Phillies Trade Chips: Piece and Chooch
For the Philadelphia Phillies and all around baseball, the MLB non-waiver trade deadline is approaching, and a number of Phils could be on the move.
Over the next couple of days, I’ll be taking a look at some of the various Phillies players who I believe stand the best chance of being moved by the club before the MLB non-waiver trade deadline of August 1st, or some time after that point after clearing waivers.
A pair of players who I believe could fit into either of those possibilities are the two senior citizens in the clubhouse, the last two remaining 2008 World Series heroes, 1st baseman Ryan Howard and catcher Carlos Ruiz.
Both ‘The Big Piece’ and ‘Chooch’ are in the final guaranteed seasons of their contracts. They are both into their upper-30’s, with Howard now 36 and Ruiz at 37 years of age. They have each been replaced in the starting lineup.
More from Phillies Rumors
- Phillies rumors: Club targets Seth Lugo for possible bullpen role
- Could Phillies sign 2nd former Mets starting pitcher in same offseason?
- Phillies rumor: Dansby Swanson could be club’s alternative to Trea Turner
- Rob Thomson apology hints possible Phillies blockbuster signing
- Phillies rumors: Club likely to land top shortstop on free-agent market
Really, there is no reason at this point that either player needs to be on this current Phillies roster. The Phils need to give Tommy Joseph and Cameron Rupp the full-time plate appearances against all pitching to better gauge exactly what they might have for the future.
There are options to fill their roles as a backup. Aaron Altherr is within a couple of weeks of being ready to be activated from the disabled list. This could allow the Phils to begin working out someone like Cody Asche as a backup for 1st base.
The most likely scenario behind the dish would be that Rupp continues as the starter, and that the club promotes their AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs backup, Logan Moore. This would enable Andrew Knapp and Jorge Alfaro to continue getting full-time at-bats at AAA and AA respectively.
When you are talking about dealing Ruiz and Howard, you have to be realistic in your expectations of what the Phillies would be getting in return. These are basically going to be giveaways.
You should expect, first of all, that the Phillies would likely have to take care of both the $10 million buyout of Howard’s 2017 contract, and the $500,000 buyout on the Ruiz contract for next season.
Even with picking up the rest of those deals, the Phillies should expect nothing more in return than a low-level prospect from another organization.
The destination would be a strong contending team for each, giving the two respected veterans who have contributed so much to the franchise’ past success that one more opportunity to play in the postseason and a run at a late-career ring.
So you should be thinking that it will be a contender with a possible need, one willing to pay a low price to add an experienced veteran to their roster and clubhouse.
Let’s take a look at two possible destinations and deals for these two beloved Phillies veterans.
Next: RUIZ TO CLEVELAND
‘CHOOCH’ TO THE TRIBE
You could make a valid argument that Ruiz could step right in and become the Indians everyday starter. This is a weak link position for Terry Francona‘s contending Tribe.
The Indians are 53-36 and leading the AL Central Division race by 6.5 games. However, their starting catcher is 28-year old Yan Gomes, who has just a .163/.198/.310 slash line with eight homers and 32 RBI over 245 at-bats.
The Tribe’s current backup, Chris Gimenez, is a 33-year old with a .185/.230/.272 slash line with two homers and four RBI over 81 at-bats.
Perhaps the Phillies could pry someone like 23-year old outfielder Greg Allen loose in this deal. While he is never likely to be an impact player, Allen has speed and could become a valued organizational piece with chance to fill gaps at AA Reading once others begin to be promoted.
Next: HOWARD TO HOUSTON
NICE ‘PIECE’ FOR YOUNG ‘STROS?
The Houston Astros are sitting at 49-41, just 4.5 games back of Texas in the AL West race, but also only one game behind Toronto and tied with the Blue Jays in the loss column of the race for the final AL Wildcard spot.
While the Astros do have some pop, with six players sporting double-digit home run totals, their 1st base production is lacking.
Rookie and highly considered young 1st baseman A.J. Reed is thus far hitting just .143/.244/.314 over the first 13 games and 35 at-bats since his promotion.
Miguel Gonzalez has just seven homers and 25 RBI in 263 ABs, and Tyler White has seven homers and 20 RBI in 166 ABs.
Again, this is a situation where it is not unreasonable to think that ‘The Big Piece’ could actually take over a starting role for a contender, either as a 1st baseman or in the Designated Hitter spot.
Perhaps Howard could bring back someone like 25-year old utility infielder Nolan Fontana. He has no bat, but is a nice infielder with experience at 2nd base and on the left side.
He could become an organizational piece at AAA Lehigh Valley, ready for a call-up should any injuries happen to the big league infield depth.
Next: RUIZ TO THE RANGERS
CHOOCH AND COLE REUNION IN AL
The Texas Rangers are leading the AL West Division with a 54-37 record, 4.5 games ahead of the surging Houston Astros.
A key to this deal might be a guy by the name of Cole Hamels, who just happens to now be the ace of the Rangers’ pitching rotation, and who certainly respects and would recommend Ruiz highly.
The current starting catcher in Texas is 32-year old Robinson Chirinos, who has a .197/.274/.474 slash line with just six homers and 12 RBI over 76 at-bats.
The Rangers have also given 112 at-bats to Bobby Wilson, 84 to Bryan Holaday, and 35 to Brett Nicholas at the catching position, all with little success.
Once again, this is a situation where Chooch could potentially step in and become the starting catcher for a legit contender.
Certainly as a part-timer at minimum who brings strong playoff experience, he would be an asset. You know Cole would love to see his former battery-mate in Arlington.
Maybe Matt Klentak could pry a decent arm such as 19-year old righty Israel Cruz from Texas in a deal. The Venezuelan native Cruz is struggling in his first US experience at Rookie ball after coming from the Dominican Summer League, and has growth potential still.
The Rangers would love to see the kind of result that Hamels and Ruiz teamed for here in his final Phillies start before last July’s trade between the two clubs…
Next: HOWARD TO THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO
PIECE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO
The Chicago White Sox are hanging in there at 45-44, which had them eight games behind Cleveland in the AL Central race, but just 4.5 out of the final AL Wildcard battle.
The Chisox have already been down this former Phillies superstar road this season. Jimmy Rollins began the year as the starting shortstop.
But after 166 at-bats over 41 games in the season’s first month and a half, JRoll had obviously lost his mojo, the Sox had young Tim Anderson ready to take over, and they released the former Phillies hero.
So would Chicago go down that road again? Perhaps. Certainly not for 1st base, where 29-year old Cuban import Jose Abreu is hitting .270/.326/.426 with 11 homers, 52 RBI, and seven steals.
However, the Sox have gotten little out of Avisail Garcia or anyone else in the DH slot. That would appear a perfect place to slot in Howard, who could also spell Abreu once in a while against particularly tough righty pitching.
Maybe the White Sox would part with 25-year old righty Chris Beck, who has never put it all together, but could slip into a AAA rotation right away and perhaps even become a big league bullpen piece at some point.