to walk. Again, the need didn’t go away but unlike the case above, others (Hoffman, Strahm) stepped up. Hoffman is an impending free agent in line for a substantial pay boost. Adding a rental 8th/9th inning reliever offers value now and becomes a candidate for extension, particularly if Hoffman walks.

       Chance of the Phils adding a back end reliever by the trade deadline: 85 %

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22. Dmar – I can’t let it play out. I think this is where you take your swing for the window. Make the right trade that benefits you for the next 2-3 years. You have all the SP clicking with the bullpen. The offense theoretically should be enough if the playoff versions of our stars show up. What I think is something to hedge against, is the fact that the Phillies will likely see the Braves in the playoffs , possibly the Mets. Both those teams have seen every look of our bullpen many times due to the team being the same over the last few years. At one point I felt the braves had Neris number, and Alvarado while I trust him, I think they could be honing in on him. Add Miller, and it adds another wrinkle. A new look. With the game on the line, your season ending… and you’re now tasked with hitting a 104 mph fastball… I like that scenario for the Phillies

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    1. Tac. I get what you are saying. The problem I see now is rarely does the best team really win anymore. It becomes a two- or three-week time of who plays the best Phillies were not the 2nd best team 2 years ago, but things fell into place for them. I really felt they may have been last year, but Kimbrel gave me concerns when they signed him. He had had good seasons in recent years but failed at the end couple times. Like last year. I have no qualms with Miller at the backend in October. But no guarantee he even gets a shot. If you simply had the two best teams from each league play like in the by gone days adding Miller might definitely put the Phillies over the top, this year. So many teams now and so many games just make it really hard.

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       1. Ok, let’s look at it this way. How many years do you have of Ranger Suarez? They have 2 more cracks at the postseason with what basically is the 4 aces again. Close enough too it. They have 2 more cracks with Schwarber. Alll that said, I’m assuming they can hold onto painter or Aidan miller. They shouldn’t have to give up either. Miller will cost a lot in prospect capital but he is cheap, I do have my worries about him, mainly surgery & loss of his FB mph. I can give on the 2nd concern because Caleb is a master pitching coach. I would think he could get more movement on Miller’s pitches. I would also think he might be able to help him become a starter. Im game for losing anyone other than Painter & Aidan Miller. It sucks… but no regrets. DD is going to do it imo. If not, the MLB has fundamentally changed. This team is screaming … for such a big deal. If they do, no guarantees, but get the popcorn ready. Thats an all in move.

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          1. Tac. I do think DD adds an outfielder and most likely a BP guy. Personally, I do not think it will be either Robert or Miller. No info. I get your point of winning when the chance arises. Reason why I was so disappointed last year. A WS title was right there for the taking. Just let it slip away. I like the popcorn idea.

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             1. Don…do not think Pham or even Arozarena will be too prospect capital costly. Pham is an $800K rental this season now, and Randy will be come their highest paid player under the Boras representation next season -approx $12M arb-even though he is having a poor season. So the Rays will want to move him now vs the off-season.

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          2. I’d hold out Painter, Miller, Crawford and Tait. Anyone else is available in the right trade. That could rule out Mason Miller and possibly Robert from coming to Philly. I don’t think Kyle Tucker is in play in any case. I’ve cooled on Rooker as a fit in Philly, certainly so at a high cost.

             There’s still a lot of options out there to improve the current team yet leave some low cost personnel to add in time to a high cost roster.

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    2. Tac. Last night I listed a playoff projection. It had Phillies 1, Dodgers 2, Brewers 3, Braves 4, Dbacks 5, and Mets 6.

       So, in that scenario Brewers vs Mets and Braves vs Dbacks. Am I correct? So, do Phillies play the lowest seed of the two winners or do they play Braves/Dbacks winner? Seemed like last season Phillies were 4 and then got Braves at 1. If that is the case Phillies may have to play both Braves and Dodgers to advance. Tough road. Were the Dodgers or Braves number 1 seed last year?

       I like the scenario of needing to win 1 game vs Dbacks. Oops that did not happen.

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       1. I don’t believe it reseeds, which is odd. Miller can SO Ohtani. Might need that 🙂

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          1. I don’t believe it does either. Ohtani is a difference maker. Miller is a difference maker. May the best one win. I am all in on Miller. But do not see it happening. Tonight, I see Phillies again linked to Scott. I know many of you are not on that addition. I just have concerns on Hoffman and Alvarado in the crucial game or games.

