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

The Philadelphia Phillies’ division rivals have players Philadelphia could see about adding to its roster this offseason. The club's biggest needs include starting pitching, adding to their bullpen, and finding another outfielder.

It appears unlikely the Phillies would make any additions to its roster in a trade with any of its NL East competitors. However, Philadelphia should explore to see if it's possible; each club has players that could fulfill a roster need for the Phils.

Here is one trade candidate from every NL East team the Phillies should consider this offseason.

Steven Okert, RP, Miami Marlins

The Miami Marlins have a few left-handed relief pitchers that teams could inquire about. Steven Okert has six years of experience in the major leagues and has spent the last three with Miami.

Philadelphia is not expected to retain Craig Kimbrel or Michael Lorenzen and may acquire a reliever this winter to compete for a role in Spring Training. Okert doesn't have much success in the role of a closer, but the Phillies may turn to José Alvarado to fill that role in 2024.

Okert could compete for a relief role in Philadelphia's bullpen with other relievers such as Jeff Hoffman, Matt Strahm, Seranthony Domínguez, and Orion Kerkering. The Marlins pitcher had a .229 average against, a 1.26 WHIP, along with career highs in innings pitched (58 2/3), strikeouts (73), and games (64).

José Butto, SP, New York Mets

José Butto received steady work in the New York Mets' starting rotation at the end of the 2023 regular season. He reduced his earned run average from 4.30 at the start of September to 3.64 following his October 1 start against the Phillies.

The 25-year-old right-hander allowed two earned runs or fewer in four of his five starts and surrendered three or fewer walks in all of his starts during the final month of the regular season. He could be either a back-end starting pitcher in a rotation or compete for a bullpen spot.

Philadelphia could use Butto in a spot at the back of their rotation or as a long reliever in the bullpen. Considering the Mets are a franchise in transition, it's still to be determined if Butto is in their long-term plans. Given his decent season, he could be worth considering if the Phillies can acquire him in a deal to add to the roster this offseason.

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.