Christmas in July officially came yesterday for all Americans, and especially Major League Baseball teams seeking an upgrade over their current roster. Some moves will be nondescript, but can prove to be fruitful down the stretch. Such moves as acquiring Joe Blanton or Matt Stairs can prove to be very valuable down the stretch run in a long season. Now that we’ve gotten to July, here are some more names the Phils have been linked to in recent weeks:
Miguel Batista, RP/SP Seattle Mariners: Batista is not exactly the sexy name many are hoping for, but he can provide a service. The rumored Phil said to be interesting to the Mariners is Greg Dobbs. With Adrian Beltre out on the DL, Seattle is seeking a 3B stop gap on the cheap who can hit and Greg Dobbs fits that description. Greg started his career in Seattle but was pushed out of the 1B/3B/DH mix a few years ago by Richie Sexon, Beltre, etc. Batista currently sports a 2.85 ERA out of the pen in Seattle with a 1.51 WHIP in 30 games. He can also start.
Gil Meche, SP Kansas City Royals – Another name who won’t dazzle, but he has been consistent in his carrer and can give the Phils some sorely needed rest for their heavily taxed bullpen. Youngsters will be needed to get this done.
Brian Bannister, SP Kansas City Royals – Another non-sexy name who can provide innings. Not a high priority of the Phillies, but an option none the less.
Chin-Ming Wang, SP New York Yankees – The Phillies are said to be very interested if the Yanks decide to indeed deal the young sinker baller. He could be valuable assuming he rediscovers his old form and keeps the ball down. Doesn’t get a lot of K’s but again, keeps the ball down which is vital in the Phils bandbox.
The names we’ve already heard are : Jason Marquis, Brad Penny, Paul Maholm, Ian Snell, Zack Duke, Doug Davis, and to a lesser extent (and less realistic extent) : Roy Oswalt, Jake Peavy, Bronson Arroyo, Ben Sheets, Pedro Martinez, Jonathan Sanchez, Matt Cain, Clay Bucholz, and Dan Haren.
Minor League Update : With the Phillies looking to upgrade now, and surprisingly able to add payroll, look for one of these prospects to be dealt. They are all considered to be legit major league prospects, however none with Kyle Drabek-type upside: Michael Taylor, (Reading Phillies, OF; batting .348 with 15HR’s) Carlos Carrasco, (Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, SP; Has been inconsistent, but very effective recently;most recent #1 prospect in Phils system before Drabek-mania) Vance Worley (Reading Phillies, SP; 3rd round pick in 2008 with good moxie and command; projects as a 3-4 starter on a good team) Joe Saverey (Reading Phillies, SP; Has 10 wins; velocity down from 2 years ago but makes up for it with great command and what most scouts call a “bulldog” presence on the mound; can be a future Brett Myers if he develops secondary stuff for strikes) Kyle Kendrick, Lou Marson, Jason Donald, Drew Carpenter, Sergio Escalona, and Antonio Bastardo continue to interest teams and have varying degrees of major league potential depending on which guy, and what scout your talking to.
Clay Bucholz? When was he mentioned in trade rumors? If Boston makes him available, forget anybody else, he’s the guy. I thought he was untouchable though.
Yeah, I’d be all over Bucholz if he were available but I don’t think Boston has any intention of dealing him. Batista doesn’t excite me at all. The other three (Meche, Bannister, Wang) would be decent stopgaps but nothing special. With Arizona being 17 games below .500 I wonder if there’s any way to pry Haren away from them. I know they’ve said in the past that he’s not on the market but they’re pretty bad and need a lot of pieces.
From John Heyman…
“Phillies people had internal discussions about Pedro Martinez, the Cooperstown-bound free agent, after investigating several possible trade options.”