One of the quietest offseasons in baseball history hasn’t hurt the Phillies
Offseasons in the Phillies front office hasn’t been quite as active and exciting as they once were. During Ruben Amaro Jr.’s tenure, any and every free agent or trade candidate was a potential match.
Now under new management and the middle of a rebuild, the Phillies aren’t signing every big name free agent. No more Cliff Lee, Jonathan Papelbon, or Marlon Byrd signings, at least for now.
Despite the lack of blockbuster additions this offseason the Phillies front office has been amongst the more active groups in baseball. With nearly every free agent still on the open market, the baseball hot stove has been considerably cold with a month until spring training.
According to Spotrac, the Phillies have made four official signings with the Minnesota Twins making seven, the most recorded by the site. Those four include Pat Neshek, Tommy Hunter, Pedro Beato (minor league deal), and Carlos Santana, but do not list minor league deals for Will Middlebrooks and Matt McBride, among others.
Santana’s three-year $60 million deal is the biggest contract handed out this offseason. His number will be surpassed by J.D. Martinez, Jake Arrieta, and other superstar free agents.
Additionally, the Phillies made a trade with San Diego sending Freddy Galvis for pitching prospect Enyel De Los Santos. The 22-year-old Dominican-native is currently rated as the organization’s ninth-bets prospect by MLB Pipeline.
Next: Top 5 outfielders of the last decade
Thus, between signing three veteran players and trading a major piece of their middle infield for a top-10 prospect, Phillies general manager Matt Klentak has been the lone coal burning in a cold hot stove