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             1. If you have concerns about Hoffman at this point, then you’ll have concerns no matter who is in the ‘pen. Hoffman is just straight up better than Scott. Better K%, better BB%, better ERA, better FIP, xFIP, xERA, SIERA, WAR. Hoffman was elite last year, and he’s been even better this year.

                Fun fact: Scott has walked almost as many people so far this year (25) as Hoffman has since joining the Phils (29; 19 last year, 10 so far this year).

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                1. Dan. I am not a Scott guy. I believe this is correct that he has walked more guys than hits given up. I had concerns on Kimbrel last year because of recent years. Orioles need to have those this year. I am a Mason Miller guy. But very unlikely. Heyman said small chance he is moved. So, trade would have to be huge. Do not see that. Of the guy’s Phillies have now I think I would go Hoffman, Strahm, then Alvarado to finish game. I realize Strahm has not been put in that role much. No real faith in others at this point. I thought SerAnthony would maybe develop into that role but does not appear he will.

                   Fun fact for you. It was in a game not too long ago that Phillies BP walked 2 guys. Forget who was doing game but they said Phillies had gone like 20+ games with no more than 1 walk from BP. That is really good. Walks almost always come back to bite you especially in playoff time.

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23. Whatever – I think DD will add to the pen somehow. An interesting RP on Tampa is Josh Adams – strong record and a solid season. He also doesn’t make much $$ but that is redundant since he plays for the Rays. They are expecting to have alot of pitching return from injuries so there will be movement in their overall staff.

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24. Very interesting reviewing the 1st half’s pitching statistics. The individual stats were incredibly even in distribution of innings, games, won/losses, etc. So Topper must have done a pretty good job of managing the workload across the staff.

    Nola 11 – 4 119 inn 19 gm/s

    Wheeler 10 – 4 116 inn 19 gm/s

    Suarez 10 – 4 114 inn 19 gm/s

    Sanchez 7 – 4 103 inn 18 gm/s

    When you put the cumulative total of Walker, Turnbull, Mercado, and Phillips together you amass an 8 – 5 record, 128* innings, and 20 games started.

    Hoffman 3 – 1 41 gms 40 inn

    Alvarado 1 – 3 41 gms 39 inn

    Strahm 4 – 1 39 gms 36 inn

    Soto 1 – 3 38 gms 31 inn

    Kerkering 2 – 1 35 gms 35 inn

    Dominguez 3 – 2 36 gms 34 inn

    Ruiz 2 – 1 27 gms 28 inn

    Marte 0 – 0 15 gms 16 inn

    Stubbs 0 – 0 1 gm 1 inn his ERA of 45.0 indicates that he needs to drop the Eephus pitch from his repertoire and go with the 18 mph “slurp” in much the same way as Larry Anderson concentrated on the slider.

    • some of these were in relief

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25. Starlyn Caba is having an excellent season and his statistics support a prospect with a 70 grade hit tool.
    1. The first thing that jumps out is his otherworldly walk rate. This is the second season that his walk rate is better than his K rate by a big margin. And a 23% walk rate is off the charts. It is extremely rare to find an 18 year old with that high of a walk rate. Going all of the way back to 2006, Caba has the second highest walk rate in FCL history. The highest for an 18 yo.
    2. He also has a very low K rate. So he is working deep counts and still putting the ball in play.
    3. He has no handed split issues. Actually as a switch hitter he hits LHP really well.
    4. He sprays the ball well. 35% pull, 33% center and 32% oppo.
    5. He is a menace on the base paths. 83% success rate on high volume of steals. He has one of my favorite quirky stats, more stolen bases than strikeouts. It’s not a real stat that anyone keeps but I think it is really cool to have more steals than Ks.

    The only downside is that he has no power. But he is 18 and can add a lot of strength. He is listed at 160. He needs to bulk up to 175-180. As a body comp, Mookie Betts is 5’9 180. So that’s kinda what Caba’s body would look like if he added 20 pounds. Not suggesting he will hit like Betts. Just a body size comp.

    Anyways he is a great prospect having a great season. His stats are exactly what you would expect to see from someone with a future 70 grade hit tool.

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    1. A scout in the Dominican Republic was once asked by a visiting colleague from the U.S. why so many local players were free swingers. He responded, “These guys know they can’t walk their way off the island.” I’m glad Caba hasn’t taken that message to heart.

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    2. let’s hope he’s still in our system in two weeks…

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       1. Him, along with Tait……Dave Dombrowski may want that third ring and they may be on their way elsewhere.

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          1. yes, if I’m another team those are the first two names I’m asking for.

