In a somewhat surprising move, the Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly acquired Andrew McCutchen in a 3-year, $50M deal. The deal also includes a club option, according to Matt Gelb.
After dealing Carlos Santana in order to move Rhys Hoskins back to 1B, the Philadelphia Phillies were left with a gaping hole in the outfield. It has long been rumored that the Phillies would want to fill that hole with one of baseball’s young superstars, Bryce Harper. Instead, the Phillies shocked the baseball world by signing Andrew McCutchen to a 3-year deal.
The Andrew McCutchen deal is for three years -- plus a club option -- and $50 million, according to sources.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) December 11, 2018
Does this mean that the Phillies are out on Harper? Absolutely not!
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With so many teams in on Bryce Harper, what the Phillies did was secure themselves a good outfielder just in case they miss out on an exceptional one.
This move is more of a security measure than anything. The Phillies get themselves a reliable outfielder who can get on base with the base of them. In fact, McCutchen ranked 20th in all of MLB in OBP (.368) last season.
The move also signals that the Phillies might be all in on Manny Machado, who alongside McCutchen would surely make this Phillies offseason more than a successful one.
The Phillies acquiring McCutchen will also send ripples throughout MLB. With free agents Michael Brantley and A.J. Pollock still on the market, their value becomes a tad bit clearer with this move. On average, Cutch will receive $16M-$17M per season. This could mean that Brantley and Pollock could also receive three-year deals worth somewhere around the $15M range.
Not too shabby for a couple of decent outfielders.
The fact of the matter is that this move certainly improves the Phillies. It also reduces the chances that Bryce Harper will go to Philadelphia, but it doesn’t take the Phillies entirely out of the sweepstakes for the OF.
As of right now, the team is set to meet both Harper and Machado this week. Things should become more clearer on who the Philadelphia Phillies will target after those meetings take place.
I have a hunch that it’s going to be Machado.