Phillies’ stretch-drive plans
By Tal Venada
Changes on the horizon:
Regarding the rotation, the Phillies have four starters with acceptable results against postseason hopefuls. In fact, they also have Nick Pivetta and De Los Santos in addition to Jerad Eickhoff, who could be a long reliever if he returns from the disabled list.
The bullpen, on the other hand, is short one late-inning fireman to handle October opponents, and Britton is Klentak’s rental preference. Yes, the market has closers on also-ran teams, but they are under contract for two years or more. Translation: Prospects required!
To improve the offense, Kapler forced Franco to wait for good pitches by hitting at the bottom of the order. So far, so good! He’s averaging .352 with four bombs and 11 RBIs since June 23 and getting opportunities to slot higher in the lineup.
According to Klentak in a recent TV interview, he stated his sartisfaction with Franco. The decision-maker also believes the third baseman could be with the club next summer as well. Basically, the formula is talent and motivation will equal worthwhile production.
As a backup plan, second sacker Whit Merrifield, 29, is a super sub and can also handle the hot corner, center field and right field. He’s batting .307 but hit .288 in 2017 and .282 in 2016. Additionally, he belted 19 homers with 78 RBIs in ’17. And right field needs more offense.
While the O’s are asking for a future ace, no club will agree to that for a two-month rental. But they like right-hander Adonis Medina with the Single-A Advanced Clearwater Threshers. And though he is right behind Sanchez prospect-wise, that may change after a difficult first half: 8-3, a 4.92 ERA and five duds out of 15 starts.
Meanwhile, dollars are also a factor because the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers do not want to exceed the $197 million competitive-balance threshold. Both clubs must reset the penalty percentages to avoid paying 50 percent of any amount surpassing that ceiling. Ergo, trade more prospects.