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             1. Dave Dombrowski will turn 68 next week……you know that third ring with three different teams will be a first for a PoBO/GM in MLB….he may harvest the farm to attain that goal.

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26. Has anyone discussed the possibility of acquiring Kirby Yates as an alternative to Miller as another option for the back end of the bullpen?

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    1. There’s going to be a bunch of rental relievers on the trade market and although it won’t cost the Phillies a top 100 prospect, you figure Aldegheri will be a very popular trade chip.

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       1. This team is going to need a shortstop of the future and a catcher of the future. I would try very, very hard not to trade Tait or Caba. As for Alegheri, he’s in the one area where the team has some redundancy (starting pitching and lefty starting pitching) and I think he projects very well as a mid-rotation starter in the future. If there’s one guy who I would trade who is among our top prospects, again, it’s Crawford. He’s very highly ranked and while I do think he’ll be a good – perhaps even very good – major leaguer, I don’t think he’ll be a star. I think he’ll be a 4 WAR player, tops. That’s a very good player, but not a guy you lose sleep over losing. I’m not saying he should go not matter what, but in the right trade, he’s the high profile prospect I include – I don’t think his trade value will ever be much higher than it is now.

          Trade Andrew Painter and you could be looking at the next Ferguson Jenkins trade. The good news is that I think they have no interest in trading Painter. They know he’s Zack Wheeler’s ultimate replacement.

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       2. That’s very possible. The Phillies will fill a short term need and some other team will get a future mid-rotation starter and will probably “win” the WAR trade, but the trade for the Phillies will be measured by whether it helped them get a ring.

          Secretly, I am hoping that the Phillies are working on the next value-for-value trade like the Marsh trade. That was a moment of brilliance where they earned their money and showed smart-asses like me (I hated the trade) that they know a player when they see one.

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    2. Richie – we need Texas to have a bad week for them to unload Yates. I agree with you – he has had a great year and would be one tough addition and he wouldn’t cost a great deal since he walks at the end of the year. He would be fierce.

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       1. It just feels like if we could add a Yates and Lane Thomas(rh platoon) we could maybe straddle the fence with regards to prospects being dealt, if that makes any sense.

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27. Just seeing an article looks like it is Philly based as Gelb is mentioned as to what Phillies are looking to do. Says main attention is to counter the Braves Fried and Sale. He said it is likely Braves again and those 2 possibly multiple times. Names mentioned again is Robert although he has only played in 43 games. That is not good. The other on a cheaper deal could be Taylor Ward. Said he has 14 HR at this point. I had not thought about Fried and Sale both in a short series. Maybe some minor October injuries could help.

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28. It would be great if the Phillies get off to a good start after the All Star break. They need to win this series but it won’t be easy. I believe Skenes will be the starter on Sunday. Martin Perez starts against them tonight and he always seems to give them fits. Here’s hoping for a satisfying outcome.

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    1. No Skenes this weekend.

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29. Well, that’s a positive for the series. Thanks, RH.

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30. I’m not sure where to post this but Viars was finally promoted to the Shore. I hadn’t seen that news. Good for him.

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31. If they don’t DFA Pache by the 30th I am going to be sorely disappointed. He is a “K” machine, 2 in this game, both with the bases loaded.

    Let someone else discover the wonderful potential that is just hidden away in him while we keep guys like Wilson undercover for rainy days. …OK, I’m alright now, my sedative is starting to kick-in…….. Romus I’m OK you don’t need to call the house, …. honest!🙂

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    1. Him and Stubbs. Topper just really doesn’t like rewarding players for doing well. Marchan has as many HRs as Stubbs has extra base hits of any kind… in less than half the PAs. Plus our pitching staff’s ERA has gone up by over a full run since JT went down (3.42 to 4.45), so I’m skeptical of his ability to call a game as well.

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32. Terrible, terrible loss. Kerkering is not so unhittable anymore. Alvarado has lost his out pitch. Dumb play by Sosa. Can’t score with runners in scoring position.

    They have to be disgusted with this effort. I sure am. Wish MLB.com didn’t make it a free game. I’d be a lot less aggravated.

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    1. ciada. I caught a break. I fell asleep when Soto was pitching in the 6th. Woke up when Pirates tied and then won. I have concerns on Alvarado. I have brought that up. I did see Sosa play. I saw Pache Ks. First one he meekly swings at two pitches outside of strike zone. I am not throwing him under the bus. He is a reserve defensive player. That is all he has ever been. They are asking him to do more than he has the ability to do.

