302 thoughts on “Phillies Discussion, 11/13/24”

1. (copied from closed discussion)

   leacher Report cites Kiley McDaniel of ESPN+ as a source for the idea that some teams this off-season are considering Jeff Hoffman as a rotation piece. I wouldn’t mind the Phils re-signing Hoffman with this thought in mind.

   A Hoffman experiment in the rotation would force the Phils to re-prioritize their bullpen needs.If Hoffman could give the Phils a right-handed version of what David Peterson gave the Mets in 2024, I’d be happy with that. If Painter kicked in the door and forced a promotion to the rotation, that’s a good place to be in.

   Hoffman wants to return to Philly (from his own mouth) and position flexibility could justify the pay day he’s in line for.

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2. i like Bohm. Wonder what his trade value. Would be. ?

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   1. But who would play 3B if Bohm is traded? I’m sure the GM would have a plan if they did so.

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      1. If Bohm is actually traded, which rumors seem to still be there, I know Bregman is out there, just not sure the Phillies should want to invest in another 6/7 year $25M AAV contract. Bregman was Nola’s roommate at LSU and they are friends, but………

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3. Jim. You had to bring up the Cowboys. I was waiting on one of the guys to do that. The Cowboys are basically unwatchable. Eagles look really good right now. Things can change so quickly for teams these days. Very possible Boys may not win another game.

   One other thing. All you who commented on the baseball cards yesterday were great. Lots of funny memories told.

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   1. Don how much is your college baseball card worth?

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   2. Only out of respect for a Hoosier friend who’s ⭐️ has fallen did I not mention the “cowboy’s” plummet to ground zero!

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      1. A true friend indeed. You are so nice.

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4. High Performance Sessions…..talking to a father of one of the Astro’s minor league pitchers…says he is down in West Palm now at a similar camp….so I guess this is standard MLB venue for all teams during the fall for their minor league players.

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5. Romus Baseball is almost yr round sport DV. Just stop playing. We never played this much , when I was young.The money is in the winter lesson. My oldest daughter plays softball and all winter it’s two to three times a week. Hitting, fielding . Crazy

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   1. Rocco. You are correct. I have seen it for the last 10 years with the older grandkids. Now the 10-year-old has begun. In fact, I am the Uber driver for him tonight. Believe it is hitting tonight so he will forget the stuff in a week, but the guys get paid. That is what it is all about now. Most definitely a year-round deal now.

      Rocco. That is really funny on the card value. I am going to guess the same as those boxes of mine that are gone. If I had just thought and had a pic with Coach Stanky maybe it would have a slight value. BTW the Hot Stove guys yesterday were showing cards that had multiple players on it. One had Young with Sean Casey and another even had 3 players. Not sure I remember those. Those may have been above my money allotment.

      Romus. I do remember guys turning the handlebars back on the bikes. I actually still have my Schwinn 5-speed from then.

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      1. Dang still have your Schwinn bike……..hope you changed the tires by now! LOL

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6. Good article on Crochet deal. Phillies seem like a top landing spot and I am all for it. To me, Crochet is a 25yo Wheeler. Elite arm. He wants an extension so that won’t be an issue either. This article mentions financial relief as part of the deal. Which makes me think that DD is saying, if you want Aidan Miller, then you have to take Taijuan Walker too.

   https://www.espn.com/mlb/insider/story/_/id/42351725/garrett-crochet-best-fits-phillies-yankees-dodgers-white-sox-trade-target

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   1. If Robert is in on the deal with Crochet , then I think Crawford will go back, perhaps also with Bohm.

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      1. Perhaps. But the article specifically mentions a salary dump as a part of the deal and if that is the case there are only 2 bad salaries on the team – Walker and Castellanos. Walker is truly dead money. Nick has a productive bat, even if he really should be a DH.

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         1. Nick is significantly overpaid. He is not worth $20 million a year. If you’re lucky, some team would pay $20m of the remaining $40m (man, was the contract too long and there are more of those to come). Walker is all dead money.

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            1. Is Castellanos that overpaid anymore? It sounds crazy to say… but 20mil seems like chump change these days in the MLB universe. What do you think he should get? 12mil? 15mil? Per year.

               If DD can swap Walker’s dead weight salary for a young productive Allstar CF, and net a dynamic 1-2 punch for the next 5+ years with Painter. That’s a trade you gotta do.

               Parting with Aidan Miller would be tough, though.

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               1. Yes, he’s significantly overpaid – even still. He’s worth $10 million a year, at most. Last year he was a 0.80 WAR player and was a 1.50 WAR player the year before and he’s not getting any younger. Someone will want him, but at a great discount from his current deal.

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      2. https://x.com/Buster_ESPN/status/1856530332780245019

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         1. Yeah….not sure I am on with it…..I guess depends on the length….5 years plus an option buy out for the 6th I would settle for.

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   2. If ChiSox take a package of Walker, Bohm, Top 4-10 Prospect for Crochet. Deal done.

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      1. If you don’t even have to stop to consider saying yes to a deal, that means it’s not even remotely fair and isn’t going to happen.

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         1. Dan……Marsh, Bohm. Suarez and Walker probably gets you Crochet and could also get Robert included. Financially, the Sox get their position players a lot cheaper than Robert’s $15M AAV contract, Suarez and Crochet it close to a wash…..Phillies howver would have to pick a certain % of Walker’s contract….my guess of the $36M left…..50%.

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            1. Sorry. The White Sox don’t want any of those players… They want young potential studs/prospects. They were the worst team in baseball – they’re not going to trade their two most valuable players for a package of middle-aged & old players.

               They want prospects, prospects, prospects. And hope they strike gold with one.

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7. Brief write up on Rincones Jr’s great week

   https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/rising-philadelphia-phillies-prospect-had-great-week-during-arizona-fall-league/ar-AA1u0IWF?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=b588ab62ce4046129822478b1a23af8b&ei=18

   We need to allow these youngsters to matriculate through the system and hopefully not trade them.

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   1. Another name that could be headed to the Southside of Chicago.

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8. Jim any thoughts on this post? Whom do you think will be protected?

   https://x.com/PhilsTailgate/status/1856370117493567820

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   1. I think Abel and Chace are locks. Castellano and Cabrera are worthy. Maybe one probably not both. I don’t think they have to worry about the remaining pitchers being selected and carried on a major league roster. The same holds for the position players. Kroon signed a successor contract. I don’t know for how much. Maybe they feel that “protects” him from selection. Baltimore tried a similar tack with Jake Cave which didn’t work when the Phillies selected him in 2022.

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9. More armchair GM time:

   Retool SR:Trade Bohm, Crawford, Caba for Crochet. To pair him and Painter together in 2026. You could have each pitch 4-5 innings on the same day and really setup the 2026-2030 window with Painter, Crochet, and Sanchez leading the way with a declining Wheeler & Nola. Assuming you can extend Crochet. Use Walker’s money for him. I pass on Robert’s because he has a 20mil salary, but it’s enticing if they would take Walker back in the deal, with DD adding more prospects (Tait, Abel). There is the concern that Roberts is bad clubhouse apple from reports.

   2025:Wheeler, Nola, Sanchez, Crochet/Painter, FA

   2028: Crochet, Painter, Sanchez, Wheeler, Nola.

   Trade Ranger (hate it), Alvarado (also hate it), Marsh,and Bohm. That frees up a lot of salary – 30mil-ish with Castellanos, Realmuto, and Walker coming off after 2026 for another 61mil – 90mil to reshape the roster for the offense & BP.

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   1. I saw a rumor Ranger for Devon Williams. Love that deal as a piggyback deal if we do the Crochet deal.

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      1. Hate to lose Ranger and Alvarado…as i think they both can still over perform their deals, even with extensions. They gotta go now though, sell high. Unfortunate reshuffling of the deck. Adding Crochet & Williams would be a massive shake up.

         The proposed Crochet/Williamas trades get them down to 256mil, and if they could possibly dump both Castellanos & Walker… thats 236mil …

         Does Soto… really NOT want to come to Philly? Could be hard to say “no” .. 50 mil bumps them to 286mil… who would want to face:

         Wheeler, Nola, Crochet, Sanchez, Painter, Kerkering, Strahm, Hoffman (resign) D Williams? On a regular basis… Your stats are going to suffer a bit. With your pitchers going against –

         Turner, Harper, Soto,Schwarber,Roberts,Realmuto, Stott, Hayes/Clemens, Sosa. 8 & 9 spots coudl be weak but.. Will take it for now.

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      2. I saw that as well. But I just saw one with Phillies resigning Hoffman and adding Treinen from the Dodgers. All kinds of stuff out there. Also, Phillies are going to pursue Sasaki though may be a long shot.

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      3. A starter for a reliever…….Phillies would probably also get a mid- tier prospect from them in that deal…a prospect in their 15-20 range, essentially a long shot.

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   2. FWIW, I’ve heard indirectly from inside the Sox org that Robert is NOT a problem and is well liked by his teammates.

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10. I am all in on Crochet at this time. Wheeler is a good comparison with maybe more electric stuff. I know there are injury issues. He so impressed me in his last start. It was 0-0 and the bases were loaded because of an infield error. Plus, he was over 60 pitches. Manager comes out to take him out and Crochet tells him No. He struck out the next guy on 3 pitches. He has that it factor to him. I do keep seeing the Mets mentioned for him as well. Do they have a package that would work? Sox have to move him now when he is at his most value.

    I listed the CBS guy top FA yesterday. Who do you guys see going off the board the earliest? I do not think you see guys hang around all winter like Snell and Montgomery did a year ago.

    Romus. Answer is yes.

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11. What if 1) Bohm for Devin Williams, 2) Miller, Tait, Rincones, Walker’s contract for Crochet, 3) Sign Bregman, 4) Ranger and Marsh for a CF, 5) Resign Hoffman, 6) Sign a decent LF free agent. It’s a lot but I think lots of moves like this will happen, if not exactly these moves.

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    1. I don’t agree with a lot of what folks are saying here.

       First, again, starting pitching is not this team’s problem. While you never have enough pitching, with the addition of Painter, this is a strength and not a weakness and this is NOT the reason they are not winning at all. They are losing because their hitting is nowhere good as advertised and is extremely inconsistent.

       Second, this team is getting both old and really expensive, it’s not an infinitely projectable model. They need to get younger and cheaper, at least at some positions. Trading their best young (cheap) players for a pitcher near FA when they need hitting just makes no sense to me. I want this team to be competitive in 2026 and 2027. Trade away too many younger future stars and it won’t be.

       Third, why on earth would we convert Hoffman to a starter? He utterly failed as a starter for essentially his entire career until he became a journeyman looking to have some role with the Phillies. We should learn something from that – he found his niche and he should stay there. He’s either a reliever for us or he’s on someone else’s team.

       Fourth, I HATE the idea of a Bregman contract – older, declining expensive player who will dig the team into yet a deeper hole 3 or 4 years from now. when he’s no longer any good or just mediocre. No way.

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       1. Fair pushback, BUT… a trade for Crochet keeps their SR elite for years to come. SP wins in the playoffs. Wheeler is good for one win in a series, 2 if needed. Phillies have had incredible SR in their past… It would be the first time in Phillies Hx to have 2 young gun slingers… at the same time. Think Verlander/Scherzer in their DET days, but you get to pair them with an aging Wheeler,Nola and Sanchez. I think you make that trade. Especially if rids you of the dead weight money of Walker.

