Call to the pen
Fansided

Phillies: Route to acquire Gerrit Cole for 2020

By Tal Venada

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 15: Gerrit Cole #45 of the Houston Astros celebrates retiring the side during the sixth inning against the New York Yankees in game three of the American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium on October 15, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 15: Gerrit Cole #45 of the Houston Astros celebrates retiring the side during the sixth inning against the New York Yankees in game three of the American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium on October 15, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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Ryu could be the rotation southpaw the Phillies have lacked. Photo by Alex Trautwig/MLB Photos via Getty Images. /

Western divisions:         

To bid on Gerrit Cole, some franchises won’t be able to compete with deep-pocketed organizations like the Phillies. Financially, the Oakland A’s are an American League West club you can eliminate, plus the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers probably aren’t ready to spend for a divisional title.

As for the National League West, the Colorado Rockies have abysmal bullpen contracts. And the last place San Diego Padres are counting on their young starters for ’20 and beyond, plus they finished 22 games under .500. Meanwhile, the Arizona Diamondbacks have unloaded ace Zack Greinke‘s commitment.

Monetarily, even though the Houston Astros have their second and third sackers under contract, their center fielder will be a free agent after 2020, plus their shortstop and young starter returning from Tommy John surgery will be more expensive. That stated, to keep Cole will require creativity from the execs.

Concerning the Los Angeles Angels, the rotation and the pen have titanic needs, but they have only $50-55 million AAV. However, signing Gerrit Cole and pairing him with their two-way star won’t satisfactorily address their shortcomings and produce a wild-card berth even with Mike Trout. But will they do it?

$208 million competitive-balance threshold for 2020:

  • Astros: $230.9 million AAV with 8 departing free agents: 2 SPs, 4 RPs and 2 Cs.
  • Angels: $154.3 million AAV with 1 departing free agent: RP.
  • Dodgers: $182.8 million AAV with 4 departing free agents: 2 SPs, C and INF.
  • Giants: $139.2 million AAV with 6 departing free agents: SP, CL-RP, 2 RPs, C and INF.
  • Padres: $133.3 million AAV with 1 departing free agent: RP.
  • Free agents not included in the team’s total AAV.
  • Phillies: $191.2 million AAV with 8 departing free agents: LF, SP, 4 RPs and 2 INFs.

With closer Kenley Jansen‘s decline, the Los Angeles Dodgers will spend to plug their ninth-frame hole. Staff-wise, they have in-house moundsmen to replace two free-agent starters including Hyun-Jin Ryu because ownership’s plan is staying under the $208 million mark.

The San Francisco Giants are a good example of a team not letting go of their glory days, and their owner wants the attendance numbers of championship 162s. However, Cole unlike Harper isn’t an everyday player. But Anthony Rendon is a regular for $200 million. Yes, they can ink a top-tier star and fill other holes.

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