5 Phillies trade proposals for superstars who could move at the Winter Meetings

The Winter Meetings take place from Dec. 3-6 in Nashville, Tennessee, where many signings and trades occur. It's not anticipated that the Philadelphia Phillies will be as active at the Winter Meetings as some teams following the re-signing of Aaron Nola earlier in November.

Over the years, the Phillies' front office has made some significant moves at the Winter Meetings. Think back to the Pete Rose signing in 1978 or the 1974 Tug McGraw trade with the New York Mets. Current ace Zack Wheeler was signed away from the Mets during the Winter Meetings in 2019. Most recently, during the 2022 Winter Meetings, Philadelphia agreed to an 11-year, $300 million contract with free agent shortstop Trea Turner.

The Phillies are anticipated to make only minor moves for the remainder of the offseason and are unlikely to trade for any of these players if Dombrowski's comments during the Nola re-signing are any indication.

However, could Philadelphia surprise by making a blockbuster trade and make an impact at the Winter Meetings for a second consecutive year? Let's take a look at who the Phillies would need to trade to acquire five players who have been involved in trade rumors leading up to the Winter Meetings.

While the prospect of acquiring any of these five players is enticing for Philadelphia's roster presently, their president of baseball operations should strongly consider how much of the organization's top prospect pool it is willing to trade away.

FIRST: A star outfielder recently rumored to be on the trade block.

Randy Arozarena, OF, Tampa Bay Rays

According to The Athletic's Matt Gelb, the Phillies could be looking to improve their outfield as Johan Rojas may start next season back in Philadelphia's minor league system. Nick Castellanos's name was in trade rumors a few weeks ago following the inconsistency he showed during the playoffs. However, the organization debunked these rumors as they view him as a key contributor for them during the next few seasons.

The Tampa Bay Rays are willing to listen to trade offers for star outfielder Randy Arozarena. One of GQ's 2023 Men of the Year had a solid season for Tampa Bay in some offensive categories. He set new career highs in runs (95), home runs (23), and walks (80) during 2023. His 83 RBI were six fewer than the 89 he totaled in 2022 and his 22 stolen bases were 10 fewer than his career-high of 32.

He has three full seasons in the majors following his breakout campaign during the 2020 postseason. During the playoffs in that COVID-19 pandemic-abbreviated season, Arozarena had 14 RBI in 20 contests. He had a slash line of .377/.442/.831 and his 10 home runs remain the most by a player in a single postseason.

What would the Rays be looking for in exchange for the 28-year-old outfielder? A lot. He still has three years of team control before he becomes a free agent following the 2026 season. Philadelphia's championship window is now and the organization wants to win a championship over that span. The charismatic Arozarena would presumably play a huge part on a Phillies World Series-winning squad, considering his success during the postseason for Tampa Bay.

The Rays would be interested in some of the Phillies' minor-league pitchers, such as Mick Abel. Philadelphia's second-ranked prospect had a 4.14 ERA in 22 starts at Double-A for the Reading Fightin Phils. He finished the season at Triple-A with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

Outfielder Justin Crawford played 69 games at Single-A with the Clearwater Threshers. He had a slash line of .344/.399/.478 before his promotion to the High-A Jersey Shore BlueClaws. The 19-year-old's success continued as he had a .288/.366/.425 line in 18 contests. He could earn another promotion to Double-A during the 2024 season. He would garner interest from the Rays as well.

Rays outfielder Manuel Margot may also be in another uniform by the start of next season, as he has been in trade rumors. Would Tampa Bay be interested in acquiring Johan Rojas? Rojas impressed for the Phillies defensively once he made his Major League debut last season in the middle of July.

However, Rojas struggled mightily at the plate during the postseason with a slash line of .093/.114/.163. The 23-year-old is not guaranteed to begin 2024 with the Phillies and may start with the IronPigs to improve his offense.

Brandon Marsh is another young outfielder who has displayed his talent with Philadelphia since he was acquired from the Los Angeles Angels at the 2022 Trade Deadline. He is another good defensive player who also displayed his offensive talent with a slash line of .277/.372/.458 last season. In 38 at-bats during the 2023 playoffs, he had a .342/.405/.526 line. The availability of the young, energetic outfielder or Rojas would be brought up in return for a player of Arozarena's caliber.

A Phillies trade for Randy Arozarena could look like this:

Phillies receive: OF Randy Arozarena

Rays receive: OF Brandon Marsh OR Johan Rojas, OF Justin Crawford, RHP Mick Abel

NEXT: The top starting pitcher on the trade market.

Corbin Burnes, SP, Milwaukee Brewers

Corbin Burnes has been one of the premier starting pitchers in baseball over the last four years. Since the start of 2020, the 29-year-old has a 2.86 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP.

The Milwaukee Brewers ace has been among the best pitchers in accumulating strikeouts over the last four years, and only Zack Wheeler has more Wins Above Replacement than Burnes during the same period.

Burnes would represent a tremendous addition to the Phillies and give them a contender to be the top rotation in all of baseball next season headlined by Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and the 2021 National League Cy Young Award winner.

Milwaukee may be going through a retooling/rebuild phase following an early-round playoff exit to the Arizona Diamondbacks this year. Former manager Craig Counsell departed the organization in favor of the division rival Chicago Cubs. Burnes, who has a year left before free agency, may be traded at some point this winter or at the 2024 Trade Deadline if the Brewers are not a contender for the playoffs next season.