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33. Well Thomson just showed another reason why we have to be careful who we trade for. Even if he has the tools that doesn’t mean he’ll use them correctly, or even at all.

    In a 1 run game we used our best reliever to face the bottom of the order and our second best reliever never came in. Won’t fault him for Kerkering, because Orion has been very good and he just had a bad night. But Thomson places entirely too much emphasis on left-right matchups, both in pitching and hitting, regardless of the skill level of the players he’s using.

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    1. I also don’t fault him for Orion. But Thomson needs to make Hoffman the closer, end of story. It doesn’t matter if it’s lefty on lefty action if Alvarado can’t throw decent strikes.

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34. I can’t believe you guys are ragging on Pache (who’s a platoon player) and Stubbs (who’s the backup) when Aaron Nola gives up 4 runs in 5 innings and Alvarado melted down again.

    Stubbs is not going anywhere this year. Next year is a different story. When JT comes back, Stubbs will go back to 1 game per week. And Marchan will play almost everyday at Lehigh.

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    1. Yes, I can’t imagine why people would be less upset about a pitcher with a sub-3.5 ERA than they are about a catcher with 44 wRC+ getting a starter’s workload over a young guy who’s on fire or an OF being used as a platoon piece when he’s hitting .215 in against his part of the platoon…

       Off games happen. It’s upsetting when they do, but even inner-circle HoF players have games they want to forget. We can’t do anything to change the human element of the game. What we CAN change is using bad players just because they swing the bat or throw the ball with a certain hand.

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       1. JT’s last game was June 9th. Since then, Stubbs has started 18 games (including tonight). Marchan has started 14 games. So where’s the starter’s workload? It’s as close to a 50/50 split as you will ever see. I don’t disagree that Marchan is hitting better but Stubbs still needs to get his starts. And as the primary back up to JT, he deserves the right to get more starts. And if DD isn’t happy about that, then DD can DFA Stubbs.

          Here are the plate appearance breakdown for the OFs (not including tonight):

          Castellanos 401

          Marsh 270

          Rojas 240

          Pache 110

          So even though Pache is getting the least amount of plate appearances out of all the OFs by a wide margin, that’s still too much?

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          1. DFAing Stubbs was the exact thing I was advocating for..? And no, if you have a better option then being the backup doesn’t entitle him to more starts. It makes sense to have him as the backup to allow Marchan to play everyday in the minors. But we getting the worst of both worlds by having Stubbs play so often and having Marchan sit on the bench so often.

             Pache’s getting the least amount because he’s the weak side of the platoon. And yes, that is absolutely too many PAs. If you have a platoon player hitting >>>.215<<< in 76 PAs against his part of the platoon, then he is not worthy of being a platoon player and should be removed from that role. If they want to waste a roster spot on him for defensive replacement scenarios, fine. But our offense already struggles offensively without putting in a 63 wRC+ batter just for the heck of it.

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             1. Meant our outfield struggles offensively.

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                1. Pasche needs to go as Rojas might have caught the first inning double and he is almost an automatic out who does not make contact. Alvarado should not be our closer also .

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             2. First of all, this is not fantasy baseball. Stubbs is the primary backup, and the primary backup will get the lion share of the ABs when the starter is out. That’s the way it is. If you want Marchan to get more starts, then you DFA Stubbs and make Marchan the primary.

                Pache is who he is, a backup defensive OF. Why is he getting more ABs? Because of these stats vs lefty pitchers:

                Marsh: .143/.214/.163

                Rojas: .183/.210/.200

                Pache: .215/.329/.323

                If you want to blame somebody, the blame should be towards Marsh and Rojas. When the season started, there wasn’t a platoon. By the end of April, Pache had 19 plate appearances. 19! Thomson gave Marsh and Rojas plenty of ABs vs lefties and they failed miserably. So blaming Pache for being who he is is ridiculous, since he’s only playing because Marsh and Rojas have stunk it up vs lefties.

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                1. Marchan is playing out his last option, Stubbs still has an option remaining. He was signed to a split contract, so he can be optioned to Lehigh Valley.

                   I don’t think that natters, though. I agree that Stubbs is going nowhere.

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       2. Dan. You get my vote. It has always been my belief especially at this level you play your best players. Period.

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    2. Because Pache came up twice with the bases loaded and struck out twice with the bases loaded. Or would you give him a medal for that? He can’t hit and has proved it with three organizations. Marsh should have pinch hit for him the second time the bases were loaded. Don’t care if it was still fairly early in the game or not.

