Philadelphia Phillies Targeting Veteran Hitters This Winter
The Philadelphia Phillies are in the midst of a very successful rebuild. Currently sitting at 63-75, the team is already looking to solidify themselves as a contender next season.
The Philadelphia Phillies are looking to target one or two possible veteran hitters this winter. Possible names that have came up are Ian Desmond and Martin Prado. The team hopes that these veterans will be a presence in the middle of their lineup while also mentoring the extremely young roster. Right now, the team is going with all first and second year players all over the field. That does not make it easy to contend.
Prado, 32, would provide a nice veteran presence in the locker room as well as a hitter for the top end of the lineup. Prado is having a resurgence with the Marlins this year as he is currently hitting .313 with a .367 on-base percentage. These are the best numbers that he has put up since his age-24 season with the Atlanta Braves. He can play all over the infield but has played mostly third base for the Marlins this season.
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Desmond, 30, is a prime candidate for Comeback Player of the Year after taking a one-year deal with the Texas Rangers. He currently boasts a .803 OPS after posting a .673 OPS with the Washington Nationals last season. He also has made a position change in the process. The once shortstop for the Nationals, is now playing Center Field for the Rangers. He also made the All-Star team this season and has hit 21 home runs. That is only four shy of career-best 25 home runs in 2012. With the Phillies already having a franchise shortstop by the name of J.P. Crawford, they would just need Desmond to play a corner outfield spot and have his power-bat in the lineup.
The price will likely be high for Desmond this off-season, but the Phillies will have the money to spend. Ryan Howard is in the last year of his contract with the team and that will dump $25 million in cap space once he is gone. The Phillies dug themselves quite a hole from 2012-2014 in spending, but it now looks like the team has the cap space under control. Rebuilding was the only way to go.
Next: What non contenders can look forward to
The Phillies have put themselves in a very nice position over the past two seasons. It looks like all of the suffering is close to being over. With the 7th best farm system in baseball, the team is just missing one thing, veteran presence. The news that the team will attack free-agency this year is a very promising sign. The team has not won 80+ games since the 2012 season and has not made the playoffs since 2011. For a city that is quick to boo its teams, the time for booing may coming to a close.