2018 Trade Deadline rumors/speculation

[julio]

So while it is certainly conjecture on my part, its also based on what appears to be real evidence.

But... it is not evidence for your assertion that the Phillies didn't try hard enough - that Machado's signing with the Dodgers was something the Phillies could have prevented. You don't know that - and neither does Machado. Clubs don't discuss trade offers/negotiations with players.

I only commented because I don't want to see the "the Phililes blew it on Machado" thing turn into another widely-believed mythological reason to condemn the franchise. It wouldn't be the first time.

[California_Dreamin]

I never used the words "blew it." I said "opportunity lost." It was. He was there for the taking and the Dodgers made it clear they wanted him more.

[Patchmk88]

But the Dodgers also had something the Phillies could not offer - a premium positional player prospect,

[jimbomill]

Indeed, allentown is only speculating. But so is CD. CD has explicated, at length, his belief about the Machado situation. But let us be clear that this is CD's belief

True words!
Like CD's response that began "you don't know that", his statements about "MM ... would have signed here" warrant the same stipulation.

That said. I would have like MM to be here, but like stated elsewhere, we did not have the coveted HITTERS that Baltimore coveted. We have our own management for the spate of questionable 1st round drat picks not named Aaron Nola.

[andyb]

Though the Orioles had said they were looking for pitching first.

Agree in general that it is an opportunity lost. SS was the one position where we really could have added 3-4 wins. Machado vs Kingery. And then Kingery vs Valentin is probably a secondary improvement.

An Adam Jones or another starter or even a closer is just not going to move the needle anywhere near what a MM trade would have done.

[phillychuck]

I'd love to see them make a real splashy move to improve at relatively low cost...Realmuto, Escobar, a solid pitcher (Archer?). I would put the odds of this kind of splashy move happening at about 3-5%. So I'm resolved to just follow along with what we have. Enthusiastically but with regrets.

I'm willing to pay the prospect cost for this kind of move, especially since Realmuto, for example, is young and controllable.

I think I mentioned elsewhere that I'd trade Alfaro, Crawford and Medina for Realmuto, and I love all three of those players.

[Patchmk88]

I completely agree that the only move that would really move the needle is acquiring Machado.

Obviously we don’t know what we exactly offered but if it included Medina and possibly Hasley, I don’t know how we could have offered anything better other than Sixto.

[phillychuck]

And Machado is a rental and a possibility of future signing. I'm much more comfortable burning assets for a player we know wants to sign with us or we can control.

[bigegypt0417]

But the Dodgers also had something the Phillies could not offer - a premium positional player prospect,

I think you're overstating the actual value of Diaz...premium is not a word I'd use for a player in the back half of the Top 100. The deal seems great because the players fit in to their top 30 prospects and ignores they have a really bad minor league system. The Phillies could have easily outbid the Dodgers if they wanted to.

[Patchmk88]

But we don’t have any top 100 positional player prospects and probably not any top 150 ones (especially at the time since it was before Hasely’s Power streak). Again I have no idea what we offered but it seems as if the Dodgers wanted the headliner to be a position player.

[bigegypt0417]

Haseley would have been an easy place to start. Haseley and Medina would have been enough on their own based on the two players they got. From an overall package the dodgers didn't exactly set the world on fire with their offer. More than the Phillies, the Yankees would have probably had the ability to blow both offers out of the water. The Phillies put a price in mind and seemed to have stuck to it.

[tom81]

It is an opportunity lost as CD said but having taken 2 out of 3 from the Dodgers with Machado it is still a real possibility that we get to the WS without Machado. We have some meaningful baseball in Phillie again!

[Patchmk88]

I will reiterate again I don’t know what we offer so take my oppinion with a grain of salt, but wasn’t it rumored that we offered a package that included both Hasley and Medina?

[EastFallowfield]

You can probably find posts from a decade ago saying because LA got Manny instead of us they'll win the 2008 World Series. You can definitely find posts from a decade ago saying the Phils weren't gonna even win the division because JRoll got stuck in NY traffic once.

[Austinfan]

We have no clue what Machado wants or planned to do.

I don't think two months in Philly would have had a real impact on his decision, in fact, if the Dodgers don't want him, he's more likely to sign with Philly because he's seen how Utley has been treated (and he can talk to Utley about Philly)..

Nor will money be the deciding factor, once money hits a certain level, other than ego gratification, it has little value to the player (how many cars can you drive, how big of a home do you need). And enough teams will be bidding that money will hit that level.

It'll come down to a mix of motives, family, lifestyle, media, etc.

[Austinfan]

Haseley and Medina for a rental Machado? That's crazy!

[EDmuch]

I feel like I am watching a tennis match as two groups send the same ball back & forth over the net.

[Patchmk88]

Well if we are choosing sides on the tennis court I’m on the side that would have overpaid for Machado but don’t think the Orioles were fascinated with who we made available as compared to the Dodgers. I guess it’s kind of stupid to argue about though since we don’t know the full details and he was traded to the Dodgers and not us a week ago.

[Lawman]

I'd love to see them make a real splashy move to improve at relatively low cost...Realmuto, Escobar, a solid pitcher (Archer?).

I'm not sure I call Chris Archer "solid". He has a FIP in the mid-3.00s and an ERA north of 4.00.

[Florida_Sunshine]

The Phillies and ownership have done a lot of really good things this season and it is difficult to understand the rationale of obsessing over what move the club made or didn’t make when we don’t know all the facts. We are spectators. As time has shown baseball, there will be many more opportunities ahead and to stress over any single one of them forgets the big picture.