       Can’t wait for Crawford to be the starting CF when he is only 22. Put on a show hitting and fielding last night. They could honestly do worse than promoting Crawford right now and putting him out there.

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       1. Dombrowski may include Crawford in a package to the WSox for Robert…if Robert is still their intention.

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          1. Romus, you don’t trade top prospects for a guy who is a walking testimonial for the IR list. You don’t bring a guy in unless it is on the cheap thinking he will stay healthy for no other reason than he is on a different team.

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             1. We know that….not sure Dave Dombrowski see it that way.

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             2. NL…the other aspect of it, by drafting two HS OFers with the first two picks, they may be anticipating having to trade a Crawford to get another piece for the short term…2-4 years…until those two are ready to come up. I have no idea how their plan is to mesh their short term and their long term plans.

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                1. The plan is to draft guys that you hope can make it to the bigs. As good as Crawford is right now, there’s no guarantee until he proves it at the ML level.

                   A lot can change in the Phillies OF in a short period of time. Castellanos is under contract for only 2 more years. Rojas can regress to the point where he becomes a backup or the Phillies trade him. Marsh could even regress.

                   So you try to get as much depth as you can in the minors to account for as many possibilities.

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35. On the bright side, Weston Wilson could bethat right=handed bat to platoon in LF. He looks comfortable.

    On the other side, Jose Alvarado’s discomfort when he’s in clutch situation matches mine.

    An All Star quality manager has Hoffman in mind as his closer. Tonight he went through the Pirates in the 8th like green grass through a goose. What does Topper not see? Alvarado – you are not the man.

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    1. I don’t even care if he doesn’t use him as a “traditional” closer. Just use him when in the high leverage spots and we need to get outs. Not against the bottom of the order with no one on.

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    2. Just my 2 cents but Alvarado is too emotional from pitch to pitch for me. He always has been and most likely always will.

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36. Game last night is one any major league team should put in the W column. No excuse for any team doing that.

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    1. Don…the irony of this year…..started out hot and last 7 weeks, since the first of June, the team has sloped to a little over .500 (22-17)……the previous two years it was just the opposite, started slow and then June /July began their push.

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       1. Romus. Hope when JT returns the fortunes do as well. A top line catcher adds so much. This team has many really good players but at times looks like the team in those last two Dback games. Most notably lack of patience at the plate and I guess pitch recognition. Seems to me recently the team has been swinging at a lot of pitches not really close to the strike zone. Casty is probably the worst but others as well.

          Like I tell my grandson when times get tough. Baseball is hard. Lots of failure even by the best players. Harper even mentioned that the other night during one of the All-Star telecasts. I really like this team, but I do feel there are a few issues that really need to be addressed if they hope to get by both the Braves and most likely Dodgers and Ohtani and company in October. The path to the WS is much more treacherous right now than it was before game 6 of NLCS last fall. I am sure hoping they can do it.

          BTW. I am glad to see you got the opportunity to coach young players for a long time. I did as well in football, basketball, baseball and even softball. A very enjoyable experience.

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          1. Yep Don…..some of the players, like Casty, it is swing away. Wonder if they even think about what pitch will come their way in any particular count, especially a two strike count. AT times I have seen him reach out and poke a two-strike outside pitch to the right side…..and then hen runners are on base he will roll it over into a DP….Sheeesh! But like you mention, it is a game of failure and it is how you adjust and have the resolve to come back.

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             1. Romus. Your two-strike point is good. Many times, they will swing early in the count as well. Pitchers have a book on these guys and know who they do not need to throw strikes to in order to get out. Regarding Casty. My son asked me other night if I thought his little guy was using too big a bat. I really try to stay out of things because they have so many so-called baseball Experts guiding them for $$$$s. Early on a lighter bat and good results. Later a heavier bat and not as good. Casty to me uses the biggest bat I see. Maybe there are others but to me he has a really big bat. Dick Allen used a huge bat. Frank Howard as weel. Plus, I am sure many others. Barry Bonds a fairly light bat. I always wanted a lighter bat for greater bat speed. Just me. One other guy who I hope gets going again is Marsh. Seems to me he is taking a lot of really good pitches. Tells me for some reason he is not picking the ball up or just guessing on the pitch and guessing wrong.

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                1. I suppose a bat size and weight makes differences, especially when facing 95plus mph FBs these days. Dick Allen used that 40 ounce bat and was able to whip it around….the I look at 5’6″ Jose Altuve and his bat looks as tall as him. Then you use to have guys using thick handle bats…the punch and judy hitters. I remember we use to burn/cinch our bat barrels..turn them over a low flame like a pig on a stick…..for what reason who knew.

