The Philadelphia Phillies are looking to move both Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz. Both players have cleared waivers but neither are expected to be dealt.
The Philadelphia Phillies stayed put at this year’s trade deadline. With Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz clearing waivers, will the team cut ties and move on?
Over the past couple of seasons the Phillies have traded away their championship core in exchange for a full-out rebuild. The two players that were left behind from that core are most likely to be staying with the team. According to Jayson Stark, Ryan Howard and Carlos Ruiz have cleared waivers and it is unlikely that either of them will be dealt. Stark said that there are a couple of teams “mulling” Ruiz, but Howard is almost certainly staying in Philadelphia.
Sources say Ryan Howard & Carlos Ruiz both cleared waivers. Heard of 2 teams mulling Ruiz. Howard virtually certain to stay in Philly.
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) August 24, 2016
Howard, 36, is in the midst of his worst season of his career. In 290 plate appearances, Howard is hitting .199/.252/.442 with 19 home runs and 43 RBI. While the power is still there, it is nearly impossible to play him everyday. At one point this season, he was hitting below the .140 mark.
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There is a possibility that he could fit with an American League team as a DH but the team has had a lot of trouble trading him. Howard is in the last year of a huge six-year, $125 million deal. There is a team option for 2017 but there is no chance that the team exercises it. The team will look to move him but the thought around the league is that he is staying in Philadelphia.
Carlos Ruiz has moved aside in favor of the hot-hitting Cameron Rupp this season. The 37-year-old veteran catcher is currently hitting .261/.368/.352 in 193 plate appearances. Like Howard, Ruiz is also in the last year of his current three-year, $26 million deal with a team option for next season. The thought is that the team will not exercise that option either. Ruiz could provide some value to a contending team, as he has a lot of playoff experience. The jury is still out on whether the team will in fact deal Ruiz, but there are definitely a few teams interested.
With the Phillies out of the race in the National League, it should be time to be out with the old and in with the new. The team has already traded most of their core from the 2008 World Series team, and is currently in a deep rebuild. It is time to trade these two and move on. Even if the team can not get much for either of them, the time has come to cut ties.