The Philadelphia Phillies have been and are currently bottom feeders in the National League East and General Manager Ruben Amaro has talked about the team being in a rebuilding process. That’s all well and good, but in order for a rebuilding process to begin, they need to part ways with players like second baseman Chase Utley, closer Jonathan Papelbon, starting pitcher Cole Hamels, and first baseman Ryan Howard. Utley is most likely untradeable because of the start he’s gotten off to. At the age of 36, he’s currently hitting for an average of .188 with just three home runs and has driven in 21 runs. He’s also due 15 million dollars at the end of this season which doesn’t help his case.
The Phillies need to get as many prospects as they can from the veterans they still currently have with value. I believe it starts with the 6 foot 4, 250 pound Ryan Howard. They can get some valuable prospects for the 35 year old first baseman not only because he’s hitting over .250 with 10 home runs and 24 RBI, but also because the feared cleanup hitter is much tougher to find in today’s Major Leagues. A lot of teams will be interested in the idea of plugging Howard into the middle of their lineups to make them more formidable. They had better take advantage of the opportunity now while his stock is high. In his 12 year career, he’s hit .265/.353/.526 with 344 home runs and has driven in 1082 runs, so he has the track record, and he has proven that he can still hit with power.
According to baseball insider Jon Heyman, there are eight teams who could logically consider Howard. Those teams include the St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Angels, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, Seattle Mariners, and the Kansas City Royals. In my opinion, the American League East teams like the Rays and Orioles would be great fits because both teams are good, but they need that one big time home run threat to take them over the top in the division.
Teams aren’t exactly jumping at the bits to take on Jonathan Papelbon’s contract, and the team hasn’t said to be shopping Cole Hamels this summer, so Howard is the most likely candidate to be dealt first. The Phillies have gotten off to a 19-30 start and are currently tied with the Miami Marlins for last place in the National League East. They need to start over and try as hard as they can to let go of these massive contracts weighing them down.