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                2. Don, Casty needs a really big, big bat …… only way to reach a slider 8″ off the plate and shin high.😉

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37. I was one the biggest Pache supporters. He seems to have lost it, and needs a change is scenery. When he 1st came over from the A’s, that was the player the braves always envisioned. They he got hit on the hand. He hasn’t gotten even 25% of the way back. I’d keep him if the Phillies can afford a late game defensive replacement. Will see if that’s needed after the deadline though. I’d put him in for Castellanos, better range. He is basically a defensive replacement or pinch runner at this point. Hopefully he can develop elsewhere but it’s not happening here. That injury was really unlucky because he was on a tear

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    1. Pache probably shouldn’t be on playoff roster as of now so using as trade bait for maybe a reliever or starting pitching depth is not a bad idea.

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38. Hey jim , cant see a comment area on box scores…..

    But what a debut by Crawford. 3-4 with 2 doubles and SB in Reading…

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    1. Fixed it. Sorry, my bad.

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39. Damned that MLB.com!! Another game that they are treating me to. I know that I don’t have to watch it but it’s like a train wreck. You just can’t take your eyes away from it.

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40. Realmuto has been activated off the IL and Marchan has been sent down (as expected). Yunior Marte is also back with Michael Mercado sent to Lehigh. It’ll be interesting to see if the Phillies continue to use Mercado as a starter at Lehigh.

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    1. NICE!!!!

       too bad Pache is still on the roster though

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41. oldruff. Too funny on Casty. I am not a Casty hater. In fact, I think he is a much better right fielder than some here give credit. He is not Gold Glove. But he normally takes proper routes to the ball. Many fast guys do not. He normally gets the ball back into the cutoff or the correct base. Many do not. He also seems to play ball of the well fairly well. Some guys struggle with those. I would just be so happy if he hit .280 and maybe 30 to 35 HRs. Not going to happen though.

    Romus. The reason you think Altuve uses a big bat is because he is 4 foot tall. LOL, I liked using a thick handled bat when I played. It has been lots of years, but I think the Johnny Callison bat was a thick handled bat. I believe that was the model I used when I could find one. There was no Dick’s back in the late 60s. Only Western Auto. So not always available. Plus, I let one of my buddies use a new one and he broke it first time. End of being nice teammate. LOL I did not like the thin handled bats. Also, I have never heard of your burning the bats. That must be an Oklahoma thing. But funny.

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    1. Don, ………. it was a ritual when they “smoked” the bats ……. they chanted as they turned them ….. double double ball in trouble …… triple triple make a ripple ………. each one was branded with a religious marking, but Romus will have to tell you the secret inner stuff.

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       1. oldruff. That is amazing. I started playing organized baseball at 9. Played till I hurt my rotator cuff just before going to South Alabama for college. Then learned to pitch fastpitch softball for 20 plus years till my mind said more but my shoulder said NO. Could never break the habit of throwing like a shortstop on a ball hit down 3rd base line or a bunt. My shoulder reminded on each throw. Then coached for another many years after that. I have never heard of the bat burning. I must live in a cave. Was this Little League, Babe Ruth, High School or etc? Softball girls always have chants that rhyme. They have so much enthusiasm. I enjoyed coaching them. I hope Romus chimes in on the bats. LOL

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          1. Don…..actually saw old time Phillie Tony Taylor cinching his bat prior to a game down in the LF corner at the old Connie Mack Stadium. Who knows what it did. Did make the charred bat look pretty cool.

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             1. It was supposedly to make the bat harder by removing moisture from the wood. Same thing used to be done to the tip of wooden spears.

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             2. So you were into bat hardening as Dan has related to us……….tried to pass it off on Tony Taylor ……. I’ll bet you know how to “cork” a bat or two. Do you use cork, bouncy balls or sawdust when you cork em, Romus? What substance gives you the best lift and carry?

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                1. Skeet….funny. Though remember in later years…..early 50s was more into softball. We took a metal bat to a machine shop and they sawzalled off the handle and stuffed the bat with super balls up to the barrel…..spot welded the handle back on…..bat was so damn heavy  we could only use it in the on- deck circle warming up.

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                2. Amazing I never heard of this being done. All of your stories are too funny.

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                3. Romus. So was the bat burning legal or was it kind of on the fringe like the pine tar issues Brett and others had with how far down the bat. Did you ever burn your bat to add distance to your drives? LOL. This reminds me of sitting around the campfire and roasting marshmallows.

