“Pitchers and catchers report” may be the most magical words in sports, but there are still some trade rumors to work out before MLB spring training officially gets underway.
The Philadelphia Phillies are prominent in many of those, but their division rivals, the New York Mets, are as well. Read on for the latest speculation surrounding these National League East teams before spring training begins.
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports passed along an unfortunate update for the Phillies regarding their efforts to trade Jonathan Papelbon:
To illustrate the difficulty that the Phillies are experiencing in trying to trade Jonathan Papelbon, consider a recent turn in their discussions with the Brewers.
The Phillies only were willing to pay a significant part of Papelbon's contract if the Brewers parted with a top prospect, according to major-league sources.
The Brewers, unwilling to make such an exchange, instead proposed sending reliever Jonathan Broxton to the Phillies as a way to balance the finances.
Given the nature of that update, it really shouldn’t come as much surprise that Rosenthal also noted any talks between the Phillies and Milwaukee Brewers are currently dormant.
Papelbon may be 34 years old, but he turned in an excellent 2014 campaign for Philadelphia. He finished with an impressive 2.04 ERA and 39 saves in 66.1 innings and could certainly help a team on the fringe of contention, be it the Brewers or someone else. However, he is due to earn $13 million this season.
The Brewers were third in the MLB last season in quality starts but finished a disappointing 17th in team ERA. That is not exactly a testament to greatness from the bullpen, which is why they are likely looking to upgrade the back end with a potential trade or free-agent signing.
It just doesn’t look like that trade will be for Papelbon.
Cole Hamels
Rosenthal also had an update on Cole Hamels in a separate piece and noted the San Diego Padres made an offer for the left-hander before ultimately signing James Shields:
The Phillies, though, are adamant about getting one blue-chip prospect in any trade for Hamels, sources say. It is not known precisely how they view the Padres’ top three prospects — righty Matt Wisler, catcher Austin Hedges and outfielder Hunter Renfroe. But a source last month said that in the Phillies’ view, the Padres might “not have enough.”
Rosenthal pointed out that the Phillies would prefer to trade Hamels to the Boston Red Sox in an effort to get a package back that includes either Mookie Betts or Blake Swihart. Still, Boston hasn’t made that desired offer, and it looks like Philadelphia may have to start the season with Hamels if it doesn’t lower its demands.
Rosenthal touches on this, but keeping Hamels as potential trade bait would put the Phillies in direct competition with other teams looking to unload pitchers at the trade deadline. Whether that is the Cincinnati Reds and Johnny Cueto or someone else remains to be seen, but the Phillies would likely get less back in return if there are other pitchers out there for cheaper.
Still, Hamels finished last season with a 2.46 ERA and is only 31 years old. He is a true ace and could instantly bolster a team’s World Series chances, especially if it was a talented squad such as the Red Sox or Padres that has already made some noise this offseason.
Interestingly, Philadelphia general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. commented on the Hamels rumors, via Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com: “Eight teams have kicked the tires…If there was an offer commensurate to what we believe is [Hamels’] value we would strongly consider it.”
Apparently, that offer is yet to come.
New York Mets Pitchers
Marc Carig of Newsday noted that the New York Mets likely won’t be trading any of their pitchers:
Carig specifically mentions Dillon Gee, which isn't that surprising since he is 28 years old and there are plenty of young pitchers trying to make the team this season. Among those pitching prospects are Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz and Rafael Montero, but cracking the rotation could be difficult for any of the three.
Montero at least has major league experience, which could help his cause in terms of making the roster (at least as a bullpen option).
The bottom line is the Mets have plenty of depth in the pitching department but an offense that was 28th in batting average and 21st in runs scored in 2014. It would make sense on paper if they traded a pitcher or two for more offense, but it appears that won’t be in the works before the season.
New York better hope for better offense this time around if that strategy is going to pay off.
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