          What do you think of: Turner,Harper,Schwarber,Santander,Castellanos, Realmuto, Marsh,Stott,Sosa? or do you still need Bohm?

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          1. Just sign Crochet when he becomes a FA… Skubal is also a FA in 27

             Don’t empty your farm for him! You also may have a really good pitcher in Castellano

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             1. DMAR….another arm to keep one eye out on RHP Alex McFarlane….seems he will be ready for spring training after his TJ back in Sep 2023. He was an arm they were excited about and had got some inquiries from other teams a few years ago. If all goes well he could be at Reading some time in 2025

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                1. I’ll give you another name. He may not be a rotation piece unless its a 5th but Casey Steward made 20 starts last season 10 for CLW and 10 for LKW which is where I saw him. He pitched 102 innings and had 101 K’s.

                   He throws hard enough 94-95 and has a really good slider/sweeper. His BB rate climbed quite a bit after they moved him to LKW but his delivery is clean so I think he can get that in check.

                   He’ll be 23 next year and I expect he will start at REA so keep an eye on him.

                   His H/9 and HR/9 suggest they have a hard time squaring him up.

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                2. DMAR…I guess you can say Casey on the mound is a sleeper in the system. He does have good size.

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       2. If Haroer is able to bring his friends in…why not Nola with Bregman!

          I am being facetious…….I would only want Bregman on a 5 yr plus 1yr club option buy out deal……non of those 7 yr plus one….not for a 31 year old. And to make worse…he is a Boras guy, sheeeesh.

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          1. Harper

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          2. Romus. CBS guy only has Bregman at 6 yrs and 162. Bargain.

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             1. I don’t know……still a little wary. The next three years he should be quality to the contract, but those outlier years at that AAV….yikes. Now Boras did say he was accessible to changing positions…like going to second base so that wil be on the negotiate table. Understand the nats are the only NL team that would have interest in him….Yankees, Jays and one other AL team are rumored in on him.

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       3. “why on earth would we convert Hoffman to a starter? He utterly failed as a starter for essentially his entire career until he became a journeyman looking to have some role with the Phillies. We should learn something from that – he found his niche and he should stay there. He’s either a reliever for us or he’s on someone else’s team.”

          The Braves are an organization I respect. They took a guy with a more checkered history as a starter and then as a reliever and turned him into a quality starter in 2024. A guy named Reynaldo Lopez. From afar, there’s a much better historical reason to bet on Hoffman over Lopez.

          I don’t know how Hoffman’s FB will hold up in the 5th inning or if his splitter retains its bite. Spring training would tell the story. Phils don’t need Hoffman to log 180 innings. But a Wheeler-Nola-Sanchez-Suarez-Hoffman-Turnbull rotation with Painter presumably on the way encourages me.

          And a Treinen-Yates-Strahm-Kerkering-Alvarado-Ruiz-Banks-Lazar bullpen works for me. If a nid-year call-up of Painter pushes Hoffman back to the pen, that’s not a bad outcome.

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    2. By decent LF, do you mean Soto? 😂. Might be a pipedream.. but if those other moves happen.. it’s not out of the realm of possibilities… Depends if the new investors are cool paying the CBT fines, to ultimately make more money. Bregman & Santander Could be nice adds though. You’re kinda locked in again so the offense better be fixed.

       Only concern I have with D Williams was his playoff performance. I will rack it up to him tipping his pitches and/or Mets stealing signs (speculation) ..if it’s not those 2 reasons. That could be dicey.

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       1. Tac. When they were showing his stats before that outing, he was almost unhittable. I would think it was a one-off performance. Now it was a really important outing, but everyone has a clunker once in a while. One of the other things that could have been that was like the 6th straight game they had faced the Mets. Mets went to Atlanta and then back to Milwaukee. No idea how many games he pitched out of the other 5. Not sure pitches were tipped. Even when Alonso homered, he was one pitch from moving on if a ground ball was hit. I would take him depending on the cost.

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12. Armchairing it, I think free agency lies at the core of what the Phils do this off-season. Maybe a free agent signing sets up a trade I can’t see at the moment. The Phils have untradeables, guys on contract that make them hard to move. They have trade able pieces for which they don’t have replacements ready within the system. And they have prospects who are not blocked and whose full potential remains to be determined.

    I’d like them to sign Hoffman on a 3-year deal and try him out as a fifth starter. I’d like Turnbull back as well on a 1-year deal. Turnbull won’t be handed a spot in the rotation on any decent team so competing for a slot in Philly shouldn’t be onerous.

    Blake Treinen and Kirby Yates are the arms I’d go for in the back of the bullpen.They’re older and presumably available on short term deals.

    And I’d sign Profar on a 3-year deal.

    So no intense salary battles for free agents who likely will sign elsewhere; no emptying the farm system of prospects who have not reached their apogee and no longer term signings that hamstring future moves.

    It doesn’t solve every problem (notably Taijuan Walker) but it doesn’t create any new obvious problems either.

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    1. • Soto -if not Phils, Hope for MLB sake he is in NYY. Him & Judge is iconic. The new Ohtani/Trout.
       • Profar – Best overall bat fit for lineup, but i think he stays in SD
       • Santander – 4 spot, could be nice fit (most likely IMO if Bohm is not traded)
       • Bregman – only if Bohm & Miller traded.
       • Luis Roberts – Seems very similar Castellanos bat + 5- 10hrs. Not sure thats ideal. SO machine for those HRs. Pass unless you can sign Profar. Just play wackamole

       Okay im done… too much thinking about the Phillies to not get paid for it 🙂 LOVE it though. Thanks for humoring me everyone!

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    2. Profar is so very intriguing to me especially as the new LO hitter. As a switch hitter his splits are excellent…shows more power against Righties and 300 avg against lefties.

       I imagine what a LU of (if you did nothing else)

       Profar

       Harper

       Turner

       Schwarber

       Bohm

       Realmuto

       Stott

       Castellanos

       Marsh/Hays/Rojas

       Could produce…

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       1. Don’t get all the excitement over Profar but I really don’t understand why he would be the lead-off hitter is any line-up. He’s not fast and doesn’t steal bases.

          Lots of people looking at his 2024 career season and projecting.

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          1. My desperation to see Kyle out of the LO spot requires we add a guy that can bat LO. I don’t believe that guy is currently on this roster.

             IMO speed at LO isn’t as important in this LU. I think you just want guys who can go 1st to 3rd and be on base in front of Harper/Turner/Schwarber.

             Schwarber K’d near 200x last season. Profar only 100 plus being a switch hitter is a huge plus for matchups.

             It’s an out of the box idea so they would never do it LOL

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13. I am calling for a big shakeup. Vibes are crucial but this team needs a reshape to not fall victim to what happened to the Utley/Rollins/Howard Phils where they lost a round earlier every preceding postseason. My free agent plan would be re-sign Hoff, sign Tanner Scott, Profar (if there’s no chance on Soto, which I would do in a heartbeat) and Walker Buehler to a one year prove it deal. Stick with Bohm (let him go after his arb years run out) and Stott (I really feel like 2025 will be a rebound year), try to find a way to deal Marsh for a prospect or two. Let Hays go. Deal for Crochet but hang onto Crawford, Painter (obvs) and Rincones (I feel really good about him, provided he can stay healthy). Find a way to offload Walker for a bucket of BP balls. Only deal Casty if you have another solution for RF and RHB in the middle of the order (Teoscar? again if not Soto). Deal Trea to SF if you keep Nick to replenish prospects lost in Crochet deal and also to get out from under that deal. They want a “marquee” SS. Move Stott to SS, sign Kim from SD to play 2nd. Let Marchan play more as backup C to preserve JT…40-50 starts or so.

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14. I think trading Bohm could be a huge mistake for this team. Doubles power has proven for many players to eventually progress & translate to HRs. We saw this a bit with Cesar Hernandez and most notably with Jose Ramirez and also Manny Machado, who hit 50+ doubles & 14 HRs in his rookie season, which eventually translated to 30-35+ HRs/year.

    Although Bohm is on the wrong side of 25, I think he still has upside to develop that doubles power -> HRs and if they traded him now, they’d be selling low.

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    1. I think Bohm is who he is at this point. He can’t put together a full season. He doesn’t strike out a lot which is great but when he’s in a slump he gets himself out with weak ground balls. He’s miscast as a cleanup hitter on this team. I’d probably ride it out with him and upgrade LF but wouldn’t be opposed to flipping him for prospects to be used in another deal or for a BP arm

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    2. I think Bohm eventually taps into his over the wall power to the tune of 25+ HRs but understand how they may not want to bet on that.

       If I were going to trade him I’d look to Detroit and try to get either McGonigle or Lee and maybe an arm of some sort. Lee’s position at the MLB level is up in the air but the bat is near ready.

       Can Lee play 3B IDK but I was furious when we sent him for that rental Lorenzen!

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15. Romus Lakewood is in need of interns? They pay you 7.75 per game and two free hot dogs if they win.You want a application?

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    1. rocco…….sounds like a choice gig…yeah send me the application. Wow, and free hot dogs if they win…how can anyone not like that…..maybe even Nathan dogs!

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16. Rocco and Romus. A buddy of mine is getting $11 an hour and 2 hot dogs doing Event Staff work at ND football games.

    Just watched Bluebloods. Big Sis the DA took little bro the detective baseball cards and sold them when they were kids. Always someone wanting to sell our cards.

    Also, just caught Feinsand on MLB. He thinks Phillies may move both Bohm and Casty to shake things up some. Also, thinks Sox move Crochet this winter. My question is this. If this is true. Who do they bring back. I did see Sox want everyday players for Crochet.

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    1. Feinsand may be correct on Bohm. Casty will be harder move because of his contract. IMO, Marsh may also be on the block. Stay tuned.

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17. Romus Value on trades is something I just can’t figure. Bohm for Crochet wouldn’t be equal value?

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    1. rocco…….all depends on the GM. Values between everyday position players and pitchers-starters especially, is almost like apples and oranges. In this case, they may of equal value, Bohm has proven himself at the plate over the last four years….Crochet has just come on this year. But Crochet could be ascending and Bohm may have plateau. But from what I always read….GM always would like to have a pitcher in any return deal, so not sure Bohm alone for Crochet would be enough…adding Ranger or Sanchez may be an overpayment, unless the Sox throw in another player.

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    2. Crochet for Bohm is not equal value even if you’re being fair about it. But I believe the White Sox will seek a lot more value for Crochet and they don’t need Bohm. What does he do for them? By the time they turn around the team, Bohm will be eligible for free agency. Now, he might be a guy they trade for and then trade again – that is possible. In terms of what they would want for Crochet – even if you assume Bohm is in that package, it would be something like Bohm, Crawford, Miller, Castellano and either Caba or Tait. It would be a major haul and totally not worth it for the Phillies given where this team is now (in desperate need of cheap, young talent).

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       1. No one will give the WSox that kind of a haul…..Crochet right now is a one year wonder with questionable health issues from years past…..and only in 2024, has he been able to control his FB and further, he also is a free agent after two more years. Any GM in their right mind would not drain their farm system for a pitcher that has to prove himself for more than one year. I do not think Dombrowski is that far out to trade that kind of a package just for Crochet…….if he does, I can see Robert coming back in that deal, especially if Crawford is offered in the package.

