It’s been a month since my last Phillies off-season update and a lot has happened, just not, unfortunately, for the Phils. Pat Gillick and company have been desperately searching for pitching help, and also looking to add an outfielder and possibly upgrade at third base. Up to this point, they have nothing to show for their efforts since the November 7th trade for Brad Lidge. They came away from the Winter Meetings in Nashville empty-handed and disappointed, with Gillick saying it was unlikely that they’ll be adding another starting pitcher before Spring Training starts. Rich Hofman thinks Gillick might be “running some interference” with that claim, but either way it doesn’t instill a lot of hope.
Some of the names the Phillies were rumored to be interested in have already signed elsewhere. Tad Iguchi and Randy Wolf both signed with the Padres and Japanese import pitcher Hiroki Kuroda signed with the Dodgers a couple days ago. On all three players, the Phillies would have had to over-pay to get them, because Wolf and Kuroda preferred West Coast teams and Iguchi wanted to stay at second base, while the Phils wanted to sign him as a third baseman.
With the options starting to dwindle, reports indicate the Phils have their sights set on a number of free-agents. Here’s the latest:
- Geoff Jenkins, OF: The long-time Brewer is the most likely player on this list to end up in a Phillies uniform, with the bidding down to them and the Padres. The left-handed hitting Jenkins would platoon with Jayson Werth in right and
provide much-needed depth if Werth or Pat Burrell were to go down to injury. There is rumors of a three-year deal for Jenkins, which I think would be too long for a 33-year-old who’s been in decline, but a one- or two-year deal would probably make sense. It’s been noted that Jenkins is from California, so if all else is equal, he may prefer San Diego. If I were him, I would also consider the difference between hitting in Citizens Bank Park vs. Petco Park. For a guy who probably has warning-track power at this point, it would be much nicer seeing those long flyballs sail into the CB Park seats rather than outfielder’s gloves in Petco. - Mike Cameron, OF: The Phillies also reportedly have a contract offer on the table for Cameron, believed to be a two-year deal. Cameron won’t hit for average, but he is an elite defensive center fielder with good power and speed. Shane Victorino would play right field again if Cameron were to sign. The other contenders are the White Sox and Rangers, and, obviously, the Phillies are only interested in Cameron or Jenkins, not both.
- Kris Benson, SP: It looks like the Phillies have sifted their way through the stinking mess that is this year’s free-agent starting pitchers and zeroed in on Benson. He missed the entire ’07 season with a rotator-cuff injury but his career 4.34 ERA makes him very tempting compared to the other available pitchers. Ten teams were expected to be present today in Phoenix, the Phillies among them, to watch Benson throw and gauge how his recovery is coming.
- Akinori Otsuka, RP: With a career 2.44 ERA in 236 relief appearances over four seasons, you would think Otsuka would be a prime target for a lot of teams. However, he missed the second-half of last season and it turns out there are some
serious concerns about his elbow, which is why the Rangers made him a free-agent in the first place. Regardless, the Phillies are interested and, at the right price, it seems like it would be worth the gamble.
There’s also this report from Yahoo!Sports that the Phillies, along with the Mets, have offers out to Kyle Lohse, but I haven’t seen that reported anywhere else. Lohse’s agent is none other than Scott Boras so, honestly, any report about him has to be taken with a grain of salt.
It’s really been a rough off-season for the NL East as a whole. Players that have left the division include Miguel Cabrera, Dontrelle Willis, Aaron Rowand, Andruw Jones, and Edgar Renteria. Meanwhile, the best established player to join the division is probably Lidge. The Phillies, Mets, and Braves have all struggled to come up with players to meet their key off-season needs. They have about two months left before Spring Training opens to redeem themselves.
