The Phillies planned rebuild is still only marginally complete. As the Phillies publicly stated that they were better off without Ryan Howard on their roster, the honesty in the situation helped gain an ally in trading Howard: Howard himself. While Howard remains on the Phillies, the Phillies have tried to trade Howard all along, with the help of Howard himself.
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported this morning that three teams in particular were added because they were strong potential trade partners:
Howard's new nine-team approved list included at least three teams identified by the Phillies as possibilities — the Orioles, Royals and Rays. Howard originally was said to have had an NL-heavy list with teams like Cincinnati (who has Joey Votto at first base), but he changed the list to include all AL teams with seemingly more reason to acquire him because of the presence of the DH and possible needs.
The Royals, Orioles and Rays are believed to have had contact with the Phillies regarding Howard, yet all settled on other hitters with Kansas City signing Kendrys Morales, Baltimore bringing back Delmon Young and Tampa Bay adding John Jaso via trade.
Heyman also notes that Baltimore remains a possibility after the team lost Delmon Young and Nick Markakis from their offense, while Young was a carryover from last season and not a new addition.
Howard has had a pretty strong Spring Training thus far. Howard has gradually shown that his power has returned with three home runs, two doubles, and three RBI. After starting the Spring with four singles, Howard has regained his stroke and may be appealing to a team at designated hitter.