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          1. Maybe not, but the deal didn’t get done at the trade deadline because they were pigs. I don’t expect them to be much less piggish than they were. And, by the way, if you were going to rebuild a team, wouldn’t you want to do that around a young, future ace? I think I would or at least I’d think that was a really good option. In which case, in order to the move the player, you’d need a team to make you an offer you can’t refuse – that’s where I think the White Sox are now.

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       2. They would never get that for him.

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          1. You don’t think Bohm, Miller, Crawford, Castellano and Tait or Caba would be enough? I think it even with the greedy White Sox, it probably would. That said, I wouldn’t do that deal.

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             1. Catch what are you smoking. That package is nuts

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             2. Do you think the Sox would budge on a Bohm, Marsh and Cristopher Sanchez?

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18. Romus, Rocco, oldruff. Spin the Wheel. Hot Stove does this all the time.

    Sasaki, Crochet, D. Williams, Hoffman, Treinen, Trout, Soto, Santander, Tucker, Bregman. How many of these land on the Phillies? Just for fun.

    Saw a Trout article this morning so I included him on the wheel.

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    1. 1 Hoffman

       whats the trout article? have a link possibly, often paywalls thwart that stuff but never know

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       1. My instinct tells me the Phillies will sign Hoffman on a medium length deal to be a back end guy. Maybe like 3 years, $40 million? Something like that. DD has already so much as said that the team won’t sign both Hoffman and Estevez (who will be really expensive), but if they could get a good and shorter deal on a guy like Treinen, that could happen too.

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       2. It was on my front page when I got on. Sporting News. Peter Chiwaga. Not a long read.

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          1. Thanks

             https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/philadelphia-phillies/news/phillies-expected-target-426m-nine-time-silver-slugger-first-and-foremost/d692c4bf1a5f5434cb7417c0

             yeah not a lot of info and just more of the yeah it’s a fit and again comes back to does the dude want it, does he want to be Dat DUDE or he is fine turning into an aging DUD with impressive stats and nothing else

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             1. It makes zero sense for both Trout and the Angels to not move him to Philly. They have no window with their current roster and he is exiting his prime years.

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                1. I’m mixed on the idea of Trout to Philly.

                   My only offer would be Trout +30M in $$$ in exchange for Walker, Hays, and a couple of b-level prospects. Walker’s $18m +$15m in the cash per year for the next 2 years covers most of Trout’s deal in 25 and 26.

                   After 2026, both Schwarber and Castellanos’s deals are gone so the last 4 years of Trout’s contract fits and he can move to DH.

                   For the Angels, they are saving around 165M on Trout’s contract, so they have that $$ to apply as they come out of the rebuild. They can offer Hays arbitration if they want to keep him or decline if not.

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                2. Trout to the Phillies is the ultimate risk/reward proposition. Talk about the importance of medical records and evaluations!

                   I think it would either turn out great or horrible – and there wouldn’t be too many outcomes in between.

                   It would be gutsy, I’ll say that!

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                3. Yes. And I would go for it if I was DD.

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                4. Does Angels’ owner Arte Moreno make sensical baseball decisions?

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                5. No, but the fact that Arte is an idiot doesn’t mean it will work out for the Phillies.

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    2. 2 Hoffman & Bregman

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       1. i don’t see the bregman thing, it’s a shakeup not worth the effort..

          how far off is miller?….. late 25… mlb shows 27… really? why waste possible production at low cost.. sick of that kind of thought especially if numbers progress during minor maturation

          trade bohm.. let 3rd shake out internally… hows bryce feel about 3rd? lol.. JT to 1st.. Sosa etc idk don’t want bregman astro’ing the phils and don’t see the path he is some large difference maker in production and or vibe to insert him

          feels like miller/painter would be the hold prospects John would want to keep as merch/marketing possibility in future years would play high on both gentlemen..

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          1. Steve, remember I was ask to spin the wheel and prophecy what might happen. I’m not sure it will, nor do I think necessarily it should be done. I do believe they will try to unload Bohm and his tender psyche.

             Ironic though that they would move a contact hitter when that is what they need to replace all the swing n miss that they have on the team. However, I think his contract coming up coupled with his temprament has worn thin.

             There are other options at 3rd as you mentioned, lots of ways to skin a cat …… all on DD & his Minions.

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             1. Options at third….Otto?

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                1. ….. indeed an option, if our new # “0” keeps the the “ball rolling so to speak”!

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                2. if he performs at ST what do you do? Can’t have some 115 EV off the bat wasting shots in Leigh

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                3. yeah, no doubt he will produce at the major league level….

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                4. Do I detect…..some blogger sarcasm!

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19. Since it seems to be that time of year to talk about Trout to the Phils again, I’ll throw this out there:

    Often times health concerns are genetic or just bad luck. But in Trout’s case there may be reason for optimism. Why? Because the Angels pretty clearly have a terrible system in place to keep their players healthy. It’s one thing to have a year or two of bad health luck, but they’re consistently sending WAY too many players to the IL. And that combined with the fact that multiple people have said their owner refuses to spend money on things other than big name players tells me that it’s entirely possible that a player who has injury issues on the Angels could very well avoid most of those IL stints on a team that’s actually willing to invest in their medical and training staff. And that appears to be an area the Phils absolutely do not lack in. So maybe, *just maybe*, Trout could go back to ~140 games per year with the Phils even without becoming a full-time DH.

    That said, I still don’t think Trout is leaving Anaheim. As much as I want him to get a ring, and as good as it would likely be for his career, the guy is just too loyal. He’ll either be part of the solution, or he’ll go down with the ship. The only way I see him in another uniform is if he wants to keep playing after the end of his contract and the Angels aren’t willing to keep him around for whatever reason.

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20. I was unaware mentioning Trout would get this much interest. One thing in article was this is year 7 or 12. So 6 to go. Maybe he would be rejuvenated with the chance of being on a playoff team. Maybe not. Maybe Phillies could get 3 or 4 productive years. Maybe not I did see earlier this fall that Trout did say he realizes he is going to have to move to DH in the future. Phillies have Schwarber so not next year. Guess Kyle could go to LF. Probably not a great idea. Nice to see all the interest. Just read article on Crochet where Bowden does not believe Phillies are in on him at least at the moment. Instead, he mentions Burnes and Alcantara as possibles.

    oldruff. You did spin the wheel. Nice job.

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21. Philly, the home for injured athletes (Ellis, Embiid, Bradberry, ) on long term deals. Trout would fit right in. Philly sports fans aren’t yet 11 on the crazy mad dial.

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22. Lots of scuttlebutt about the Phillies trading for Devin Williams. I can’t see them giving up the farm for one year of Williams.

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    1. Articles I have seen have Brewers moving Williams, so they do not lose him for nothing in FA. The same logic was given for the Burnes trade last season. Maybe the Phillies believe they might be able to tack on a couple years to Williams. I have no problems with him wearing the pinstripes next season.

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23. Romus found it, Don college baseball card on eBay. They will pay you 3.00 plus shipping to anyone who wants it

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    1. Dang…….has to be worth some good $$$$$…at least more than three dollars.

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       1. Nice guys. LOL

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24. Alex Coffey in the Inquirer has a profile of Otto Kemp, focusing on how he’s tapped into his power while maintaining bat control. Mattingly spends a lot of time raving about him, with this the money quote: ““I think a guy like [Kemp] complements every lineup,” Mattingly said. “You’re always looking for guys who control the zone and work counts and give you some power.”

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    1. I love stories like this. Late bloomers who come out of nowhere to be productive MLB players is awesome when it happens. Hopefully Otto is the real deal. Would be great for entire org to have a low cost productive MLB bat.

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    2. Guys like Kemp (late bloomers) don’t come around often but when they do all they need is a chance and for someone to believe the production is real.

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    3. Mattingly in his description of Otto…is similar to what Dombrowski and Topper said in their end-of-season presser…team chased too much, which leads to higher K rates. Kemp will be given his chance…..though, he has to start hot at LHV for that to happen.

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25. Crawford looks like he has filled out a lot of his body looks thicker. Never was a doubt in my mind that he would fill out. His dad was thick too.

    https://x.com/milb_central/status/1857266754478555644

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    1. I’ve been saying for quite a while he is going to be the red light CF we’ve been missing for a long time…

       I don’t want to trade any of our prospects but if you made me choose between Crawford and Miller I would trade Miller.

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       1. keep both then, trust the org/development if they are real deal right

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26. Some good discussion, not sure which way DD will go this year.. It’s not as obvious as in some years past. I will say, it is NICE to have options. Many times the solution has been to overpay in FA. Kemp, Crawford, Miller, Rincones, with Rojas already in the MLB.. is nice to have. I can’t even remember a time when a home grown prospect has potentially been able to be replaced by another home grown prospect … as a possibility (Bohm & Miller) Obviously you never know with prospects but .. this is the best example I can remember.

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27. I can only think of the closest home-grown replaced by home-grown…..close but no cigar-two year gap-Cesar and Bryson Stott.

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28. I mentioned last night that Bowden does not feel that the Phillies are in on Crochet. Could that be that Mattingly believes Painter, Miller and Crawford are going to arrive in Philly sooner rather than later? That came to mind for me.

    Here is a question for anyone who has knowledge of this kind of stuff. I have had Direct TV for many years. The reason is MLB Extra Innings. I am not sure if anyone else has it available. I pay around $160 a year. Best money I spend. I also had Sunday Ticket since its inception until last year when You Tube took it over. It got kind of pricey but the last several years they gave it to me for free. So yesterday I am at my son’s house taking care of the girls. Age 1 and 3. Usually here but one had already started a nap. He has one of those other options. Maybe Hulu. But we watched Disney movies. I know that what he has in regard to sports most are streamed the next day. He usually does not get live broadcasts. Are any of you guys hooked up with any of these other tv things? Just curious. The girls and I watched Wish! Had their attention.

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    1. Hoosier Don ………. I got sick of playing the escalation price game the cable companies play. So, I only have cable to support the internet. I had Direct TV, but abandoned them in the journey when they couldn’t support the fly🦅’s fly.

       So, I bought 2 Fire sticks for ea. TV (4 variations exist) for around $50. Subscribed to YouTube TV $77/mo. and receive Prime TV as part of my Amazon Prime pkg. $15/MO. It covers all my viewing requirements except when greedy MLB & NFL networks try to coerce you into streaming Peacock or alternative sites. I get all the Phillies/Eagles stuff with above mentioned exceptions.

       Does Seymour mean anything to you?

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       1. oldruff. I know I pay too much. But I am not into the streaming stuff. What happened with the fly birds fly? I keep Direct for the MLB Extra Inning package. I get almost every game that is played unless it is one of those on some weird package. For $160 I can afford to pay more for other. Not sure I could even go to one game for $160 now. I can watch them all. My wife likes some of the movie things.

          Seymour is a town in Southern Indiana. If you are talking about a place. Funny but one of my grandson’s teammates for several years lives in Seymour. I was really close with his grandfather but the last couple years his health has gone down greatly. I am not sure he would know me now. Both kids no longer are involved with the Bulls. This is a guess since it has been a few years, but I think about 80 miles from me.

