Phillies pitcher Michael Lorenzen (left), manager Rob Thomson and Aaron Nola (right) chat while both were standing in centerfield during batting practice before Game 7 of the baseball NL Championship Series between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
Phillies Pursue Blockbuster Trade With Houston Astros Over the Ace Have Been Successful
It was shocking to many people that the Philadelphia Phillies stayed in the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes until the very end.
Their high payroll and seemingly set rotation made people think they would stand pat instead of going after high-profile players.
Instead, the Phillies made a competitive offer to land the Japanese phenom before he ultimately signed a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
That might have been the only player Philadelphia was interested in shelling out major money for after becoming enamored with him during their evaluations in case Aaron Nola didn’t sign a deal with them.
But, maybe Dave Dombrowski also isn’t so set on his rotation after all?
If they are still looking for another elite starter, then they might turn their attention to making a trade with the Houston Astros to acquire Framber Valdez.
Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report put together a trade package that the Phillies could give up to land the left-handed ace.
In his proposal, Philadelphia would send Christopher Sanchez and their No. 2 overall prospect, Mick Abel, to the Astros in return for Valdez.
While giving up two young, controllable arms in Sanchez and Abel would hurt, they are not ready to impact this “win now” roster as much as the superstar lefty would.
Valdez has finished inside the Top 10 in American League Cy Young voting the past two years. He also has major playoff experience, winning the World Series title against the Phillies in 2022.
His contract would be for roughly $13 million in 2024 and he has another year of arbitration left before hitting free agency.
This is a no-brainer type of deal for Philadelphia if all they have to give up is Sanchez and Abel to land an elite starting pitcher to add to this rotation.