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    2. The biggest issue with Castellanos I think is his lack of range, and you’ve seen it in this series vs the Pirates. He’s not able to cut off balls into the gap, so hitters are getting doubles instead of some singles. There’s a reason why Marsh is a near GG in LF, his range in LF is stellar. Marsh is turning more potential hits into outs. With Castellanos, he’s turning potential outs into hits and/or extra bases. But the fact is, Castellanos is a DH playing RF.

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42. Mike Trout starting rehab next week. High salary and injury concerns but a trade of Pache for Trout could be that right handed bat they are looking for.

    I know we may have to throw in a prospect or 5 into the mix, but Angels may like the salary relief.

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    1. absolutely zero chance Phillies are taking that contract off the Angels hands.

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    2. Resurrect the old 5 for 1 (aka Von Hayes) what a novel idea. We get Mike Trout they get Walker, Casty, Pache, Castro and Kingery.

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       1. Ahh the 5 for 1 trade. Such memories

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43. Not a good start to the 2nd half for the Fightins. If they do not turn it around quickly Braves may overtake them by the end of July. Not August. Not September. Plus, the Phillies are not even going to have to face Skenes. Wow.

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44. Well, they’re doing it again! MLB.com is completing the freebie hat trick. They really know how to torture a guy. The way the Phillies have been playing of late is hard on a fan. Three straight losses and 4 of the last 5 and now they are pitching Phillips against a red hot Pirates team. It’s like throwing him to the wolves. Hope for a better outing than Mercado’s against the A’s.

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45. Pache is playing again, ugh…

    who is he blackmailing???

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    1. Who do you want in there? Because against lefties, Pache has a better OPS than Marsh and Rojas.

       Yesterday, Thomson subbed out Marsh vs Aroldis Chapman. And Chapman actually has reverse splits this season (.741 OPS vs lefties, .663 vs righties) and Thomson still wanted Weston Wilson over Marsh.

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46. I may be totally wrong but wasn’t Marsh a full time player for the most part last season? In my distorted opinion, Marsh has lost a ton of confidence being a platoon guy. If this team is going to get the most out of Marsh, he probably needs to play almost every day. That might get his mind in a better place and he might get back to being what he was. He will struggle in the beginning but he may be better in the long run. At least I hope that would be the case.

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    1. If they had a reliable right hand bat in CF, at least a RHB who could maintain an OPS+ of at least 100 and not 60 as the current pair have, they could afford to let a LFer Marsh play vs all pitching.

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    2. Notably against left hand pitching, a bottom of the order of Castellanos, Marsh, Stott and Rojas is vulnerable to being exploited. Without an upgrade, it’s an invitation for opponents to strategize accordingly.

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    3. Last year, Marsh had a .717 OPS vs lefties which is perfectly acceptable. This year, its .378.

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47. Braves may lose Fried for an extended period of time….forearm issues. He had TJ in 2015, and then I think last season had forearm soreness…enter free agency in Nov….so could spell trouble.

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    1. Also lost Allies to the IL with a wrist injury. Sounds like a significant issue.

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       1. Albies. Damn autocorrect.

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       2. With all the injuries that the Braves have had to star players, if the Mets get it together…..they are less than 5 games behind the Braves, they could end up catching them for second place and maybe a play-off spot.

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       3. Braves are cooked. Albies is supposedly out 2 months.

          And for all those that complain about the Phillies starting pitching depth, the Braves were never able to find an adequate replacement for Strider once he went out. And now Fried is out for who knows how long.

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48. A couple of guys — Tyler Phillips especially but also Weston Wilson — not among the Phillies Top 30 prospects have helped the club. The one word that best describes baseball is youneverknow

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    1. Can Wilson be the right-handed outfield bat they need?

       He doesn’t have the MLB history of the trade candidates, but the price is right.

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49. Seeing this morning according to Nightengale Phillies are very limited in who they are looking to acquire. Tanner Scott is still the most mentioned especially with Alvarado’s recent issues. Point he makes is Scott is lefthanded and Braves and Dodgers are well stocked with those bats. He references his base on balls issues and strikeout reduction. He said it will not be a big-name outfield but maybe a rental who bats righthanded and can platoon with Marsh. But not Pham. Sounds like Phillies are satisfied with centerfield options and Casty in right. I see Casty as one of the favorites of Rob’s. If this is true those of you who want the top prospects kept should feel better at least until July 30th. Hoping the Phillies have righted the pre and post All Star blues. One win and two Braves losses is a good thing.