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          1. With Direct TV, at the time, the Eagles games were under “blackout restrictions”.

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    2. Don, not 100%, but Im guessing im on the younger side of this group.

       I cut cable due to what I called variable pricing. Never the same bill. Always shenanigans. I went to Hulu. Hulu. $60. The only reason I do is to be able to watch Phillies & Flyers games. NFL is still technically free on broadcast tv. We also have the Disney subscription which is basically all Disney movies, Star Wars, Marvel, NatGeo… Disney owns a lot of stuff. We also have Netflix. I just got verizon Back after many years, and they discount all those extras. It’s annoying to me, but we basically “stream” live tv through Hulu, and what used to be a VCR/DVD player is now Netflix & Disney. I’ll probably cancel Netflix soon though. After i watch what i want to.

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       1. every year right before mlb season begins t mobile gives a free year of mlb tv out to customers. Last two years I’ve received it. You can use on the phone app or smart tv app. Just fyi.

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    3. Don, not 100%, but Im guessing im on the younger side of this group.

       I cut cable due to what I called variable pricing. Never the same bill. Always shenanigans. I went to Hulu. Hulu. $60. The only reason I do is to be able to watch Phillies & Flyers games. NFL is still technically free on broadcast tv. We also have the Disney subscription which is basically all Disney movies, Star Wars, Marvel, NatGeo… Disney owns a lot of stuff. We also have Netflix. I just got verizon Back after many years, and they discount all those extras. It’s annoying to me, but we basically “stream” live tv through Hulu, and what used to be a VCR/DVD player is now Netflix & Disney. I’ll probably cancel Netflix soon though. After i watch what i want to.

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    4. i just use whatever free streams i can find, i very very rarely can watch more then a few innings anyway with a 2 & 7 year old

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29. Jim, …………did you receive my email of 11/13/2024 11:26 am?

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    1. No, I did not.

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       1. Would you send me your mailing address to my email?

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          1. sent to xxx@ptd.net

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    2. i got the email. I can’t loan you my car.tuesday I go swimming

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       1. You told me that you can’t swim, ….. but that you float really well! I only need it for 6 hours!

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30. Griff McGarry’s final AFL stats: 12.0 IP | 8 H | 2 ER | 11 BB | 4 K | 3.75 ERA

    That’s not going to get it done folks. I would expect that he won’t be on the 40 man protected list, but as Jim noted above, I doubt that anyone takes him.

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    1. Griff has several problems. First, his command still hasn’t improved – that, alone, is a gating problem – I don’t see how he makes the big leagues walking batters as he does. Second, he lost about 3 MPH on his FB. When he was in high A ball, he was throwing 96-98, and touching higher. He was pretty electric. Now he’s like 94 or 95, occasionally touching 96. I don’t care if they keep him around, but he’s not much of a prospect anymore.

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    2. Griff will be 26 next June so probably time to get him to a new location anyway. At a certain point in an organization I think you hit a wall. Classic change of scenery narrative.

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31. Agree, ….. those walks …. not a good show.

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32. I get your blackout deal. For many years we were blacked out from the Indy 500. We are like 30 miles from the track. Believe even if sold out they did like 50 miles if I recall correctly.

    oldruff. What was the Seymour reference? Person or place?

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    1. Had service buddies 1 from Gary and can’t remember ….. Seymour or Arcadia, maybe.

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       1. Are you kidding? Gary is by Chicago. Seymour is south of Indy. Arcadia is about a mile from me. I do not think I have ever said Arcadia before. Maybe I have to Rocco when he asked how far I was from Louisville when he was at the track. You are too funny, but I do not know if you are serious or kidding.

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33. Seeing up now CBS has top 10 teams for Soto. Phillies are ranked at 4. All positives for Phillies other than the fact they have so many high contracts. Say he would be a perfect fit. Yankees, Mets, and O’s are top 3 spots.

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    1. Don…..here is the link for those who would like to read it

       https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/juan-soto-free-agency-ranking-top-10-teams-by-best-fit-for-superstar-slugger/

       IMO, the Blue Jays or Giants will present the highest offer, similar to Ohtani’s last year from the jays……Soto may have to sign with a NY team and leave Jays/Giant money on the table

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       1. Romus. Top 4 teams are in line with the article I saw last week that said Soto prefers to stay on the East Coast. No idea if true or not.

          Thanks for posting the link. I am aways afraid to do anything other than simply post. I do not want to have Don with like 30 numbers following it like someone I know or worse yet be assigned a new name like Newruff. That would be really bad. LOL

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          1. Understand…..word press can do some things that can boggle the mind.

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             1. Romus I don’t think Soto comes here. But if I remember right. Bobby Abreau played here. But had a condo in New York. Reddick for Sixers lived In New York when he played for sixers. The train is only I believe little over a hour

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                1. rocco….correct, even Wilt who grew up in Philly, lived in NYC when he was a Sixer. After he scored 100 pts in Hershey vs the Knick…..he rode home to NYC with a few of the Knicks players.

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34. Romus and Rocco. Appears players do not like to live in Philly. An hour is not bad for travel. I have always wondered how close to the facilities do most of the Philly players live. I would not think after late night games it would be too exciting to have a long trip home. I know most of the Indy players live in the southern part of Hamilton County. My county. They might have maybe 15 minutes or so from the facilities.

    Couple other things. Does not appear many feels too many guys on the Spin the Wheel are getting off in Philly. Maybe Hoffman, Bregman, Treinen. Not much else support. Rocco. Cards are 3 for $10 on Amazon. Bargain.

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    1. Schmidt use to live in DELCO….a county adjacent to Philly proper…a mansion off the county reservoir. But many players live in southern NJ, they just cross the bridge over the Delaware River. Oddly of all four major pro sports teams…..many Canadian hockey players, more so than the other sport teams after retiring, stayed, in the Philly area in NJ.

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       1. Romus brings me back to when hockey players. Drank at Rexys.

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35. Guys. Sounds similar to Indy. Fieldhouse and Lucas are downtown but only takes 15 minutes at most to get to the upscale areas of Fishers, Carmel, Westfield or Zionsville. They are all just across the Marion County line. I grew up at Fishers and it sounds like lots of the guy’s kids are there now. When I taught at Carmel, we always lots of the players kids go through the schools. I am not sure I would be gung-ho taking a train ride after a late game, but some must think it is fine. So how far is Jersey from Philly?

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    1. Don……. you ask distance from Jersey to Philly or PA? As the crow flies, about 500 yards…as wide as the Delaware River I guess – which separates NJ from PA……or about 5 minutes crossing any of the six or seven bridges.

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36. Romus. I just wondered how far away the players lived in general. Sounds like most are fairly close. I hear T Mac and Kruk talk about driving over the bridge going home. No idea since you mentioned several bridges.

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37. Gentlemen, been a while. Hope all are well. Just popping in to say HI…

    My thoughts on the current state of Philsdom: Bohm is as good as gone. Not sure who DD acquires in his place but when the organization hasn’t been quick to shut those rumors down…you need a stable presence at the hot corner.

    We wonder how long their window of contention stays open. In my opinion it’s a matter of keeping it propped open until the inexpendable and inexpensive young talent emerges. I wouldn’t trade Miller or Painter. But Crochet is still gettable for anyone else in the top 10 (I like the cream of the farm, even if it’s not terribly deep). And we can’t assume either Wheeler or Nola haven’t peaked in their careers. Robert? Ehh…depends on what you had to give up.

    Would love to see Brent Rooker in red pinstripes. Let Marsh and Rojas (neither of whom have that much trade value) hold down a CF platoon until Crawford arrives.

    Nicky Castles is a redundant piece on this roster. When he’s on, love the bat, but find out if you can shed some salary.

    Trout? At this point, you can’t make sentimental, “market friendly” moves when so much of his salary should go elsewhere. Plus, it would be like Willie Mays with the Mets at career’s end when he would forever be remembered as a Giant – unless, that is, he won a ring with the Phillies.

    Peace and prosperity to all!

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    1. Not sure whether or not Bohm is gone. To me, he’s okay so long as they don’t extend him past this year.

       As for Trout agree that you can’t be sentimental, but the Willie Mays comparison just isn’t right. Mays was 41 and on a farewell tour when he went to the Mets, Trout is 32.

       I am less concerned about Trout’s injuries (although I AM concerned about them) than his declining performance when he was healthy. Very difficult decision if they decide they want Trout. Could be a great move or a disaster that ends up being a class DD overpay mistake that buries the team with another bad and inescapable contract. Who knows?

       It kind of drove me crazy this week when I criticized DD for stuff he’s not always good at and the response was basically “you’re crazy, he’s a HOF GM.” Well, excuse me, but I’ve seen the history too. And he does do some very good things at GM, but he’s also left some teams in horrible shape. The Tigers and Red Sox still haven’t recovered from the messes he left them. Now, that’s not all on DD, but a LOT of it is. So don’t tell me he’s a HOF GM – that doesn’t move the needle all the way for me.

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       1. Except he is a HOF GM with multiple WS wins with different organizations. Meanwhile, those complaining are not.

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          1. It’s like you’re making my point for me. HOF coaches and GMs get fired all the time for not doing their jobs well enough. And DD has been fired a ton and often deservedly so and way more than a typical HOF executive. He is a good GM who does some thing well but he has also screwed a lot of things up. He is NOT elite. And it doesn’t insulate him from criticism or make his decisions beyond reproach. No way.

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             1. Was he actually fired from each of Miami, Detroit and Boston?

                Nov 2001, Dombrowski left Florida to become the president of the Detroit Tigers…….Aug, 2015, Dombrowski was released by the Tigers…. was fired by the Sox Sep, 2019, just 10 months after winning the 2018 WS.

                Looks like Sox for sure he was fired.

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                1. people leave, get fired for many reasons. Whatever the reasons in DD’s case simply can’t dispute that he builds WS caliber teams when he gets there.

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    2. Mark8…welcome back.

       You make fair points. As for Trout……even playing those 30 games….his WAR is still outstanding. Health is the ultimate issue. IMO, I’d take the risk with him. Under more practical circumstances, many owners would move on from him and his contract in his age34 season and try to build for the future…unfortunately for him, he may end up ending his career without any WS hopes.

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38. There are indications Soto wants to play on the East Coast. So East Coast franchises with financial means would be derelict to not put in a bid. In the AL East, New York, Boston, Toronto and Baltimore have been linked to Soto. In the NL East, it’s New York, Washington and Philly. I think the 2 New York teams are candidates with the other teams acting as stalking horses, assuring that no competing team gets Soto “for cheap.”

    I think the Phils have no tough decision on Bohm until Miller is MLB-ready. Why weaken the position until then or bring in someone on a long term deal who would block Miller? After the NLDS, Bohm expressed confidence that he’d be back in Philly in 2025. Since he’ doesn’t exude confidence generally, I’m guessing that confidence stems from conversations he’s had with those in charge of his future.

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    1. What is Bohm’s trade value/return in a one-for-one deal?

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       1. I would think that Bohm has a really good trade value. He had a 3.4 fWAR (47th in MLB) last year as a 27 yo. He is still on a cheap deal and has team control until 2027. I saw on Twitter this proposed 3 team deal:
          – Seattle gets Bohm
          – Philly gets Crochet
          – CWS get prospects from Seattle.

