This season, the Philadelphia Phillies have finally witnessed the arrival of one of their stud pitching propsects. But for all it’s worth, it isn’t Andrew Painter, but instead fellow top prospect Mick Abel. Called upon for rotation duty initially when Phillies’ ace Aaron Nola went down with an ankle injury, Abel shone in his MLB debut, pitching six scoreless innings with a whopping nine strikeouts against the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 18.
Abel has since received a more extended look after that promising start to his MLB career. He hasn’t looked out of place in his subsequent outings, until he ran into some trouble in his last start against the New York Mets last weekend. Whether Abel can hold up his early success so far is anyone’s guess. But the Phillies can take full advantage of his sudden strong showing to potentially net some key pieces at the trade deadline instead.
Could Mick Abel help Phillies add a closer and an outfielder from Orioles at trade deadline?
MLB insider Jim Bowden of The Athletic proposed that the Phillies should use Abel as the ideal trade chip to land two key players at the deadline (subscription required) from the Baltimore Orioles: closer Félix Bautista and outfielder Cedric Mullins. As the Orioles head towards a throw-away 2025 season, it wouldn’t be surprising if they were willing to part with some of their stars to prepare for the future.
With the Phillies in need of bullpen help, as well as a potential upgrade in the outfield with the Max Kepler experiment not working as planned, it makes sense to go after a stud reliever like Bautista and a solid offensive contributor in the outfield like Mullins.
After undergoing Tommy John surgery and missing the entire 2024 season, Bautista had been back in a big way in 2025 despite pitching for a struggling Orioles team. On the year, he has posted a stellar 2.60 ERA and 1.12 WHIP, with 16 saves and 38 strikeouts in just 27 2/3 innings over 28 relief appearances. As one of the top closers in the league, the 30-year-old right-hander would be the perfect solution to the Phillies’ closer situation after going through various options so far this year.
In the case of Mullins, he would provide Philadelphia with the perfect mix of power, hitting and speed in the outfield. As a former All-Star and Silver Slugger winner, the 30-year-old outfielder averages greater than 20 home runs and 60 RBIs per season over a full 162-game schedule while providing adequate defense in the field with a career .991 fielding percentage and 25 outfield assists over eight seasons in the majors. This year, despite hitting only .214, Mullins has already put up 11 doubles, 12 home runs, 35 RBIs and eight stolen bases in 64 games played with the Orioles.
Just for comparison, Kepler has only recorded 14 doubles, nine home runs, 27 RBIs and zero steals while hitting a measly .209 in 72 games. Not to mention, the duo of Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas have combined for just three home runs and 32 RBIs this season as well, so Philadelphia definitely needs an offensive boost in their outfield.
Whether the Orioles are willing to trade away two team stars with one still under control for just a promising top pitching prospect in Abel, who has just set his footing in the majors, is up for debate. After all, Abel had just gotten past a struggling 2024 campaign with his fresh, strong start to this season. But if the Phillies are willing to add in a supplementary piece to the package, it might just be enough to get it done. As tough as it may be to lose a potential future front end starter in the process, with Philadelphia in prime position to contend for the World Series this year, it may be a gamble that they just have to take.