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    1. Castellanos to his credit has gotten his OPS to .702. He needs to hit because we know his defense is subpar. And his OPS vs lefties is .795.

       Mark Canha is the guy to get from the Tigers. He’s a rental and he’s ripped LH pitching to the tune of .877 OPS. Unfortunately, his defense in the OF is not great. Lane Thomas is another option (.932 OPS vs lefties) but he will cost considerably more since he has 1 more year of control left.

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    2. Castellanos has an OPS of .826 since June 1st so he’s been fine offensively since a terrible start to the season.

       Bigger issue/concern is the performance of Stott who’s been .592 since June 1st. Problem is Sosa’s hasn’t been much better at .618 so playing him over Stott isn’t helping much.

       Almost like some predicted that Sosa’s play during Turner’s injury wasn’t going to be sustainable.

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       1. Stott is a huge concern. He’s partly unlucky (has lowest babip of his career) but he’s not barrelling balls like he did last season.

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          1. He seems like he is really uncomfortable at the plate. I wrote this before, so I’m being redundant. Watch him on inside heat in the inner third of the strike zone, he will recoil like he’s almost been hit. Lately most of what he hits is to the left fielder near the line. I really hope he gets right, he is one of my favorites.

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             1. Yes, he’s really disjointed in his swing right now. Don’t remember him being so off balance and staggering after swings like he has been this year.

                Early on he struggled with high velocity but now he seems to be very indecisive in his decision making. No doubt it’s become a mental problem he’s going to need to resolve.

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50. It was going to happen sooner rather than later but the Braves signed Whit Merrifield in the wake of Albies’ injury.

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51. For some reason Stott does not look as confident as last season at the plate. More like rookie year. He had the most hits in MLB last season with 2 strikes. Some may be luck or unlucky. Maybe the pitchers have found a weakness he has and are exploiting it this season. As I kid Romus all the time baseball is hard. Maybe the most difficult sport. See Whit has landed with the Braves. Hope he continues to play as he did for the Phillies.

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52. People should be a little patient with Stott and Marsh. What’s likely going on is what goes on with any young players. The player comes up, and adjusts and excels. The league adjusts back. The player then has to adjust again and this goes on for a while. If you look at his career, Bryce Harper has really only been consistent since 2020 (when he’s been healthy), but before 2020, his career zigged and zagged a bit, with great seasons followed by just okay seasons. Both Stott and Marsh are good players, and both I expect will adjust, but it may take a little time.

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    1. Catch. I agree 100%. Baseball is as you stated a game of adjustments. Sometimes a player has everything go really well. Sometimes not so well. It is a constant adjustment. More so even today with all the tech stuff that is available every pitch and every at bat. Sometimes it is a confidence thing. It seemed last season as I watched games when he got 2 strikes, he just had the confidence that I have got this. But you are so right about ups and downs. Also, sometimes you just have a bad year. That happens too. Quickly on Marsh just watching on TV it seems he is not picking up the pitches as well as he did. Recently he has been taking a lot of good pitches. Sure, he will get back to where he was.

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       1. Players have those peaks and valleys thru their careers…Bohm a few years ago, Pat Burrell I can recall also….look at Brave’s Austin Riley…same thing. Only the great superstars seem to be immune to those long and extended slumps. Stott and Marsh need to keep plugging away.

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          1. Exactly. Baseball is hard. Especially if you are not burning your bat to make it harder like Romus did. LOL

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             1. Don…on the bat alterations….heard Ben Davis say yesterday after Castellanos hit a foul ball and then wondered if his bat was cracked…..Ben said put a nail in it….I remember also guys hammering a nail or two into the barrel….weird.

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                1. Romus. It is no wonder you batted .400 and all of the rest of us only .350. You burned the bat and then you drove nails in it. At least you had no nailbiters. Bet you pushed the limit on the length of pine tar. I missed the game yesterday so missed the comment.

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    2. Having 2 left-handed bats in the lineup struggling against left-handed pitching or pitching in general in the case of Stott creates an imbalance for other teams to exploit. Couple that with an under-performing right-handed bat (Castellanos) and a slow developing right-handed bat (Rojas/Pache) and you have an issue to address with the means at hand. The trade deadline imposes a limit on the patience the Phils can extend to those creating vulnerability in the batting order. You’ll know the problem has been addressed if opponents don’t flood the zone with left-handed pitching against the Phils. Otherwise ….

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53. Phillies bringing back Dahl.

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