          Seattle has 5 prospects in the top 66 on MLB. Including Colt Emerson who is ranked 27 or Cole Young who is 38. Both seem like good comps to Miller. So if they would give up one of those two as the headliner then I think a deal could get done.

          So imagine an offseason like this:
          – Trade Bohm for Crochet
          – sign Bregman
          – trade Ranger for Devin Williams.

          That would be huge shakeup and we would keep all of our top prospects.

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          1. I like that plan.

             Hope Dave D and Sam Fuld read twitter.

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          2. I like the idea of keeping all of our prospects 🙂

             Though I see OF production as more of a problem/need than I do 3B or starting pitching.

             Not a big Devin Williams fan he tends to shrink in big moments where as Ranger is just money in big games.

             Bohm/Bregman were 117+ and 118+ players not sure how swapping those two out moves any needles.

             Where as Profar and Santander were both 134+ players

             Casty and Marsh were 106+ and 109+. Now I don’t know if Nick is moveable and Marsh’s value is probably low so I’d just slide him to CF to platoon with Rojas until Crawford comes ready.

             I don’t know what the answer is…

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39. Don….you must be thrilled with the undefeated football Hoosiers…going against Buckeyes this week……also rewarded first-year coach Curt Cignetti with an 8-yr/$8M AAV contract, along with an annual $1M retention bonus. Hope they beat the Buckeyes in the Horse Shoe.

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    1. ……. if it doesn’t work out with the “new” coach don’t come crying to me that you want Tom Allen back, ok ……. we can work out a deal …….. trust me on this …… no shenanigans …… I promise!🤪

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       1. Allen is ok doing what he is doing. He was overmatched as the HC.

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    2. Hi Romus and oldruff and Rocco. IU is pretty good. I had them at 10-2 for the season. Cignetti has IU people fired up like Knight did in the 70s. It will be interesting to see if he can keep the train rolling. He brought in 13 JMU kids who pretty much set this team on course. They are really good on both sides of the ball.

       I did not get on yesterday. Wife and I worked in our attic. 30 years of stuff. We found so many things I had no idea I had. Baseball cards from 30 years or so ago. Found a Bo Jackson. Not any back to the 50s or 60s. I told her I do not think I ever went back and got them. Films of my high school games in the late 60s. Things from Babe Ruth and Legion days.

       This has been a really difficult week here. My old high school had the current principal pass away last Tuesday unexpectedly. Only 48. I had known him since he was a kid. He student taught in my building at Carmel back in the day. Plus, when my 70 undefeated football team was put in the schools HOF last month I spoke with him for several minutes.

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       1. So you found your baseball cards ……. forgot where you hid them, huh? I bet your wife bailed you out again, didn’t she?

          Sorry about you losing your friend ……. tough thing about getting old is losing the really good friends that you accumulated over the years.

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          1. No. These were ones my son had when he was little. No idea on mine. Principal was only 48. Couple years older than my oldest. Just sad deal.

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40. Romus left church. I was wondering ,when you lived in Arizona, did you do that 40 days and nights without food or water?

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    1. rocco……hah, can’t say I did, but do get tempted.

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    2. Didn’t Romus replace Virgil after he was shot. Pretty sure it was Doc, Wyatt & Romus at the OK Corral.

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41. Trade timing. The international signing pool replenishes on December 15. The Dodgers best chance of signing Sasaki occurs then. Would the Dodgers be in on Crochet in the meantime? How likely would Dodger interest be if they signed Sasaki first?

    Based on Boras clients history, how likely would Bregman be leaving Houston before hearing a last, best offer?

    I don’t think Bohm is leaving this off-season, in part because I think the Bregman option for the Phils will break, if at all, very late

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42. Thought I read somewhere that Sasaki is going to wait until after Jan 15 when all team’s international $ is replenished. Otherwise he is limited to whatever team has money left. He is not going to get a Yamamoto fortune but at least he should expect 3-5 million ?

    On any other timing – with Boras in charge of Soto signing that could come in March ? or whenever…..holding up the entire free agent market like Boras always does. That said, I think the pitchers will sign earlier in order to not repeat what happened to Snell and Montgomery. That’s going to make for some difficult money allocations if Soto doesn’t sign until late. Yankees and Mets are going to have to try and fill pitching holes before they know if they got Soto.

    This might work to DD’s advantage since he can move earlier assuming he is not in on Soto (not likely). In fact though – Boras could freeze the whole market again and nothing happens until some of the pieces fall. That could even bleed into the trades market.

    Liked v1’s 3 way trade proposal via twitter above – but that is also going to make for some complicated negotiations if the free agent market is frozen.

    Although if Crochet moves early it will break the whole pitching logjam.

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    1. RU…I think you hit on one of the most intriguing and concerning points in this free agency period…Scott Boras’ reluctance to quickly advance any negotiations and the subsequent signings. This ploy of his has seen some mixed results in the past…..one negative as you mention, players having to wait until June to sign and for them some loss of money. I hope Soto does not drag out the process, and signs with the team he wants early. If there is one thing MLB can do in the mext CBA negotiations with MLBPA…..have a red-line date set up, eg March 1st , for all QO free agent signings.

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43. Andrew Painter won AFL’s Pitcher of the Year award. He made 6 starts, pitched approx. 16 innings, K’d-18, while only allowing 4 runs.

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    1. Nice post Romus.

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44. sounds like the Phillies will be trading for a closer, I’ve seen:

    Hesley (stl) Williams (mil) and Doval

    Will see, but seems like that is what will happen on that end & sign Hoffman

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45. I think trading for a closer is a good possibility. Doval is awfully good but absolutely crashed and burned this past season. He was so bad he was sent down. Phillies could view him as a reclamation project – albeit, not a pitcher who is completely lost – his walk rate exploded as he must have lost the touch on his slider, etc. Helsley could be terribly expensive from a prospect standpoint – and should command top $$ when he is a free agent end of ’25.

    v1 had a trade, see above, trading Ranger for Devon Williams which makes alot of sense in that both are on their walk year. Brewers are loaded with good relievers and can afford to trade Williams – and they need starting pitching.

    Question is – which Ranger are you trading ? The first half pitcher who was arguably the best in baseball or the oft injured slab artist of the second half ?

    What would you expect to get for him ? Who do you want ?

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46. What about a trade of Bohm to the Brewers for Williams and Yelich? Minor league players would need to move on both sides to make value work for Phillies. Yelich is a good candidate for leadoff.

    Trade Castellanos to Tigers seems to make sense or some team like that. I agree Marsh can go.

    Sign Santander. Great fit for cleanup. It would be great to see Schwarber in 5th spot. His ops is actually best at cleanup if I remember correctly like Bryce is best in the 3 hole. But BH and Schwarber need to be broke up.

    I don’t remember anybody suggesting Turner to 3b. It would seem that is something he could do. Still have Stott and Sosa for ss.

    Trade to Brewers would be so much in favor of Phil’s that could probably use value from Brewers minors players to go get Crochet without hurting Phil’s prospect depth too much.

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47. Everyone has sort of figured out these Crochet trades in their heads but the problem is that the White Sox want a massive haul for Crochet. Listen, if you could get Crochet and the give up is Bohm, you almost have to do that trade, but I think it’s going to take a lot more than that, even if it’s a three-way trade.

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    1. Sure they do. And they will get a massive haul. But if it is a prospect laden package, it always starts with a headliner. Usually a top 30 prospect. And includes at least 1 other top 100 prospect, but maybe 2 others. And then some other high upside lottery tickets. If that was an only Phillies prospect haul, that would look like:

       • Aidan Miller (26)
       • Crawford (53)
       • Caba (81) or Tait
       • plus two others.

       That said, Bohm would certainly also command a great prospect package. 28yo with 2 years of team control and a 3.5fWAR do not get traded very often. That is a win-now player at the beginning of his prime years. That would definitely get a big prospect haul too. I am not saying that including Bohm in a trade for Crochet would mean zero Phillies prospects, but it certainly would reduce the prospect capital that we had to give up and would take Miller and likely Crawford off the table.

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       1. Though GM of WSox has said he does not want prospects more than MLB players…so Bohm and/or Marsh would have to go, to be included, headed for the Southside

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          1. Bohm and Marsh feels like too much for Crochet imo.

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             1. Yes it is…..if Dave D decided to ever do that, he would probably need to get Robert back in the trade ….but then of course, the Phillies would need to add a pitcher to the mix. Nevertheless, I doubt any of this happens.

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                1. I think that it is highly probable that Crochet gets moved and I think that the Phillies (I.e. DD) want him badly. So I think that there is a deal cooking. The open question imo is is the package all prospects or do we trade Bohm or Marsh to lesson the prospect haul?

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                2. I believe that the rumors of Crochet to the Phillies by the media may die down. The Phillies have withdrawn from the hunt (for now?). The Sox want a prospect the Phillies deem untouchable. (So, there is someone other than Painter who is considered in that way! I was unsure of that.). I think I am relieved.

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                3. No idea. But I think the Phillies really want Crochet. Agree with v1 the package needs to be good. There are plenty of others who would like him as well. I keep seeing the Mets mentioned with him. Not sure what they can offer in return.

                   v1. What about Bohm and Rojas?

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                4. My guess is that what the ChiSox want from the Phillies for Crochet is so excessive it would make your head spin, even if it’s a 3-way trade.

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                5. Good intel Jim. I wonder if Crawford has shown so much that they deem him untradeable or if if only Painter and Miller are off limits. I really like Crawford’s trajectory. As mentioned, he has really filled out and still has room to add. He could end up being a real difference maker. A shame that Abel has really lost much of his prospect status.

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48. I’m a little weary of trading Bohm to the brewers. I think it might strengthen them too much. Especially if you trade them Ranger to get Williams. Bohm in their lineup would replace Ortiz. I don’t like it for a playoff matchup. I’d rather trade Bohm to SF or Seattle, but I get it. If Bohm gets you Crochet, I take the gamble. Ceiling is too high to extend the playoff window. If Bergman, Arenado aren’t the answer…. I’m okay with Sosa & Clemens taking his place until Miller is ready.

    i will say, it’s a tough call…the clear choice on trading Bohm is not super obvious – if he stays the player he is now… definitely trade. If he swaps 10 or more of those doubles for hrs… that’s not a great move for the lineup. He’s one of the few with timely hitting/contact. I do think he becomes a 20-25 hr player. 30? That’s his ceiling.

    you gotta ask is it better to hold onto Bohm & miller to put turner in the OF or 2B. Stott is a GG 2B but his bat this year was problematic. I expect him to bounce back, but No guarantee there either. Trading Bohm and having an unproductive Stott is not ideal. Unless Stott eventually becomes the “Rojas” of the lineup

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49. It’s Hot Stove season and the burgeoning social media world turns up the heat. As far as I can tell, Jeff Passan is the source of the rumor that Bohm is on the trade block and others now run with it. The Phils have no replacement for Bohm internally at present but they might, (Miller) in a year or a year-and-a-half. Dombrowski might benefit from knowing where future interest in Bohm might originate. But you can’t replace something with nothing, particularly for a team in ‘win now’ mode.

    On this last point,the Phils have 4 solid starters in their rotation. That could change through a trade or free agency but they can’t trade Suarez for a reliever without a plan to replace him. Painter can’t be written in to start the season and Taijuan Walker requires no belaboring.

