Philadelphia Phillies: Three trade targets ahead of the MLB trade deadline

A few potential targets for the Philadelphia Phillies to bolster their staff.

Despite a long list of injuries to high-profile names, a COVID-19 outbreak, schedule disruptions, and everything else that has come with trying to complete a shortened MLB season amidst a global pandemic, the National League East is currently a hotly contested division with the Philadelphia Phillies right in the thick of the race.

Entering Sunday, the Atlanta Braves sit in first place with an 18-14 record while the Washington Nationals are in last place (12-18), but find themselves only five games behind Atlanta.

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The Philadelphia Phillies are 14-14, two games behind Atlanta for first place in the division and only half a game out of a Wild Card spot.

With the offense clicking (fifth in team batting average, second in on-base percentage, and sixth in team wRC+), it’s the pitching that needs to be addressed by Monday afternoon’s deadline if the Phillies want to make a run.

We don’t need to dive into the bullpen numbers again. Philadelphia’s bullpen is a disaster, it’s no secret. Luckily, there are a handful of quality names available on the market, many of whom can likely be acquired at a low cost.

The Phillies have already traded for Heath Hembree, Brandon Workman, and David Hale, but that’s not going to be enough.

With 30 games over 27 days to close out the season, including five doubleheaders in September, Philadelphia will need plenty of arms to help them finish the season and earn a playoff spot.

Here are three pitchers the Philadelphia Phillies should consider adding before Monday’s 4 pm trade deadline, including a mix of bullpen arms and possible starters to help with the condensed upcoming schedule.

The Philadelphia Phillies should add at least one more bullpen arm.

Even though we’re just a day away from the deadline, it’s still 100% clear whether the San Francisco Giants are going to be buyers or sellers. Thanks to a recent surge of wins, the Giants may be an addition or two away from a playoff spot, but if they elect to focus on rebuilding for the long term future, they have plenty of notable pieces to move.

Reliever Tony Watson is one of those pieces. Watson hasn’t given up a run in his last eight outings (seven of which were one inning performances), and owns a 0.84 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, and a .154 average against on the season.

One more number that instantly sticks out when looking at Watson’s season is his ground ball rate. Currently at 53.3%, Watson is producing a career-high ground ball rate, a 7% jump compared to his 2018 and 2019 numbers.

Like Givens, Watson isn’t going to be your ninth-inning guy, but Watson has been effective this season out of the Giants bullpen and he appears to be fully healthy from his shoulder injury.

Watson is 35 years old and would be a rental pickup for the Phillies, meaning the price tag should be much lower than that of Mychal Givens or many of the other names on this list. If the Phillies want someone who can eat more innings over the final month of the season and then slide over into the bullpen come playoff time, maybe looking at the Giants starting rotation makes a little more sense.

The Philadelphia Phillies would benefit from adding a versatile starting pitcher.

While much of the focus has been on Philadelphia’s bullpen and the acquisition of relievers, what about adding someone who can do both?

San Francisco Giants starter Kevin Gausman (and fellow former Baltimore Orioles arm), has quietly had a solid season out on the west coast, going 1-2 with a 3.31 FIP in six starts (seven total appearances) for the Giants.

He’s struck out 48 hitters in 35.2 innings, resulting in a career-high 31.6% strikeout rate, an extreme jump from some of his previous seasons in the big leagues. His 25.3% strikeout rate in 2019 was previously a career-high and a significant jump from his 19% rate in 2018.

Gausman’s fastball velocity has jumped from 93.9 mph to 95.2 mph this season (including a few 99 mph four-seamers on the black this season) and his splitter has been working wonders in 2020. Used 42% of the time, Gausman is allowing a .149 average against his splitter and producing a 45% whiff rate.

He signed a one-year/$9 million deal with San Francisco before the start of the season, so Gausman is a rental but he’s had success as a starter this year and he’s proven he can handle himself out of the bullpen.

After struggling with Atlanta in 2018 (traded from Baltimore to Atlanta at the ’18 deadline) and continuing to struggle in Atlanta’s rotation to begin 2019, Gausman found a home in Cincinnati’s bullpen, closing out 2019 with a 3.17 FIP and 29/5 K/BB ratio in 22 innings for the Reds.

For Philadelphia, Gausman can fit into the back of the starting rotation now and move into a highly valuable long-man role once the playoffs begin. With five doubleheaders upcoming, his ability to work five-six inning starts will be a huge boost.