Phillies Trade Targets: American League

After leading the National League East for most of the first half, the Phillies find themselves in third place in the division. There are major holes that need to be filled as the team is still vying for a spot in the playoffs. With the issues of the roster well known, the Phillies will surely need to make a trade if they want to continue their quest for the playoffs. We have already given the trade targets the Phils could acquire from the National League. Now let’s go over trade targets in the American League.

Kansas City Royals

• Alex Gordon, Outfielder
  • Anthony Mazziotti: Gordon is hitting .276, his best batting average since 2012 when he hit .294. He’s a 35-year old, three-time all-star, six-time Gold Glove winner and World Series champion. The Phillies sure could use someone like him on the team, especially with Jay Bruce and Andrew McCutchen on the injured list, but I doubt he leaves Kansas City considering he spent his entire 13-year career there.
• Danny Duffy, Starting Pitcher, RHP
  • Greg Hall: I am still all-in on Duffy, who has not had the best results over the past few months. Duffy would be a great buy-low, left handed starter that would stabilize the back-end of the Phillies rotation. He can give you 6-7 innings of quality baseball on a regular basis.
• Jake Diekman, Relief Pitcher, LHP
  • Jon Jansen: Diekman could be a nice cheap LHP to add to the bullpen. Jose Alvarez has been used mostly as a lefty specialist to varying degrees of outcomes. The return of Diekman would be welcome and a small, but necessary, addition to a weak bullpen.
• Whit Merrifield, Outfielder
  • Greg Hall: The 30-year-old would give the Phillies a ton of speed, versatility and baseball IQ, but the asking price would absolutely be higher than what the team would want to pay for the OF/2B star.

Toronto Blue Jays

• • Marcus Stroman, Starting Pitcher, RHP
    • Anthony Mazziotti: Stroman has been on my Phillies wish list since the end of the 2017 offseason. A young arm under contract on a bad team? That sounds like trade bait all day long. The Phillies were recently in attendance at a Blue Jays game. I wouldn’t go trading Spencer Howard, Bryson Stott or Alec Bohm but I’d 100% be on the phone with Toronto to try to nab Stroman.

Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees had people watching RHP Marcus Stoman (6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 7 Ks) at the Stadium in the Bronx this afternoon @BlueJays @RedSox @Padres @Braves @Yankees

— bob elliott (@elliottbaseball) July 14, 2019

• Ken Giles, Relief Pitcher, RHP
  • Jon Jansen: Another former Phillies reliever that could return. Giles at the moment is injured, but looks to be back and healthy soon. Giles has been linked to some of the top teams in baseball, so the price tag may be a bit higher to acquire the former Phillie. With that being said, if the Phillies are going to make the playoffs this season, they need to add quality arms to the pen. Giles would be a very welcome addition.
• Justin Smoak, First Baseman
  • Anthony Mazziotti: I’m higher on Smoak than most. While there’s no exact fit on the team for a start, unless it’s a spot start at first for Rhys Hoskins, he won’t get much playing time and that’s perfectly fine. Smoak could be a powerful bat off the bench similar to what Matt Stairs was for the ’08 team. A true rental on a down-ish year, Smoak could be had for cheap. Worth kicking the tires in my opinion.
• Aaron Sanchez, Starting Pitcher, RHP
  • Greg Hall: Sanchez’s value has flatlined and the Blue Jays most likely missed their window to sell Sanchez for anything close to a decent return. High upside, right handed young arm; pinch me if you’ve heard that one before.

Detroit Tigers

• Nicholas Castellanos, Outfielder
  • Greg Hall: Mired in a “down year,” Castellanos has a track record of success on mediocre to bad Tigers teams. He still has plenty in the tank at only 27 years old and would be able to be the Phillies every day left fielder for years to come. If the Phillies are comfortable moving Andrew McCutchen to center field full time next season, Castellanos could be an amazing fit.
• Shane Greene, Relief Pitcher, RHP
  • Jon Jansen: There have been rumors linking the Phillies to Greene. Not just Greene, but also a trade where a team could acquire both Greene and Boyd in a package deal. If that is possible, the Phillies need to find a way to make it work. Both fill needs for the Phillies and could truly make the Phillies a complete team. A team that would be much more likely to compete in the National League.
• Matthew Boyd, LHP
  • Greg Hall: I may not be as high on Boyd as others, but I do realize that he would help the Phillies this season and beyond. He is prone to giving up home runs, something Phillies pitching already knows plenty about, but he misses bats, is still just 28, and is under team control for multiple seasons. He would not be my number one, two or three option, but Boyd is learning how to pitch at the Major League level and would arguably be the Phillies No. 2 starter right away.