    I think DD reviews the 2024 season and concludes that no team has too much starting pitching depth. Given luxury tax considerations, the Phils can’t spend heavily to replace a cost-controlled Suarez.

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50. It was Feisand the other day on Hot Stove that brought up Bohm and Casty possibly being on the way out if the right players are gotten in return.

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    1. A top of commentators have cover from Passan. I suppose anybody could be on the way out for the right return.

       Bohm was an All Star this year. Dombrowski is too smart than to replace that with nothing. Bohm and Castellanos are integral to the right-handed hitting core of the lineup, which needs bolstering. Hays didn’t do it.

       Castellanos shouldn’t be untouchable but probably is unmarketable in the off-season. Better options are out there in free agency and Castellanos may be viewed by the academy as merely a DH going forward. Hard to picture him moving now without a bad contract coming back. Maybe by the trade deadline, an injury on a contending team opens a slot for Castellanos with less than 1 1/2 years left then on his burdensome contract.

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51. i don’t like the idea of spending much or trading much on closer.. yet

    really need like 2 different closers throughout the year as going into postseason these dudes need to be fresh… 99/98 wasn’t fast enough was it? gonna go power for power better get Dat DUDE if going down that route… what’s the cost on Miller…. Bryce chatted him up no Closer needs to be poop your pants scary if you are going to spend

    hoffman/estevez aren’t poop your pants scary.. alverado was for a bit.. always felt like dude was going to kill somebody out there

    def like any of those bohm to mariners and their prospects to CWS… gold if they can do it, i’d smile this christmas with that present

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    1. I dont’ want to rag on him, but if his attitude is as bad as they make it out to be, he’s a great fit for Seattle… the weather will match his mood. I’m not sure how bad it reallly is, as the National media made it seem like Roberts was a clubhouse problem, and Jim has said thats not generally the case.

       Miller is likely to cost you painter or everybody but painter. He’s going to bring back a haul if traded.

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       1. i’m not sure if it was a clubhouse problem but the lil hottie he was minxing around with early summer certainly got his attention a bit more then baseball i feel and smitten mitten imo snuck in on him

          the bigger issue is his lack of tapping into power after numerous seasons now, if it’s there somebody else can find it.. dudes too big and can make contact too easily to not figure out how to drive it better.. something upstairs the writing on the wall says… bwar fwar mean nothing if his marbles are jostled which i feel any wise owner would read into this “change of scenery” manuevuer to show big change going into 25

          yeah pass on miller for painter even if both turned into HOF level players you take the bulk innings.. Mariano Rivera or Nolan Ryan? easy pick.. in no way am i saying that is the outcome but a closer isn’t as valuable even when he is the most valuable but that is why if and if you go hard you go all the way for that role otherwise just keep tossing the hot hand with moxy i suppose… anybody tossing away their closer knows why and we don’t want to find out.. i’m not sold that just bringing up a flamer from AAA or somebody you stash away who teams have less at bats on or film is a better play statistaclly/data yadda yadda.. especially and i can’t believe they didn’t do it in 23 or whenever they didn’t utilize sanchez is to toss a really nice changeup fb pitcher out as the closer and the hell with the breaking balls.. sanchez really would have 1/2’d with a straight flame thrower as his changeup is that level.. and is why nobody is talking about him going anywhere.. they blew it with no utilizing him in that postseason properly if at all

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52.  “I believe that the rumors of Crochet to the Phillies by the media may die down. The Phillies have withdrawn from the hunt (for now?). The Sox want a prospect the Phillies deem untouchable. (So, there is someone other than Painter who is considered in that way! I was unsure of that.). I think I am relieved.”

    This is a very interesting observation, Jim. The Phils have said that Aidan Miller is their best position prospect since Mike Schmidt. Isn’t that tantamount to declaring him off limits in a trade?

    I think this also scotches any thought of a Bohm to the White Sox move. If the ChiSox would consider trading 2 years of Crochet for 2 years of Bohn, then a deal wouldn’t founder on the availability/unavailability of any one Philly prospect. I think the takeaway is years of team control, more than Bohm would offer in a trade.

    Another takeaway, the Phils, not surprisingly, are looking for more starting pitching.

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53. i hope the reports of 10 deal for Bergman are false. No way I give him that.

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    1. Agreed. All we need is another crappy DD deal that is far too long for a good but declining player. I don’t even want a 5 or 6 year deal for this guy.

       To me, this is DD’s big offseason. Are we going to get something interesting and creative or are we going to get this year’s version of the Walker or Castellanos contracts? Hopefully the former.

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    2. He’ll be signing a 1 year deal in the spring and looking for a new agent if those are his demands. If he’s using Machado as a comp Machado was much better at the time (and younger) when he renegotiated.

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    3. rocco……since he is post-30 next year…..I think Dombrowski will offer to him 5 years plus a club option on the 6th…..it is the AAV that the Phillies have no qualms about inflating.

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       1. romus I would do 5 with club option. If we pick up 6 th yr. He gets a million more some kind of incentive

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54. def not, only long term deals they can afford to do atm without risking future possible windows would be for players under 28. talking deals of 8+ years… they sign another 30 yr old to a 8 or 10 year deal it’s going to have bad consequences for future roster construction

    another reason if they feel 50% of their top 20 can produce at WAR 0 level they have to weigh moving from any of them.. that cheap production from the farm is what they have been working on since hell idk when now… 2016? 8-9 years now.. gotta eat some fruit from your own trees

    also though he is still good, his eye popping number seasons came from the bang the drum era.. PASSSSSSSSS

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55. After Painter crushed the AFL… how high is his Top 100 prospect stock going to rise? Gotta be in the top 10 again imo.

    With Kemp & Ricones performances, where do you see the Phillies Farm system being ranked? Mid season rerank had them at #16, preseason was 22. 4 players ranked in the top 100. I’m thinking #13.. maybe as high as 11. Breaking the top 10 would be nice but I don’t see it.

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    1. Should he be in the top 10? Definitely. But these rankings usually move pretty slowly so my guess is that he ends up somewhere between 15 and 25, which of course is almost entirely irrelevant.

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    2. I would be surprised if there is a minor league pitcher ranked higher than Painter. Elite stuff with elite command.

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56. MLB did a great job on bringing baseball into the 21st century with the “Story” game recap…

    Now, they gotta fix this terrible offseason flow. It is just booooooring. It drags out waaaaay too long. Here is my solution. Each FA gets assigned a tier. For ex, Soto is tier 1. Whoever is expected to set the market needs to sign by X date, by 6 weeks so the rest of the FA class can sign. There should be incentives, if the player agrees, they get a bump in retirement pay, to make up the difference they want… the team you sign with gets to keep the QA, more international money…. Something. If you the players & team don’t agree. You get QA’d by the previous team. Maybe the player gets a % of the revenue sharing… something to get the ball rolling. It rewards the top players, gets the other FA to maximize their deals, and allows for FO some clarity in roster construction.

    The players probably never go for it… but there should be no reason to drag out negotiations to damn near ST.

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    1. “It is just so boooooring. It drags out way waaaaay too long”……let me guess, Gen Y Millennial?….you are caught up living in a microwave Tik-Tok world…..as Confucius say……Oxen is slow, but world is patient.

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       1. Romus. Gen X baby! Im trying to keep the game alive for those darn Millenials and after. I have a 5 year old… before 2022 playoff run, I had to listen to 2 people in my household tell me how boring baseball is. The teen still doesn’t like it. Just looking at it from other perspectives. I’ll take it, but non baseball fans are going to be harder to convert/grow the game in today’s world. Baseball has to evolve. Think of it like … a pitch clock for the offseason 🙂

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          1. Tac….understand. The game is slow, even when sped up in ways by the commissioner. But what does save baseball is Mother Nature…..it is played in the long hot laid back summer, and for the most part without any other pro sport competing for an audience…unless you like MLS. So people want to enjoy and lay back with a beer and a dog and take in the air and smells of a ballpark. Even families enjoy the ambience at the ballpark. sure teens will get bored….but baseball has a way of growing old with a person and over time they come to just like the escape.

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             1. I’ll play devil’s advocate. The NBA and NHL regular seasons end in mid-April and their playoffs extend into June. The NBA draft is in May and the NHL draft is in June. NFL camps start as early as mid-July with pre-season games in August. Each sport has their own network. ESPN covers all sports (and a more than a few non-sports, tag league?). Rarely do the ESPN shows I watch like Sports Center and especially ATH and PTI lead with baseball during the summer. ESPN offers NBA and NFL specific shows. I haven’t even touched on college football and basketball.

                Based on the year-round coverage of the NFL, I personally consider football the national past time.

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                1. I hate to hear it Jim, but it’s true. That said, I think baseball can regain some lost ground. Another step in that direction is regaining some form of FA season. FA opened on 11/4, so far …. Squat. If it was the NFL, the entire FA field would have signed by now. MLB needs to figure it out. Another issue is having what was a modern day Babe Ruth playing … and he hasn’t been seen in the playoffs since his rookie season. Imagine New England with Tom Brady not making the playoffs … or Aaron Rodgers? Heck .. even Marino made the playoffs… Trout… can’t even sniff them. Obviously selfish on my part, but the MLB needs him somewhere else. They ought to rip him out of Art’s controll and tell him to pound sand.

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57. See now that MLB Trade Rumors Mark Polishuk. Says Heyman stated today that the Phillies are going to meet with Soto. No date is set. So, take it for what it is worth. Harper and Turner are mentioned.

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    1. Don – the takeaway to me is this.

       Middleton is willing to pay Soto, if he wants to be here. That said, he believes Soto wants to be in NYC. So he likely wants to hear it from Soto himself & not assume. From there, he is willing to help Soto increase his offers by being the stalking horse. The FO doesn’t want to fall into false hope when other options to improve their team pass by.

       Will see… Im sure it’s a pipedream but I bet JM & DD tell him the plans if he were to sign, this is our offer. If you want it, you need to tell us by X, if not we gotta move. Enjoy the piles of trash & feces on the street in NYC! You like sports cars? Cool, me too! I especially like them when I can shift past 2nd gear…

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       1. I’m thinking the contract is something like 12 years and $45 million per year with multiple opt outs.

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          1. Maybe like 11 opt out years.

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             1. Romus. Why so many opt outs? What does that accomplish? If Phillies can have either Trout or Soto. Which do you take? Trout for 6 years or Soto for ??? years?

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                1. Not Romus, …… Nada, I don’t want either. I don’t think either is a difference maker for the short term, but surely a hinderance for the long term.

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                2. Don….I guess I want Trout. He wants a ring bad.

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          2. Im going to say 50mil, over 12 yrs for 600mil.

             I could see 45mil, because it’s higher than Judge on the Yankees. That’s what the Players association wants.. but … The Mets Cohen will offer more than he did for Verlander & Scherzer, imo for Soto. Thats puts him at 50mil for me.

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             1. Assume if Mets sign Soto , then Yankees make their play for Alonso since Rizzo has been bought out for $6M.

