By Jake Finnerty
As the July 31 trade deadline nears, Phillies fans continue to wonder if it’d be worth it to trade.
Currently, the Phillies are sitting at a 54-49 record, which brings them to 6 1/2 games behind the Braves in the NL East and one game back for the second NL Wild Card spot. If the team continues at this rate, would it be worth it to trade multiple developing prospects or even young talent in the league for a short-term player?
When talking about the Phillies, one word seems to come up a lot in conversation: pitching. That one word says it all. Phillies are in need of depth in their bullpen, along with more strong starters.
As we near the deadline, rumors have surfaced that the Phillies are interested in potentially trading for Indians starter, Trevor Bauer, and Diamondbacks starter, Zach Greinke. Bauer has the rest of this season and all of next season on his contract, while Greinke has two more seasons left on his.
The question is: how much would you be willing to give for a one- or two-year pitcher? If it were to come down to it, would the Phillies give up some of their young talent or top prospects just for two pitchers? It just doesn’t seem to be worth it.
To acquire either Bauer or Greinke, you’d have to give up at least one of your top lineup players and multiple prospects, and also possibly cash. Giving up a good player on your starting roster and top developing talent will ruin your chances in the future for a championship. You acquire one or two solid starters, but what about your hitting or bench batting, or even the bullpen?
On top of that, you’d get a solid starter for a maximum two years and then there’s no guarantee he returns. You trade away your young players to chase a second Wild Card spot in 2019. There’s no guarantee you’ll even make it past the Wild Card round or even make the Wild Card. No trade involving your young talent or top prospects makes any sense to me.
Keep your young guys, let them develop, and use them to win a championship in the future. Do not try to trade for a rental pitcher who may only give you the chance at a Wild Card spot. Thinking to the future of the Phillies, a trade would make no sense for this season. Keeping the young guys and prospects gives you more time for growth and development into a championship team instead of trying to rush into it.
Come 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, we’ll see if the Phillies front office thinks it will be worth it to trade for one or two pitchers to add to the team.
