More information leaking out today about the Phillies' dealings in and around the Winter Meetings in Nashville, Tennessee. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports that the Phillies targeted Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano. He also reveals that Domonic Brown came up in discussions.
The Phillies, interested in a right-handed batter to hit behind cleanup man Ryan Howard, talked to the Cubs about a swap of Domonic Brown for Alonso Soriano but may still be slightly more inclined to sign a free agent, such as Cody Ross or someone else.
This would explain why the Phillies might be interested in free agent outfielder Raul Ibañez, who could play some outfield and be a lefthanded bat to complement either Soriano or perhaps Darin Ruf.
Heyman also says that the Cubs would be willing to eat all but $10 million of Soriano's contract, making him rather low-risk. Another option named by Heyman is Cody Ross, former Phillies foe, but he may cost more dollars and more years. An inexpesive Soriano could be cut if necessary.
Despite this, it appears that the Phillies organization is split on how they feel about Soriano, namely for defense, Heyman's report says. That the Phillies are discussing Domonic Brown is also another interesting development. It could mean that they admit he may never live up to the hype that was acerbated by refusing to include Brown in a Roy Halladay trade.