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                1. thats a good counter move for the Yankees. Alonso is and upgrade over Rizzo… however .. I really gotta believe the mindset for Soto is to play with Judge. Thats a pretty Iconic duo. Soto & Lindor doesnt have the same allure. To me it’s below Soto & Harper + Turner. What might tip the scales to Philly besides the money, is the talent coming paired with a Killer SR. Pretty hard to deny it.

                   JM & DD should tell Soto to bring his bat to CBP… have Wheeler, Nola, Suarez, Sanchez & Painter mow him down. Let him know his stats will suffer with the Mets. It’s the Phillies or Yankees,… no Mutts!

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58. All I keep thinking about is how awesome Juan Soto is going to look representing the Phillies in two years at the All Star Game. No way is he going to be representing the Mets in our stadium.

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    1. Just seeing that Cohen is willing to go 50M higher than any other team. But JM wants to be the ‘stalking horse” in this. Who knows what will happen.

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       1. I find it interesting that you would break all the luxury limits “for the right player,” and that you’re willing to be the “stalking horse” on a guy you darn well know is going to be a $600M guy.

          I’m not fooled. Middleton is very much a threat to sign Soto.

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59. oldruff. Did you see my reply on the baseball cards? Not my old ones. These are ones I got for my son in the 80s. Cecil Fielder, Craig Biggio. Those kinds of guys. Lots of good players but not those from the 50s and 60s.

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    1. Too bad, I was hoping they were the vintage ones.😒

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       1. Hoosier Don’s wife has the vintage ones. Remember we explained why they were missing.

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          1. 😁😅🤣

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             1. No. Do not believe she was ever in the room where I had the cards. Just dumb on my part not to get them. Who would have known.

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60. i hope the soto meeting is Harp/Trea/Wheels/Nola/Dave/John/Soto sitting around the bank planning out the next 7 years and how with their pitching and commitment to winning they should easily comptete for a ring every year

    nola’s chillin with wheels atm.. keep the tide that binds and build if you are going to do it right.. cut the fat//bohm.. maybe marsh/stott even…. tho so cheap and still upside potential so more bohm/marsh.. messed that o’hope deal up but logjam, take the L

    try it out, money should be the non factor in the deal really, the desire is the deal, same with trout if that has any legs

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    1. ‘sitting around the bank:….do you mean the ballpark or Wells Fargo/Chase Manhattan/TD?

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       1. Just seeing in Sporting News article that Long may be a big factor with Soto. So, add one more to list of those in meeting.

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          1. ah, yeah forgot about long…and by bank.. up to them but i’d pick the ballpark

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61. Phillies add 3 to the 40-man roster – Mick Abel and Moises Chace as expected plus Jean Cabrera.

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    1. I’ve been a Cabrera fan and think he’ll end up at CBP. It will be very interesting to see if a bad team takes a flier on McGarry or Castellanos.

       We’re going to have a very different AAA roster next season

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    2. I’ve been a Cabrera fan and think he’ll end up at CBP. It will be very interesting to see if a bad team takes a flier on McGarry or Castellanos.

       We’re going to have a very different AAA roster next season

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62. That will be fun, I think. Seems to be quite the turnover in people. I don’t know if it’s true, but also seems quite a bit younger, yet still with plenty of talent.

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63. To Tac3’s point above – I find it interesting that the Phillies would meet with Soto – knowing what he will cost – whether they are the stalker, or for that matter Scot Boras asked them to, “at least show up, you owe it to Bryce…”He is almost the perfect answer to this lineup, though.

    Soto for what its worth is friends with Turner, Harper, Schwarber, and Kevin Long who was his main mentor as a “kid.” How can he deny that the Phillies may have a team of wild swingers but the SR pitching is absolutely championship caliber. I know we have been taught on this site that free agents always take the most money period. Always. But connecting the dots its not altogether crazy to think Soto could see himself with his former Phillies teammates – knowing the franchise is hell bent to win. Depending upon whether he is a student of baseball or not – after Judge and Cole, the Yankees are not a good team (which we all witnessed) – and their ability to win multiple championships is far from clear – perhaps he saw that this year ? The Mets, despite their pile of cash, have Lindor and Vientos, yet they have to buy the rest of the team this winter – who is he really joining and who are his teammates ? And they have no pitching to speak of – right now. Are they even the best team in the East ?

    The Dodgers? Giants – stop ? Toronto ? The Dodgers need to sign more pitching and a shortstop. Plus they will likely get Sasaki if Padres don’t. The other two are hardly baseball’s elite teams.

    60 million, 50 million, 45 million ? depending upon the home team and that state’s tax structure the money could be closer than one thinks. Soto might say 50 million is fine – or acceptable given the team that surrounds him ? Just sayin’…..its not all that far-fetched.

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    1. Lots of things today with Phillies and Soto at least meeting. Even though it is said Cohen will top any team by lots of millions maybe he does not take the top offer. Word was Phillies offered more last year for Yamamoto. Just have to wait and let things play out.

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       1. Not to beat a stalking horse, but I wonder how close to Soto is to getting married. Could play a bigger factor than we realize. Again, NYC is not for eveybody, but if JM & DD believe Soto prefers NYC, he is probably there. To be biased…obviously 45-50 mil buys a lot… you could have your friends, good schools, great team… and still have a place in NYC when you want to live the best parts of the city. Will see…

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    2. The Phillies have to play the game which is to drive up the price especially for the Mets…

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64. Anyone else surprised the Phils did not protect Eiberson Castellano on their 40- man roster, even as they made room to pick up a prospect in the Rule 5? He seems to be the kind of flamethrower Dombrowski would like to see develop. That they didn’t protect McGarry didn’t surprise me. This was his year and his performance in Arizona didn’t redeem it.

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    1. I was very surprised. He’s the type of player that a team like the Pirates or the Rockies will take a flyer on. I think he’s gone.

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    2. I also thought that Castellano would have been even higher priority than Cabrera.

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    3. Yes, that was a mistake imo. agreed that he seems like a perfect RP option. they can still trade him before the rule 5 though.

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    4. Very….

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       1. Not sure how they think its a good idea to leave a 23 y/o pitcher that pitched 2 levels for them A+ and AA with 103 IP 1.138 WHIP 11.2K/9 and a 2.8/9 BB rate unprotected.

          I guess we’ll see what happens but looking at the current roster do we really need Buddy Kennedy and Cal Stevenson when you have Clemons?

          Do you really need Rangel Sweet and Phillips? And then the elephant in the room Walker…

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65. I’m not sure what’s more crazy. That the Red Sox gave a soon to be 32 year old Nick Pivetta a QO coming off a 1.8 WAR season or that Pivetta declined it because there is supposedly a 3 year deal waiting for him by some unknown team.

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    1. Agree……I would have thought Nick would have taken the QO to prove himself in 2025, for a 2026 free agent market. Looks like the Sox could come out of it with a comp pick in the 2025 draft.

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    2. There is a lot of value in guys who can pitch 150 innings with decent results. He’s been healthy for 4 straight seasons with consistent overall numbers.

       He will get a 3 or 4 year deal similar to what Walker signed with Philly.

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       1. Pivetta is a 4/5 pitcher who’s turning 32. It really wouldn’t take much of a decline for him to become a non-viable starter. And you want to give him a likely 3/45 deal?

          At least when Walker signed with the Phillies, he was 30.

          Has pitching increased this much where 4/5 starters are getting $15M+ per year?

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          1. Even if Pivetta gets 3/$18 that’s $54 and still better than $20. From his POV anyway I guess you bet on that…

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             1. The question isn’t why Pivetta turned down the QO. The question is why a team would be willing to give him a 3 year deal at age 32.

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          2. I don’t want to give him any deal, I’m stating what I suspect he will get. Let’s see what happens.

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66. I am not a subscriber to this site, but I thought the tweet was compelling

    https://x.com/JoeDoyleMiLB/status/1858915298528948700

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    1. exactly, can’t trade away the farm after spending 7-8 years to build it unless you are getting dawg’s and guys ready to eat lumber and spit nails at all costs to win

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67. Paul Skenes threw 133 innings (5.9 WAR) and won ROY.

    What’s the maximum innings for Andrew Painter? 120 innings?

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    1. One difference is Skenes is not coming off an injury. Crochet might be a better comp. Seemed like he was kept to around 5 innings in most cases. I know at the end they were not letting him go over 60 pitches till the last start. Believe that started at the trade deadline.

       So, if Painter is 120 innings divided by 5 equals 24 starts. Just a hypothetical but might be close.

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68. I watched him several times last year and only saw 1 outing which I would describe as a average ML effort. The others were uninspiring. Thought he was a head case while with us. Had him once, no need to go there again!

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    1. Pivetta.

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       1. Saw him a time or two for a few innings. He was ok. He was better than Long Gone. But most were better. I remember when he was sent to the BP he did not handle that well. Think he was brought in during a blowout and had to be replaced. I pass as well. I saw Flaherty mentioned with Philly yesterday.

          But most I see here is Soto, Trout, and Santander quite a bit. Crochet articles have kind of dropped off lately.

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69. If the Phillies are serious about being players in the asian market, then it needs to start now. Tomoyuki Sugano is 35 and more of a control pitcher, so I don’t think his cost should be that high. But him having some success in Philadelphia will go a long way in showing that Philly can be a destination for Asians. Yes, we all want Sasaki but it has to start somewhere.

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    1. Agree…….when it comes to the Japanese market, Phillies need to nibble at the margins first with players who may not be the current mega stars in Japan, and begin to establish some sort of rapport or relationship.

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70. I don’t understand the Bohm Stuff. He is already a good, proven and productive player. He is legitimately directly in his prime (Age 27-29) & has already proven to have take a leap forward last year. If he did not miss a couple weeks he would have comfortably led the NL in doubles & gets close to 70 XBH. There is still upside in his bat to take another leap, prob not super star type leap/ceiling at this point but no reason to believe he wont have better years over the these next two seasons then he did last season & grab another all-star appearance or two. And he’s fine at 3b at this point. About average which ended up being a nice development.

    I would be suprised if DD gives up his best prospects for a pitcher. He just invested major major dollars in Wheels, Nola & Sanchez on multi year deals. He has prob the best pitching prospect in baseball that is prob going to join rotation next year mid summer while they keep his innings down first half of year. DD can give a SP less than 10M one year deal this offseason if he wants depth in event we get an injury at TOR (Gibby, Morton type)

    DD should focus on getting an everyday OF bat w/ pop. That is the hole in our lineup.

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71. Rick – I think all the talk about moving Bohm obviously has to do with his psyche. He tends to sulk a lot but so does Harper when he is not doing well. If the team is going to move Bohm, it is now while he has two years remaining before free agency. Two years is so much better than one when it comes to dealing.

    In the case of Pivetta, I got to see him pitch a lot on NESN. When his breaking ball is working, he goes deep into games giving up very few runs or hits with a ton of strikeouts. When he’s not “on”, he gives up a bunch of homeruns and just loses all focus. How can we forget that game he came out of the bullpen against the Braves?

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72. It’s hard for me to take seriously articles suggesting Bohm is on the move since no one identifies a viable successor. It could be different in a year depending on the progress of Aidan Miller and the performance of Bohm and Stott. And Turner’s play at SS.

    I can’t think of a time in the modern era when the Phils traded off a player playing at an All Star level for a bag of magic beans and if Jim Thome was that counter-example, it was because Ryan Howard’s progress was being blocked. That’s not the case currently with Bohm.