If Burnes is traded this offseason, the Brewers would want a lot for him. Unlike with a player such as Arozarena, the pitcher's lack of club control in his current contract (a year left before free agency) may impact how much Milwaukee receives in return, especially if he's traded at next season's deadline.

However, if the Phillies are interested in acquiring the starter this offseason, it would be more beneficial if they could sign him to a multi-year deal following a trade since they would be giving up considerable assets for him. The Brewers don't need more outfielders currently at the major league level and may be interested in acquiring young pitchers.

Cristopher Sánchez continued to show decent ability as a mid or bottom-of-the-rotation pitcher last year for the Phillies. He had a low 1.05 WHIP this year, along with 96 strikeouts in 99 1/3 innings. He had a 3.44 ERA and hitters combined for a .235 average against the left-hander.

Orion Kerkering earned quite the promotion to the Phillies toward the end of the regular season. He began last year with Philadelphia's Single-A affiliate, the Clearwater Threshers. He quickly worked his way up through the club's minor league system, debuting in the Majors on Sept. 24.

Third baseman Aidan Miller, Philadelphia's No. 4 prospect, excelled with the Florida Complex League Phillies, the organization's Rookie-level affiliate. He finished with a .414/.528/.483 slash line at this level and ended the season with the High-A Clearwater Threshers, where he had a .216/.341/.297 line.

A Phillies trade for Corbin Burnes could look like this:

Phillies receive: RHP Corbin Burnes

Brewers receive: LHP Cristopher Sánchez, RHP Orion Kerkering, RHP Mick Abel, 3B Aidan Miller

Philadelphia would be wise to hold off and see if they can acquire the right-hander at next year's Trade Deadline should he become available. The cost may be less than trading for him this offseason, weakening their farm system, which is not among the strongest to begin with. They could always decide to try and sign him if he reaches free agency next winter.

NEXT: A dark horse trade option from the Mariners.

Dylan Cease, SP, Chicago White Sox

Dylan Cease has been mentioned frequently in trade rumors leading up to the Winter Meetings. The Chicago White Sox will likely deal him this offseason; it's just a question of where at this point. The right-hander has finished among the top starters in strikeouts since 2021. He finished as the American League runner-up for the Cy Young Award following the 2022 season.

He regressed a bit this year as he finished with a 4.58 ERA a season after he had a 2.20 ERA. Cease's WHIP rose from 1.11 in 2022 to 1.42 in 2023. Hitters had a .250 average against him this season. This was significantly higher compared with the .190 average batters had against him two years ago or in 2021 when offenses averaged .223 versus the 27-year-old.

Considering the bright spots he has shown over the last three years and that starting pitching is always a need for clubs during the regular season, the White Sox want a decent return in a trade package for Cease. He's under team control until the end of 2025.

Griff McGarry is the Phillies' No. 5 prospect and had success with the Reading Fightin Phils at Double-A this year. He had a 3.13 ERA and 54 2/3 innings pitched in 13 starts. However, he struggled in three starts with the IronPigs. He'll need much more time at the Triple-A level before advancing to the Majors.

Cease would be an excellent third or fourth-starter in the Phillies' rotation. The White Sox are looking for some young prospects and young major league players in exchange for the 27-year-old.

A Phillies trade for Dylan Cease could look like this:

Phillies receive: RHP Dylan Cease

White Sox receive: LHP Cristopher Sánchez, RHP Mick Abel, RHP Griff McGarry, OF Justin Crawford

NEXT: One of the best hitters in baseball who already has a connection to the Phillies.

Juan Soto, OF, San Diego Padres

Along with free agent Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto represents one of the top additions clubs can make this offseason. Following a difficult 2022 season that saw him the subject of trade speculation before he was traded from the Washington Nationals to the San Diego Padres, the outfielder rebounded in 2023, putting up typical expected numbers. He had a .275/.410/.519 slash line, tied his career-high in doubles (32) and set a new career-high with 35 home runs.

Soto continued to exemplify why he is one of the league's best at getting on base, as he led the league with 132 walks. He tied Ozzie Albies for fourth with 109 RBI and his .929 OPS was eighth among hitters.

The Padres outfielder is a rare talent, and he's only 25 years old. If a club trades for him as expected this winter, they should strongly consider offering him a multi-year contract to prevent him from reaching free agency next offseason.

The Phillies don't have a huge need in the outfield, but Soto represents an elite talent that could help them win a championship. He would be a tremendous boost to Philadelphia's lineup, hitting after Trea Turner and either before or following Bryce Harper.

The four-time Silver Slugger Award winner previously played with Harper and Turner in Washington in 2018. Soto and the Phillies shortstop were teammates during the Nationals' unforgettable postseason run that culminated in the franchise's first World Series championship during the 2019 season.

San Diego is looking for both major league-ready and minor league talent after they traded several prospects to acquire Soto in 2022. As with the previous trade proposals, the Phillies will need to trade a substantial amount to acquire the Dominican phenom, who may end up being only a one-year rental. Soto's agent is Scott Boras, and his clients typically become free agents to maximize their worth, as Bryce Harper did when Philadelphia signed him to a 13-year, $330 million contract in February 2019.

A Phillies trade for Juan Soto could look like this:

Phillies receive: OF Juan Soto

Padres receive: LHP Cristopher Sánchez, OF Johan Rojas, RHP Mick Abel, RHP Griff McGarry, 3B Aidan Miller

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