2022 Phillies Major League Regular Season Discussion

[flyers19rw]

If Harper is going to miss the rest of the season, he might as well have his TJ surgery now as well.

[Patchmk88]

What the usual time for a broken thumb?

[phillychuck]

6-8 weeks, even if surgery is involved. The internet doctor guy, Dr. David Chao, said that's the timetable. Chao is usually pretty close on these things. Then there is the time needed to get back to a basic baseball skill mastery again; may not be that long for Harper. They will need to wait for swelling to go down to determine the best treatment.

[zambonir]

Do you think the Phillies should release Moniak? Bring back Quinn, find another Jankowski type? Because the issue really isn't his ability, it's that he's all the Phillies have on the 40. Barring a trade.

It's June 26 so they won't do this for a month anyway but really this gives them a reason to go out and get an infielder as much as as, if not more than a CF. Because any CF they get just isn't going to add that much short of a blockbuster deal, other than a little defense. And even if they did get someone better (especially defensively) then you are just playing Herrera and Vierling in RF.

They should consider more playing time for Stubbs. Otherwise I'd think they are better off just leaving the two corner OFs where they are (for the most part) and rotating Bohm, Camargo and Munoz at DH. Acquiring a 3B or 2B gives you a better option in that scenario.

My guess is either Bohm or Moniak get included in a deadline deal, if they are indeed in heavy buy mode. Of course losing Bryce gives them cover not to be, especially when a fringe wild card team shouldn't be going crazy to begin with.

[xogfog]

I think the Phillies have to be aggressive and trade for another big bat. I would have preferred they would go after pitching, but now with Harper out, they need to buffer the lineup. A trade for a CF would cure a few ills. It would probably take a lot to go after Bryan Reynolds, but he would be perfect. They could then move Vierling to LF and DH Schwarber. Or, they could go after a DH that would be a bench bat when Harper gets back. Nelson Cruz wouldn't cost much.

[California_Dreamin]

Frank Thomas broke his thumb on Sept. 8, 1964 and returned 17days later on Sept.25, 1964. Phillies historians know how that all turned out! For those too young to know or care....not good!

[andyb]

I did immediately think about Bryan Reynolds and what he would cost. That would be a move to make now and not wait for the deadline. Just wish they were a fit for O'Hoppe and they really are not after drafting Davis 1-1 last year.

Our best fit is a team that really wants O'Hoppe if we want to make a big trade. Other than that teams are going to want Abel or Painter and probably Painter as the centerpiece of a deal.

[xogfog]

Think the Bucs would entertain a package of McGarry, Rojas and Bohm?

[zambonir]

It would be nice to see them be aggressive and our GM is certainly known for it but at the same time, they might have to wait four weeks just to avoid paying an excessive early trade price (for someone higher-end at least). And the schedule is also such that they can ride it out. Honestly if you do think you want to make a deal, do it tomorrow, before these next six games.

A cheaper DH/bench option for now and a CF later might make sense. There's also still Laureano, and Oakland has pitching too.

Now we're also not gonna find out if Harper's vaccinated.

[EDmuch]

I read a few days ago that the Pirates system is getting stacked with prime prospects and they see Reynolds as the "veteran" who would guide the young crowd they have coming
up from the minors So they are not inclined to trade Reynolds unless they are blown away by the offer. Certainly our offer would not be a "blow them away" kind of offer.

[EDmuch]

I agree Cruz would probably be available at a very low price and could be a good bench bat if Harper is abel to return more quickly than we are thinking.

[zambonir]

I read a few days ago that the Pirates system is getting stacked with prime prospects and they see Reynolds as the "veteran" who would guide the young crowd they have coming

Probably the Gammons article I posted in the ex-Phillies thread (about Pivetta), or something similar. It says that they might not trade Bednar, and also already have enough good young talent that they will win a World Series in the next five years.

That would be an especially savage twist: not only to see a low-budget team in the same state win a championship before the Phillies, but for the guy Dombrowski's presence forced out of Boston (who built a very solid core there under Theo) to get one.

[Austinfan]

You mean to say "win now" means win never and "win later" actually works?

Which is why I just say no to trading young assets for a marginal improvement.

Better to go with Herrera/Veirling in CF, give Moniak and Stott time in Lehigh, and see what happens.

Rojas is having a hot June, he could be in Reading by August and only a couple years from Philly, give up on him and CF could be a hole for a long time.

If Realmuto is in decline, last thing they can afford to do is trade O'Hoppe.

[zambonir]

Unfortunately "win later" doesn't work any better than "win now" if you don't draft or develop or trade for talent while rebuilding. While I wish the Phillies had tanked a little harder (and one year sooner/later) it likely wouldn't have changed anything. And the Pirates are more likely to be the new Rays - still no ring - than the new Braves. The Phillies right now need to be the 2020 Braves but still don't have the minor league depth, front office track record or streak of division championships to justify that sort of aggression.

[allentown]

If you trade any of your quality prospects, 'win now' makes things worse and prolongs the suffering. If you trade just good enough to be 'whitewash' for acquiring a player wanting to shed a salary, then I don't think it matters much to the future and could help the now..

[zambonir]

Of course if your quality prospects never turn out to be any good the suffering continues forever too. Or you never miss them after they get traded. Obviously the Phillies can't afford to squander what is still very limited prospect depth, and they don't seem to have any clue how to win with $200K in free agents either. This season's bad luck might keep them from doing something stupid, and it also seems like they might never actually get close enough to where trading a top prospect happens (because you only do that if a division title and possible WS berth is truly in your graps, like the '09 and '10 teams). But Dombrowski still has to play this win-now hand to the end.

[bkeich]

No, I haven't given up on Moniak, but he can't hit ML pitching. His at. Bats are often almost laughable, not only can he not get a hit, he often can't even hit a foul ball.

He needs to spend the rest of the year at AAA. Getting yanked up and down is not helping him at all. He needs time and PA to learn his to hit more difficult pitching.

Don't get me wrong, I don't think there is anything there, not really a CF, not enough power or pitch recognition and unfortunately low bat control, but to keep putting him in a position to fail is insane. He can at least hold his own in AAA, if he was given the chance to Master it maybe he would improve.

Yea, we need another OF. Badly. Moniak isn't it today, maybe someday he will be.

[xogfog]

Prospects, especially pitchers rarely pan out, I remember people being upset at the time we traded Kyle Drabek as part of the Haladay trade. Dombrowski has done well in the past with win now situations, so I would really have to think about it to include Painter or Abel in a blockbuster deal., but at the same time, neither of them are sure things at this point.

[zambonir]

Yup. Today it's Painter and Abel and McGarry, four years ago it was Sanchez and Howard and Medina. Obviously we gotta hope one of the current guys works out better... but also pick right if there is a trade.

The Phillies also lost Medina and Cole Irvin and even Quinn (in the off-season) and Adam Haseley simply as a matter of 40-man roster management, so with regards to Moniak at this point I question whether they can afford to use roster space on three OFs who can't play in the majors (or on two extra catchers instead of one). But not sure replacing Moniak with Bonifacio or Hall does anything either. And the roster crunch isn't that big (assuming Harper goes on the 60 but they might be hoping not).

[nycphils]

Not many teams are so stacked that they can replace the 1.1 from 2010 with a 1.1 from 2016!