February 25, 2013; Glendale, AZ, USA; Chicago Cubs right fielder Jorge Soler (68) in the dugout before a spring training game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

After a bang-bang play at second in which he felt wronged by Threshers’ second baseman Edgar Alonso, Soler and Alonso argued until both benches cleared and everybody got really serious.  No one took any action, though, and the situation simmered down after teammate Javier Baez and coach Marinao Duncan pulled him away.  Soler apparently thought he was stepped on.

Afterward, Soler had clearly not attained a sense of closure on the incident, grabbed a bat, and sprinted meaningfully for the Threshers’ dugout.  He was stopped before anyone got hurt.

“Daytona manager Dave Keller told the News Journal those few seconds were ‘kind of like a nightmare.’”

–Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune

He never actually got to swing the bat before his teammates were on him, and obviously, the league and/or team will be invoking repercussions.  Though a Cubs writer had one thoughtful suggestion.

Cubs still looking into Soler incident. Apparently he challenged a whole team to come fight him.Bring him up!trib.in/17s4kvF

— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) April 11, 2013

When pressed for comment, Delmon Young shook his head and muttered, “That’s why I always go with the long range attack.”

Sept 12, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Chicago Cubs left fielder Alfonso Soriano (12) hits a home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Campbell-US PRESSWIRE

There have been numerous reports coming out in the past couple of days talking about the Phillies being a good fit for Cubs outfielder Alfonso Soriano. The reason why this is being brought up is because FOX Sports Jon Paul Morosi reported that the Cubs just might trade Soriano.

The question is: Should the Phillies take a look at this old outfielder? Remember this is not the Alfonso Soriano of the New York Yankees back in his hay day. Soriano is 36 years old and remember if you are the Phillies you want to get younger not older.

Last season, in 151 games played with the Cubs, Soriano had a great year with 32 home runs, 1o8 RBIs, and a .262 batting average. By his numbers alone last season makes him enticing to trade for but you have to remember his contract situation. Soriano signed an eight year, $136 million contract with the Cubs back in November of 2006 and he is due to make $18 million this upcoming season. So that could scare the Phillies away and also he can only play left field.

Left field is a position that the Phillies do not need to go after because they have Darin Ruf and Domonic Brown. We finally saw some growth from Brown last season after the Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino trades.

If I’m the Phillies and if you want Soriano, then do it at the right price. Do not give up your best prospects for an aging outfielder instead give up some second tier prospects that have already hit their ceiling. Let’s keep an eye on this possible rumor because there might be some buzz to this.

Jovan Alford is a staff writer for The Sixer Sense, a writer for Buzz On Broad covering the Philadelphia 76ers and Local College Basketball, and is a writer for Rant Sports covering the A-10 Conference for College Basketball.

Follow me on twitter @Jovan10 for Sixers, College Basketball, NFL, MLB, and all sports updates.

For any inquiries contact me via email: jovan.alford@gmail.com

That Alfonso Soriano, everybody. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Hilderbrand-US PRESSWIRE

The Chicago Cubs have been trying to trade Alfonso Soriano for about 25 years now. Finally, after all these years, it appears there’s a chance it could happen this week at the Winter Meetings.

And according to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, the Philadelphia Phillies are seen as a potential landing spot.

That thing you smell is desperation, by the way.

Back in 2006 the Phillies attempted to sign Soriano as a free agent. That was back when he was 31 years old and was coming off a season in which he hit 46 HRs and stole 41 bases in the same season.

But the Cubs won the bidding, and signed him to an eight-year, $136 million deal.

It was the best signing the Phillies never made.

Soriano is now coming off a season of revival, hitting .262/.322/.499 for an OPS of .821 and an OPS+ of 121, with 32 HRs, 108 RBIs and 33 2Bs. He also played in 151 games, the most he’s played in since ’06.

The Cubs know there will never be a better opportunity to sell (I mean, pawn off) Soriano to another team.

Still, Soriano will be 37 next year and will be owed $18 million in 2013 and 2014. That’s two more years at $36 million total for a player who will be 38 at the end of his contract.

Um, yeah. So, there’s that.

Listen, we all know the Phils are desperate for right-handed power. The best right-handed power bat on the Phillies right now is Jimmy Rollins, and that’s just sad. So a right-handed bat with some pop is a darn good target for Amaro to pursue.

But Soriano is so horrifically bad in the outfield, and is such a detriment on the bases as well, he was only a 1.8 WAR player last year, despite his power numbers.

The only way a deal for Soriano makes sense for the Phillies, or ANY team, is if Chicago eats at least 80% of Alfonso’s salary and don’t require the Phils to give up any of their top prospects.

In other words, this deal would have to be so Phillie-friendly there’s no way Ruben could say no.

Of course, that’s not likely to happen. And as such, the reaction to the speculation of Soriano to the Phils has been about as expected.

#Phillies and #Cubs talking about Alfonso Soriano? I hope it went like this: Epstein- “What about Soriano?” Amaro- “No.”

— Whiz Wit Sports (@WhizWitSports) December 1, 2012

Alfonso Soriano is probably THE worst thing the #Phillies could do this winter, unless they’re paying him practically nothing.

— Greg Pinto (@Greg_Pinto) December 1, 2012

Yep, that about sums it up.

The Phillies desperately need power from the right-hand side of the plate.

That doesn’t mean they should act desperate, though.