Phillies: Five free agents to reunite with Joe Girardi
![August 29, 2014: New York Yankees Infield Martin Prado (14) [5328] in action during the New York Yankees 6-3 victory over theToronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON (Photo by Gerry Angus/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape%2Fcover%2Fsport%2Fhttps-3A-2F-2Fthatballsouttahere-com-2Fwp-content-2Fuploads-2Fgetty-images-2F2017-2F07-2F577780200-08c4dc80e3aeb556745be68dee7df7ac.jpg "August 29, 2014: New York Yankees Infield Martin Prado (14) [5328] in action during the New York Yankees 6-3 victory over theToronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON (Photo by Gerry Angus/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)")
Martin Prado
I’ve been a long-time advocate for the Phillies signing Martin Prado, who has played every position except catcher, pitcher, and center field in his 14-year career with the Yankees, Diamondbacks, Marlins, and Braves.
Throughout his career Prado has been a consistent hitter who can handle himself across the diamond and provide leadership in the locker room. When Jose Fernandez tragically died in a boating accident, Prado was one of the players who led the Marlins organization forward.
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Prado was traded to Girardi’s Yankees at the July 31 trade deadline in 2014 and hit .316 in 37 games for the pinstripes. He’s hit at least .280 in nine seasons and hit over .300 five times, most recently in 2016.
Prado could fill a role similar to Frazier as the short-term bridge to Bohm in 2020 and as a utility player down the stretch. He’s a career .282 hitter at Citizens Bank Park with nine home runs and 17 doubles in his career in Philadelphia.
This wouldn’t be the biggest splash made by the Phillies or any other this offseason, but Prado would at the very least replace Sean Rodriguez as the utility man and reunite him with Girardi.