By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia Phillies have scratched RHP Jeremy Hellickson from his scheduled start against the Atlanta Braves Friday evening.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that while a trade hasn't happened yet, a combination of the Phillies speaking to teams on Hellickson and looming bad weather led to the decision to not risk him making another start:
Source: Hellickson NOT traded – yet. #Phillies scratched him due to active talks combined with wet/sloppy field. Didn’t want to take chance.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 28, 2017
Earlier in the day, Rosenthal reported that the Phillies did plan to start Jake Thompson if Hellickson was scratched, which appears to be what's happening. He also noted that a trade didn't seem to be close, but a lot can change quickly at this time of the year.
SB Nation's Chris Cotillo reported this afternoon that a Phillies source told him the expectation was that Hellickson would pitch tonight, despite there being just three days until the MLB's non-waiver trade deadline.
Hellickson, 30, would make sense for the Kansas City Royals, Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees, among other teams.
SportsTalkPhilly.com will have more as this story develops.
