The countdown is on. Major League Baseball's contenders have three weeks until the July 31 trade deadline to solidify their rosters for the stretch run and the postseason. As one of those teams, the National League East-leading Philadelphia Phillies will be looking to bolster the club for what will, hopefully, be a long October of baseball.
The trade deadline rumor mill has been slow to get going this year. Luckily, ESPN's Jeff Passan has us covered with his most recent list of top moves for contenders to make. His best match for the Phillies' deadline would be a game-changer — literally and figuratively.
Jeff Passan wants Phillies to make huge trade deadline deal for Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase ... and more
The Phillies desperately need bullpen help. Passan thinks the Phillies should be targeting Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase. But the Phillies could also use an upgrade in the outfield. Passan thinks a remedy for that could be trying to include outfielder Steven Kwan in the deal for Clase.
"As long as the Phillies are aiming high -- and nobody aims high quite like Dave Dombrowski -- perhaps they could take a run at landing both Clase and Steven Kwan from Cleveland," Passan says.
It would be hard to say no to bringing in both Clase and Kwan.
Clase, 27, has been the Guardians' closer since 2021, racking up 176 saves (with 28 blown saves). He got off to a slow start this season, with a 6.75 ERA and five saves in seven chances through the end of April. Since May 1, Clase has been nails at the back of Cleveland's bullpen. He has a 1.33 ERA with 14 saves in 16 chances and 26 strikeouts to just seven walks (two intentional) in 27 innings.
Emmanuel Clase, STRAIGHT GAS 🔥 pic.twitter.com/kxCf65pgNb
— MLB (@MLB) October 5, 2024
The Phillies' bullpen, as we all know, has been riding the struggle bus most of the season. Neither offseason addition of Jordan Romano nor Joe Ross has panned out how the front office had hoped. Combine that with losing the best reliever on the staff, José Alvarado, to an 80-game PED suspension, and it's fair to say it's been an unmitigated disaster.
Yet, the Phillies are still 54-39 and one of the top teams in the majors. Imagine how good they'd be if the bullpen didn't have the eighth-worst ERA (4.39). Adding a shutdown closer like Clase would help manager Rob Thomson navigate the rest of the late-inning usage to put guys in the best spots possible and not have to ask for five-out saves.
Kwan, 27, might be exactly what the Phillies need in the outfield and in the lineup. He's a left-handed hitter but can hit both left- and right-handed pitching. He's not a power bat, with six home runs this season, but he doesn't strikeout, hits for average and gets on base, slashing .292/.350/.408 with an 8.6 percent strikeout rate.
Kwan is also an above-average defender. He has played all three outfield positions in the past but has spent this season as the Guardians' primary left fielder. He ranks second among left fielders with +3 fielding run value, while the Phillies' current struggling left fielder, Max Kepler, has -2 FRV.
Steven Kwan makes the leaping grab! pic.twitter.com/SHppl6dK6r
— MLB (@MLB) July 6, 2025
What will Phillies have to give up to make trade with Guardians work?
Grabbing both Clase and Kwan at the deadline will cost Phillies president Dave Dombrowski some top prospects. At least that's what Passan believes. Dombrowski has been hugging his best prospects now that he has a group of high-end names at the top of the system.
"Maybe it would take Andrew Painter. Maybe Aidan Miller. Maybe Justin Crawford," Passan muses.
Phillies No. 1 and MLB No. 10 prospect Andrew Painter might be the only truly untouchable name among MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Phillies prospects. The right-hander will hopefully make his MLB debut in the second half, despite some struggles in Triple-A.
Shortstop Aidan Miller (Phillies No. 2, MLB No. 22) and outfielder Justin Crawford (Phillies No. 3, MLB No. 49) could be moved for the right pieces coming back to Philly. Would Clase and Kwan make that happen?
Clase's contract runs through 2028, while Kwan is under team control through 2027, so they'd be more than short-term rentals, which as Passan points out, "would make dealing high-end prospects significantly more palatable."
With the window on this current core closing, it's time for Dombrowski and the Phillies to make the big splash we've all been waiting for.