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    1. Bohm is blocking Bregman.

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       1. Don…yes IUP is Indiana Univ of PA in western PA near Pittsburgh. I checked out his resume….he did relocate a bit. Now at age 63, Hoosiers may be his last stand, though if a SEC school comes calling in 2/3 years he could jump right into it.

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          1. He just reupped for 8 years and 72M. Doubt he is going anywhere in the near future. He is like Knight at the moment in Bloomington. Kind of walks on water. If they beat OSU may just float over the water. LOL He is a Pittsburgh guy. Article is a really good article. Both his wife and Saban asked him not to go to IUP. Said he took a 60% pay cut then and had 2 kids in college at the time.

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             1. Yeah forgot all about IU giving him that LTC…..have to see what he does after the transfer guys move on-he brought in the most in college football…almost 30 transfers……..he needs top recruiting classes to maintain top 25 football teams.

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          2. It will be interesting to see how they move forward. They were actually 3rd. Colorado and Ole Miss had more. That is the way to go now. But you have to hit on those guys. Have lots of big $$s donors. Mark Cuban could finance the entire athletic program.

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73. Maybe we are thinking about a Bohm deal wrong. Maybe the point of a Bohm deal is NOT to get back value in return. Rather it is to dump Walker and Castellanos. Why would they do that? Well, those three contracts are ~$46 mil next year, which is pretty close to the $50 mil AAV that Soto is projected to earn.

    Who would you rather have:
    1. Bohm + Castellanos & dead salary of Walker

    2. Edmundo Sosa + Soto and sign a guy like Gio Urshela to split reps with Sosa at 3rd until Miller is ready.

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    1. The issue with this is that Bohm is not good enough to offset the salaries of the other players. Bohm had a career high of 3 WAR at age 27. He’s in his prime but realistically, he’s not a 5 WAR player, unless he starts jacking HRs and/or starts becoming a wizard with the glove. Could it happen? The odds are not zero but I’m leaning towards no way. I would rather take a 32 year old Matt Chapman than a 28 year old Alec Bohm at 3B for 2025.

       Castellanos is a DH playing RF and even then, his oWar was only 2 so it’s not like he’s raking.

       I don’t see how anybody would be willing to take both Bohm and Casty and give anything decent.

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       1. We don’t want anything decent in return. We just want them to take Casty’s and Walker’s contract. Bohm is the salary dump.

          You aren’t getting Matt Chapman. He signed a 6 year deal with the Giants. You can overpay Bregman if you want a top 3B. Or you can trade for Bohm. There aren’t a lot of other options.

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          1. arenado could be an option with STL likely rebuilding. Ive seen his name floated around as a trade option

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             1. Arenado has a terrible contract. After the next 3 years he gets paid until 2041.

                https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/_/id/12643/nolan-arenado

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                1. Yeah that sounds pretty drastic thru 2041….but it really would only be chump change to John M….$2M annual then $3M annual until 2041. Have to assume by then the threshold will be around $300M. So you are looking at $52M over the next three years and the AAV is reduced each year.

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       2. Agreed – I just made the same point.

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    2. Very interesting point.

       People are also underselling Otto Kemp. He’s become a real prospect. The exit velocity on some of his hits are in the 115 MPH range – that’s Schwarber/Harper territory and he’s supposed to be a very good fielder. He also has good plate discipline.

       So you rid yourself of some big contracts and ride Sosa and Kemp for a year until Miller arrives. It’s not a bad plan at all if you use some of the saved money for other contracts.

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       1. Yeah, imo the only way that we get Soto is to dump those contracts.

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       2. Can also use Clemens as a platoon option at 3B. Churn through Sosa/Wilson/Kemp/Clemens until Miller is ready isn’t a horrible plan if they can upgrade OF.

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74. Well, if we sign Soto (< 2 % chance), then, yes, I would expect an effort to dump Castellanos, not later than at the trade deadline. Soto has no/no impact on Walker. I think he will be DFA’ed this spring simply because no one will take on his salary. Bohm has no impact on these other 2 because, as was pointed above, the good doesn’t override the bad in a package.

    Kemp has to break out mightily at AAA to get into the discussion. No one can say he’s more ML- ready than Miller. And Sosa? They pinch hit on occasion for Sosa in 2024 which tells you everything you need to know about how the Phils see Sosa as an every day, every situation player.

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    1. Neither Miller or Kemp are proven ML ready, so what is true for one is certainly true for the other.

       Agree with you on Sosa, personally nothing leaps out to me that says he should be given an opportunity to stick in an every day job.

       Interesting to see how 3B plays out this year though. Seems like there are opportunities to be had and options to exercise.

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       1. Kemp at 25 y/o is pretty much ready for a look see at the MLB level. Miller is 20 turning 21 next June. I can’t see him being ready before 2026-2027.

          What I like most about Kemp is a near 10% BB rate and as Catch points out he hits the ball very hard which is a great indicator for success. Where you play him defensively is another question.

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75. Romus you okay? I just heard Maragert Morgan got the job of event planner for Reading Phillies. I know you really wanted that job. Sorry

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    1. Yeah its a bummer……just have to move on.

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       1. Cheer up Bud ………. another gig will come a long! Hang tough 💪!

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    2. My aunt Maggie.

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76. Here is another name that could replace Bohm if we traded him….Yoán Moncada.

    DD has a special connection to Yoan. He is a FA and should be able to be gotten for cheap. Spotac projects his value at $1.5m AAV. https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/16234/yoan-moncada

    He’s 29 so entering his prime years. He is not special, but a platoon of Moncada and Sosa at 3B could be a good stop gap until Miller is ready. If Otto outperforms those guys, then great, but it would be crazy to bet heavily on Otto making the jump.

    So my offseason idea is:

    • Step 1: Use Bohm to get off the contract of Castellanos and Walker. That frees up ~ $46mil
    • Step 2: Give Soto a $50m AAV (note income taxes in PA are ~8% lower than in NY) for 12 years.

    Those two transactions would be tied together. I would only do step 1 if Soto agreed to join us.

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    1. Projection I saw yesterday was 12 and 610M. So, you are right on in numbers.

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    2. V1 …….. what if Otto proves to be “special” and Miller proves to be “ordinary” …… does Otto “have to leap tall buildings with a single bound” while Aidan being a high draft pick gets the benefit of the doubt. Just wanted your take on that, because it has happened to people I have known in the minors.

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       1. From my pov, I could care less who it is so long as we have a productive, controllable and preferably cheap 3B from that list then good by me.

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    3. Okay, I’ve mulled over this and, with all due respect, the Bohm trade makes no sense from the perspective of an acquirer. What you’re proposing is that another team pay $36 million per year, plus the cost of Bohm’s salary (so probably around $7 million, for a total of $43 million) for the right of having Alec Bohm, a merely above average player, on your team, plus an okay player in Castellanos (I’m not including the services of Walker because Walker is no longer a big league caliber player). Why would any team do that? They would be crazy to do that.

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       1. Respectfully disagree.

          1. Bohm was 47th in WAR last year. Only 25 players were 28yo or younger and had a WAR of 3.5 or more. He also is under control for 2 more years. Those type of players cost a lot to acquire. At least a top 50 prospect and maybe two top 100 prospects. There just are not a lot of guys like Bohm who get traded.
          2. Castellanos is a good DH. He would be a very productive player as a DH. His OPS would be the 11th best among last year’s DH’s. And he only has 2 years left on the contract.
          3. Walker could potentially be a bounce back candidate or get flipped somewhere else.

          If you are a team that wants to upgrade the offense, where are you getting a DH on a 2 year deal that had a .740 OPS and a 28yo All-star 3B thats on his arb contract? Doesn’t happen. I think that there will be interest if that’s the path that DD wants to pursue. but obviously I have no idea what is in DD’s mind. Just guessing.

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          1. I still disagree. You are not going to pay $43 or 44 million to give yourself about 3-4 WAR or so – that’s an overpay and Castellanos is a declining player. But this could still be done if you’re going to pay some of the contracts you’re moving – not sure exactly how much money it would take. But, by the way, if they can get someone to do what you suggest, I’m all for it and it’s worth exploring.

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             1. Castellanos had an oWAR of 2.0 and an OPS+ of 106 (81st in MLB). Bohm had a WAR of 3.0. So that is a combined 5 WAR for $46 mil. That’s a pretty fair value. Maybe a little heavy at $9.2mil per win, but not too bad. Maybe we pay Walker down a little.

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             2. Counter:

                Bohm & Walker for Woo

                Ranger & Castellanos (salary dump)

                Signs Soto

                play Sosa, Clemens, Kemp Weston until Miller & Crawford are ready

                Woo replaces Ranger, Soto replaced Castellanos, and we Miller or Kemp eventually replaces Bohm

                I don’t want to trade Ranger. The guy is a mind beast on the mound. He can handle the bright lights of the playoffs, but I don’t see how the Phillies can afford to resign him. Sanchez & Painter have to replace him.

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    4. Moncada is a switch -hitter, so a platoon may not be necessary.

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77. Romus and anyone else. I just tried to paste a link of an article. Got a little brave on my part. But did not work.

    Brad Wakai has an article on SI about Phillies trading Bohm for Bryan Woo of the Mariners. Woo is 24. Had a 2.89 ERA. Era + of 127. 22 starts.

    Also mentioned KC has checked in on Bohm.

    So, I copied link from article but when I came here to paste link, I did not get a paste option. What did I do wrong? Any help is appreciated.

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    1. Don Woo Who?

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       1. rocco….Woo

          FB: 60 Slidr: 50 CU: 50 Control: 50| Overall: 55

          After rehabbing from TJ, Woo wowed in his debut season with Seattle in 2022, becoming one of the most coveted trade targets in the organization. And it’s been the more progressive teams that are making those calls.  At Cal Poly, Woo sat at 95FB but touched 99 with ride. Woo only had 69 1/3 innings of college experience, then just 57 innings last year in’22 , but he was among the standouts in the AFL. I like the trade if it comes about.

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          1. Romus. Who is Rocco Woo? So, did Woo wow the competition? Where does 55 rating overall fall in your analytics?

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    2. control and v to paste

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       1. like this
          https://www.si.com/mlb/phillies/news/could-philadelphia-phillies-trade-their-all-star-to-seattle-mariners-for-future-ace

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78.  http://www.si.com/mlb/phillies as Could Philadelphia Phillies Trade Their All-Star to Seattle Mariners for Future Ace?.

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79. Thanks Jim.

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80. http://www.si.com/mlb/phillies as Phillies Predicted To Sign Top Available Relief Pitcher in MLB Free Agency.

    Think I have it figured out now.

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81. Here is one just posted.

    Roki Sasaki’s agent calls out ‘poor sportsmanship’ amid Dodgers rumors

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82. Woo shut down the Phillies when they played in Seattle. However, I think the Mariners need to give up more than just Woo to get Bohm.

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83. I really can’t believe that people on this site, for whom I really respect as it pertains to the Phillies, seriously suggest that the Phillies look to acquire the likes of Santander and Roberts. After what we’ve just watched the last 3 years?

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84. I’m closing this article. The new one is at

    Phillies Discussion 11/21/2024 and LISTS!!! | Phuture Phillies

    I’ll try and re-ignite some of the current discussions in the comments section.

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