Seattle Mariners

• Mike Leake, Starting Pitcher, RHP
  • Jon Jansen: It wouldn’t take much to get Leake in a trade, but this move wouldn’t help the Phillies much. Think there are other options out there that could potentially push the Phillies into playoff territory. Leake isn’t a good option.
• Domingo Santana, OF
  • Greg Hall: I’ve long loved Santana, back to his rookie season with the Milwaukee Brewers. I am under the belief that Santana is the exact fit for the Phillies offense as a plug and play option in left field. Now with Jay Bruce on the 10-day IL, we need to fill that hole quickly. He is easily capable of 30+ home runs and push for 90 RBI, especially in hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park. He does strikeout a ton and defense is a huge liability, but those issues are also extremely present with Bruce.
• Roenis Elias, RP
  • Greg Hall: the perfect compliment as a sweetener in any deal for Santana, Elias has his issues, but is under team control through 2021 and has converted 11 saves for the Mariners this season. The 30-year-old lefty has 43 strikeouts in 42 innings pitched and, maybe most importantly, is cheap. He’d be a good fit for almost any team in baseball.

Cleveland Indians

• Trevor Bauer, SP
  • Greg Hall: Bauer is a workhorse, a pitching nerd and someone who I think Philadelphia would fall in love with. He is signed through the end of the 2020 season and is coming off a Cy Young-caliber 2018 season. If it were the offseason coming into 2019, I would go all in for Bauer. Now? He’s pitching a ton of innings, putting a lot of stress on his body and admitted not too long ago that he was fatigued. No doubt he makes the Phillies a better team, but the price it would cost to acquire him scares me. I do not see enough return on investment in Bauer to mortgage 3-4 top-level prospects.

Chicago White Sox

• Alex Colome, Relief Pitcher, RHP
  • Jon Jansen: Colome is going to be a prized reliever on the market. Any team that is contending is going to be inquiring about Colome, who has been excellent this season. So while Colome would be a high quality arm to add to the pen, other teams may make offers that the Phillies are unable to.

Texas Rangers

• Shin Soo Choo, Outfielder
  • Jon Jansen: You can also add Hunter Pence here, but Choo may be the better option. Even with the addition of Jay Bruce, there is still room for another left-handed bat off the bench. Choo has also been good enough this season where he would most likely start over Bruce in left field.
• Shawn Kelley,Relief Pitcher,RHP
  • Jon Jansen: The Rangers are going to get plenty of calls in July as they hold enough quality pitchers for teams to inquire about. One of those pitchers will be Shawn Kelley. This season Kelley has a 3.00 ERA and has been solid since being traded away by the Washington Nationals last season. Like a potential package for Greene and Boyd, there could be a trade where Kelley is packaged with a starting pitcher
• Mike Minor, Starting Pitcher, LHP
  • Greg Hall: Simply put… go get him, Matt Klentak. He is cheap, under team control through 2020, a lefty and has pitched the Rangers to a winning record. I may be in the minority here, but I hold Minor in a higher regard than Boyd, Stroman and Duffy.
• Lance Lynn, SP
  • Jon Jansen: Of course Minor is the preferred starting pitcher, but if the Phillies are unable to get a deal done, Lynn could be a nice backup option. Lynn has posted pretty good numbers this season and would for sure be cheaper than Minor. If the Phillies were to get Lynn, expect a reliever from the Rangers to be thrown into the deal as well.

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You can follow Jon Jansen on Twitter (@jjansen34) and e-mail him at [email protected].

Follow Anthony Mazziotti on Twitter (@AntMazziotti) and e-mail him at [email protected].

Follow Greg Hall on Twitter (@WePodAndWeKnow) and e-mail him at [email protected].

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