As the Major League Baseball offseason churns toward the holidays, fans of every team are hoping to get an early present before Santa arrives. Philadelphia Phillies fans are among some of the most anxious fans around, after seeing the front office stand pat ever since the Jordan Romano signing on the first day of the Winter Meetings.
While the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers have made some big moves already, all the Phillies really have is rumors. Third baseman Alec Bohm is one of the most rumored trade names to be bandied about. However, there has been some confusion about how available he is.
MLB insider doesn't buy what the Phillies are selling about Alec Bohm's trade status
During the Winter Meetings, Phillies manager Rob Thomson made a point of telling media that he had called Bohm to reassure him that the team wasn't actively shopping him, per NBC Sports Philadlephia's Corey Seidman. The front office was fielding calls about Bohm, and were understandably talking to teams because of the interest in the 2024 All-Star.
One MLB insider doesn't buy it. MLB Network's Jon Morosi said on the Foul Territory podcast on Tuesday that he still believes the Phillies want to trade the 28-year-old, who has two arbitration years left.
"Alec Bohm, the Phillies clearly want to trade him. They clearly have not been successful in their attempts so far," Morosi said. "I would expect he will not be on the Phillies by the start of the season. I don't know where he's going.
"Could he go to Seattle in some kind of expanded package for (Luis) Castillo? That would seem to make sense. it wouldn't be one-for-one, there would have to be other pieces going back and forth. ... It seems to me that at some point the Phillies are going to do something ... but Dave Dombrowski is not the type to end the season the way they did and then come back with the same team the next year."
Will the @Phillies trade Alec Bohm this winter? @Ken_Rosenthal thinks it will happen... pic.twitter.com/8M8UX8GlIX
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) December 17, 2024
The Phillies have been unsuccessful trading Bohm thus far thanks in part to what they're reportedly asking for him. They asked the Athletics for closer Mason Miller, and earlier this offseason wanted one of the Mariners' young starting studs, Logan Gilbert or George Kirby.
How motivated are the Phillies to move Bohm? We might never know unless, as Morosi thinks, they complete a trade before spring training.
Mets want to add Alex Bregman
Another third baseman who is a hot commodity on the free agent market is former Houston Astros veteran Alex Bregman. While there are a handful of teams known to be in talks with his camp, there's one that the Phillies really won't want to see sign him.
MLB.com's Mark Feinsand reports that the Mets are one of the clubs "in on Bregman."
According to Danny Abriano of SNY, the addition of Bregman would all but force the Mets to move on from career Met Pete Alonso. In his stead, Abriano suggests they could move playoff breakout star Mark Viento to first base.
The Mets have unquestionably been the busiest team in the NL East this offseason. In addition to getting Juan Soto on a record-setting deal, they have also already added starting pitchers Frankie Montas and Clay Holmes, as well as outfielder Jose Siri.
They have a good reason for the additions, after losing a laundry list of players to free agency. Still, from a Phillies perspective, seeing Mets owner Steve Cohen open the wallet again for a player of Bregman's caliber would be tough to take. It has been reported that the two-time World Series champion is looking for a contract around the $200 million mark.