Well, this question just won’t stop coming up, so I guess it’s about time we address it here.\u00a0 Instead of answering the general question of “should they sell?” let’s actually look at the individual pieces in question and judge their value based on the Phillies situation.\u00a0 I am strongly of the opinion that no one should ever be “untouchable” because there is a price for anyone, regardless of the situation in which the team finds itself.\u00a0 That being said, I don’t think the Phillies should be waving any white flags quite yet.\u00a0 This team is finally whole and can be as good as any team in baseball when going right, so, despite the immense hole they have dug for themselves, it’s NOT OVER.\u00a0 But, again, everyone has a price and that price has a lot to do with context and circumstance.\u00a0 So, I will set a price that I would need to see in return for each piece.<\/p>\n
Cole Hamels<\/a> Cliff Lee<\/a><\/em> Shane Victorino<\/a><\/em> Joe Blanton<\/a><\/em> Placido Polanco<\/a><\/em> Juan Pierre<\/a><\/em> Hunter Pence<\/a><\/em> Jimmy Rollins<\/a><\/em> Carlos Ruiz<\/a><\/em> Ryan Howard, Roy Halladay, Chase Utley<\/a>, Jonathan Papelbon<\/a><\/em> John Mayberry<\/a>, Laynce Nix<\/a>, Ty Wigginton<\/a>, Mike Fontenot<\/a>, etc… OVERALL<\/em> Well, this question just won’t stop coming up, so I guess it’s about time we address it here.\u00a0 Instead of answering the general question of “should they sell?” let’s actually look at the individual pieces in question and judge their … Continue reading
\n<\/em>The biggest question on the table obviously surrounded the ace left-hander who was born and bred as a ballplayer in red pinstripes.\u00a0 Ace starting pitchers are so incredibly hard to come by that I hope Phillies fans (and management) aren’t spoiled into delusion by the “three aces” they currently have.\u00a0 Starting pitching wins in baseball and when you get an ace (even if you have two others), you HOLD ON TO HIM.\u00a0 Period.\u00a0 And, that’s exactly what the Phillies did this morning, signing Cole to a 6-year, $144-million contract.\u00a0 I may give a more thorough thought process on this deal in the coming days, but, for now, let’s just say that, while exorbitantly expensive, keeping a certifiable ACE (who probably hasn’t even reached his peak yet) on your staff for 6 more years is priceless.<\/p>\n
\nThe Hamels signing now begs the question:\u00a0 “What do they do now?”\u00a0 They have somewhere in the vicinity of $95 million tied up in FOUR players (Hamels, Lee, Roy Halladay<\/a>, and Ryan Howard<\/a>) for the 2013 season.\u00a0 Many people have theorized that Cliff Lee might be moveable to make room for Hamels.\u00a0 As for my opinion – see above on how I feel about ace pitchers.\u00a0 That being said, everyone has a price, and if the Rangers are willing to part with Jurickson Profar<\/a>\u00a0and\/or Mike Olt<\/a>, then I’d certainly listen.\u00a0 If it were me, I think I’d make the deal for Profar essentially straight-up, but I might need an additional piece with Olt.\u00a0 If they are willing to give them both in just about any deal, then, well, back up the truck because they might be the best SS\/3B combination in the league in 3-4 years.<\/p>\n
\nVictorino is a free agent at the end of this season and is looking for a decently-sized 5-year contract.\u00a0 Even if the Phillies were not strapped with these massive contracts, I’m not sure Victorino will be anywhere near what he is going to demand on the open market.\u00a0 Shane was a key piece to the ’08 title team and all 5 NL East championships in the past five years.\u00a0 However, it is no secret how insanely frustrated he makes me, so I probably can’t talk about this objectively.\u00a0 I’m not ready to give up on the season, and Victorino is – BY FAR – the best option the Phillies have in CF right now, so I would need something of legitimacy in return for him, but I wouldn’t mind shipping him out for a reliable middle\u00a0reliever who is cheap and under control for a couple of years.\u00a0 As for the finances, I find myself ill-equipped to comment on that, but, from what I understand, the penalties are rather severe for exceeding the luxury tax in back-to-back years.\u00a0 They are on their way to doing it this year and, with the Hamels signing, it looks almost definitive that they will do it next year.\u00a0 So, to avoid the penalty this year, they do have to move some salary.\u00a0 If it happens to be Shane, then so be it – again, I’m in no position to condemn an ownership group setting limitshas been the most aggressively spending sports owners that this city has ever seen.<\/p>\n
\nHeavy B is another World Series hero who will not be returning to the Phils after this year.\u00a0 And, interestingly, while I think Blanton is as underrated in this city as Victorino is overrated, I kind of think that if you just need to shed salary to get under the luxury tax – this is probably your guy.\u00a0 Plus, there is always a market for innings-eating starting pitchers, so you could probably get back something with, at least, a bit of value.\u00a0 And, honestly, as much as I love the guy, this Phils season will probably not be lost because of 6-7 starts made by Kyle Kendrick<\/a> instead of Joe Blanton.<\/p>\n
