1 trade candidate from every NL East team the Phillies should consider

Lane Thomas, OF, Washington Nationals

Lane Thomas' name was in trade rumors around the 2023 trade deadline in August. In fact, the Phillies were a possible suitor for the 28-year-old in the summer. Could Philadelphia pursue the outfielder in a deal with the Washington Nationals this offseason?

Even though Thomas represents a player the Nationals could continue to build around, he was a candidate to be traded during the regular season. He had a .268/.315/.468 line in 157 contests that included career-highs in doubles (36), home runs (28), and RBI (86).

Buster Olney of ESPN tweeted that, according to a Phillies source, the club doesn't have any interest in trading away outfielder Nick Castellanos this offseason. The right fielder's name surfaced in rumors that the team could possibly move on from him following his inconsistent postseason.

Philadelphia centerfielder Johan Rojas will need to impress the club offensively in Spring Training to begin 2024 at the position. Brandon Marsh will start in either left or center field. Kyle Schwarber will transition to a designated hitter role and play in left field when needed. Cristian Pache will also be in the mix for playing time at left or center in a reserve role.

The Phillies don't appear to have many obvious openings in the outfield. However, with Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout's name surfacing in trade rumors, why couldn't Philadelphia consider Thomas as a more affordable alternative to the future Hall of Famer?

While the Angels' superstar outfielder is in a class of his own, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski would presumably need to part with more assets in a deal for Trout than Thomas. If Philadelphia considered acquiring the Nationals' budding star earlier in the regular season, the club should revisit those talks with Washington to see if they can acquire the outfielder this offseason.