Is there a more obvious buyer in baseball than the Philadelphia Phillies? A handful of other teams just might be on the same level, but no one is more heavily in the category of buyer.
Consider that the Phillies made the World Series in 2022, the NLCS in 2023 and the NLDS in 2024. Continuing to take small, backward steps just shouldn’t be acceptable.
Also consider that the window of contention with this strong nucleus might not be open much longer. In fact, this might be one last gasp. All-Star Game MVP Kyle Schwarber is a free agent after this season. So are J.T. Realmuto and Ranger Suárez. Age could catch up soon enough too, as Bryce Harper and Trea Turner are both 32. So is Aaron Nola, who had been awful this season before his injury woes. Zack Wheeler is 35. Nick Castellanos is 33. It’s generally an old team.
Yet it’s also a team truly capable of winning the World Series. They currently sit in first place in the NL East (-1320 to make the playoffs, per Caesars), though that race figures to go down to the wire with the Mets. So, again, the Phillies are strong buyers and should be doing everything possible to win the title this season.
One thing hanging over their heads right now is that lefty reliever José Alvarado is ineligible for the playoffs due to his PED suspension earlier this year.
Now, three moves the Phillies should make:
1. Trade for Twins reliever(s)
It looks like the Twins are going to end up in the seller category and they are a good match with the Phillies here. Both Jhoan Duran and Griffin Jax are under team control for two more seasons and are really cheap, which means the Twins will be asking for a lot in return, but the Phillies need to go big. I’m not sure they could pull off a deal for both, which would be an utter coup, but grabbing one of the two here would be an excellent move for the Phils.
2. Add an outfield bat
The Phillies don’t need to be in desperation mode here or anything, because it’s entirely plausible that Castellanos, Brandon Marsh and Max Kepler will be good players the rest of the season. Still, they shouldn’t be leaving anything to chance this year and all three of those players, at present, have a negative WAR. This means they should be able to find an upgrade somewhere on the market.
Byron Buxton is an easy option. He’d be the best trade deadline addition in the majors if the Phillies somehow landed them. Of course, every sign points to this being a pipe dream. Buxton himself has gone out of his way to emphatically state that he’d turn down any trade (he has a full no-trade clause) because he’s a “Twin for life.” Yes, I’m aware that players sometimes say this and change their minds, but for now, we’ll take him at his word.
In looking at another All-Star, how about Ryan O’Hearn of the Orioles? The Phillies and Orioles matched up on Austin Hays, so why not go back to the well?
What about White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. in a change-of-scenery move? Robert has issues staying on the field and has been bad when he has stayed off the IL the last two seasons, but his upside is an MVP-caliber player and he was outstanding in 2023 at age 25. He’d be worth a shot and there are club options for 2026 and 2027 on his contract, meaning the Phillies could cut bait if it doesn’t work but retain him for two more seasons if it does.
3. Pick up more relief depth
Just grabbing the one reliever from the Twins isn’t likely enough. Sure, the Phillies can use their overabundance of starters in relief in the playoffs, but adding two late-inning relievers should be the goal. Hunter Harvey of the Royals has started a rehab assignment after suffering a right teres major strain in mid-April and could be a candidate. The Guardians might be looking at a selloff and someone from them would work well, such as Hunter Gaddis or Cade Smith. The big name there is Emmanuel Clase.
Could the Phillies pull off something like Robert, Duran and Clase on the same deadline? That would be a masterclass.