\nPolanco has a mutual $1 mil buyout next year, which the Phillies will almost certainly exercise, so he is essentially another expiring contract.\u00a0 I have no idea what the market would be for Polly, who looks kind of, well, done, but if there is any value out there, I wouldn’t mind getting some return for him.\u00a0 I love Polanco, and he will always be one of my favorite Phillies, but Father Time is undefeated.<\/p>\n
\nThis answer is going to have more of an editorial comment attached than any analysis of Juan Pierre’s usefulness as a Phillies.\u00a0 There is no doubt that he has far exceeded even the front office’s expectations this year.\u00a0 But, I say if you can get anything<\/em>\u00a0for him, you do it.\u00a0 And, the main reason I say this is because I would find it absolutely indefensible if Dominic Brown doesn’t get at least 100-150 PAs in the bigs this season.\u00a0 I don’t care what his AAA numbers look like – get this guy to the big leagues and let him play – NOW.\u00a0 If he’s as bad as everyone thinks he is, then we can move on without any danger of “what if,” but I have never seen a guy go from “the future” to “non-existent” so quickly in baseball.<\/p>\n
\nThis one is actually VERY intriguing.\u00a0 And, not because I have soured on Pence (I actually was never that “sweet” on him to begin with), but because with another year of control, I think that Pence could actually bring back a rather decent return.\u00a0 He’s due a pretty substantial raise next year (probably to about $14-15 million), and after next year, he will want a pretty hefty long-term deal.\u00a0 I don’t see Pence signing a long-term extension here and his trade value will never be greater than it is right now.\u00a0 Again, I’m still holding out hope that this team makes a run, and I do like what Pence provides, but let’s say you can get a good, young 3B or CF that can step right in for next year’s departed (with a low price tag), it actually might make a lot of sense.\u00a0 But, the return has to be there – and it has to be someone with legitimate talent, years of control, and a small dollar figure.<\/p>\n
\nI am not going to give the “general consensus” on this one because I have always seemed to value Rollins a whole lot more than the “general consensus.”\u00a0 What if I told you that Jimmy Rollins was #3 on the ALL-TIME LIST of fielding percentage at shortstop?\u00a0 And, he’s still got it.\u00a0 So, all of you who are in love with Freddy Galvis<\/a>‘s glove (and I am one of them), let’s go thinking that he’s an upgrade even just in the field.\u00a0 And, we all saw the .254 OBP that Mr. Galvis posted as an every-day player this year.\u00a0 Rollins is still one of the best offensive SS’s around, so I think he’s essentially irreplaceable.\u00a0 That being said, we should talk about it because (a) everyone has a price and (b) he’s been rumored to be on the market.\u00a0 Anything short of a sweetheart package that includes his replacement probably shouldn’t be considered –\u00a0but that’s just me, and I love Jimmy.<\/p>\n
\n-Cringe-<\/em>\u00a0 This should not – and will not – happen.\u00a0 Chooch has a $5 million team option (which might take 8 seconds to exercise) for 2013 and then he’s a free agent.\u00a0 And, with the season he is having and the position he plays, there is a chance that good ole Chooch wants to take a shot on the open market.\u00a0 This is the only reason I would even entertain the thought of moving him.\u00a0 But, honestly, it makes very little sense, because he’s one of those guys that is a lot more valuable to the Phillies than he might appear to other teams, so the return will not be anywhere near even being worthy of discussion.\u00a0 But, I had to bring it up because\u00a0if he wants the big bucks after 2013, he might be in another uniform, and it’s never too early to start planning for these things.\u00a0 But, it would take a LOT more than anyone would be willing to give for a 33-year old catcher having a career year.<\/p>\n
\nIt’s not even worth looking up whether or not they have “no-trade” clauses in their contracts because they are not going anywhere because of (a) their value to the Phillies and (b) their contracts.<\/p>\n
\n<\/em>Sure, though I think Mayberry’s value is probably at an all-time low right now, so maybe we should not exactly “sell low” there.\u00a0 But, the others, sure…<\/p>\n
\nI still believe that this team can make the playoffs.\u00a0 And, to get to that one-game playoff and have a guy like Halladay (or Hamels or Lee) on the mound means that anything can happen.\u00a0 They look like the team we thought they would be with Utley and Howard back.\u00a0 I know it took two late comebacks to beat a bad Brewers team these last two nights, but wins are wins, no matter who it is.\u00a0 Obviously, it’s a longshot, but I still believe that there is plenty of time for this team to get back in this thing.\u00a0 The Cardinals were 10.5 games back of the wild card last year in the last week of August.\u00a0 We are still in July and the Phils are sitting 9.5 back.\u00a0 And, yes, they have a lot of teams that they would have to catch, but there are only two teams ahead of them that I think have even a chance to pull away – Atlanta and St. Louis.\u00a0 Everyone else ahead of them is rather flawed…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"