The Phillies lost a potential landing spot for outfielder Ben Revere on Wednesday. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim were in search of a left-handed outfield bat and Revere was a long-rumored target. Kirk Nieuwenhuis, not exactly tearing the cover off the ball for the Mets this season, seemed to satisfy their need.
Todd Zolecki of MLB.com writes:
The Phillies and Angels had been talking about a Revere trade for some time, sources had told MLB.com. The Phillies wanted at least one Minor League player in return, but the sides could not reach an agreement.
The Angels are expected to continue looking for ways to boost their offense, so perhaps the Phillies and Angels will keep talking.
The Phillies have been trying to trade Revere because of an imminent logjam in the outfield. Cody Asche is learning to play left field at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Right fielder Domonic Brown also is in Triple-A. Both are expected to rejoin the Phillies at some point, which means other players will have to move.
Moving a player should be a top priority for the Phillies.
If the deal fell apart because the Phillies were asking for too much for Revere, shame on the Phillies. Revere does not have all that much value. While Revere is good for stealing bases – he has nine so far this season – Revere does not reach base enough to overly excite teams. With a $4.1 million salary, Revere is not totally cost prohibitive and at the same time is not all that inexpensive.
Despite the stash of left-handed hitting outfielders and the fact he is hitting .245, the Phillies do not seem inclined to let Grady Sizemore go, either. With Cody Asche batting .310 at AA A Lehigh Valley and capably playing left field, someone has to go. And, if the Phillies would like to see Domonic Brown again (batting .252 with no home runs an OPS of .608), a second player has to go.
