Philadelphia Phillies continue to aggressively stand pat

The Philadelphia Phillies continue to be aggressive…at standing pat.

Almost two weeks ago, I declared the Philadelphia Phillies off-season shopping spree over, and a reader almost immediately jumped on that, calling it “completely bogus” on Twitter. This challenge resulted not from a misuse of “spree” on my part (since Didi Gregorius following an off-year and Zack Wheeler do not make up a spree), but because Phillies GM Matt Klentak had allowed he might well sign somebody.

Klentak had also said that he felt his team, as constituted around Dec. 15, was good enough to win the Phillies division, the now loaded NL East.

So, my correspondent and I had a modest but civilized debate about what might constitute a reasonable inference from a declaration that a team is good enough to win its division, and a little further discussion about the potential of the starter-relievers on the Phillies I call the Three Failing Amigos.

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And then the PC I used to use to write on died.

This left me ever so fearful the Phillies would sign several megastars without my being able to cover that.

Then a major holiday came and went, and surely it’s not unreasonable to consider that the hot stove season would pause for celebration. And for the Phillies that certainly has been the case.

When MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki went to summarize the Phillies off-season moves this winter on Dec. 20, the only made move he could list for the team after Dec. 15 was an invitation to a former Tigers minor-league outfielder (Mikie Mahtook) to come to Spring Training. Zolecki’s piece has not been updated since the 20th.

Indeed, the only Phillies news emerging as the holiday passed was that new manager Joe Girardi likes a holiday treat he refers to as “pretzel salad,” a very concerning mixture of smashed pretzels, butter, cream cheese, whipped cream and strawberry Jell-O, a dish unlikely to appear on the Phillies clubhouse menu in Florida.

Elsewhere, MLB.com seems disinterested in updating their article on free agents with those who have signed recently, but maybe Dallas Keuchel isn’t yet listed with the White Sox because he hasn’t passed a physical or he misspelled his name on the contract or something. In any event there aren’t many free agents left to set hearts pounding.

If the Philadelphia Phillies want another starting pitcher who didn’t start for them in 2019 or isn’t named Wheeler, it appears they will have to count on rising minor league star Spencer Howard. Their winter shopping spree still comprises, apparently, Wheeler and Gregorius.