What has been the Philadelphia Phillies' biggest weak spot this season? It’s hard to come up with an area of weakness for the top team in baseball, but one spot that you could point at is outfield production.
Nick Castellanos is starting to heat up a bit at the plate, but he still carries a .215 batting average to this point in the season. Brandon Marsh has had an up-and-down season and currently is on the 10-day IL. Johan Rojas is still trying to figure things out at the plate, and the depth behind these three doesn’t necessarily jump out as something for opposing teams to worry too much about.
Why the Phillies need to figure out a trade for Luis Robert Jr. from the White Sox
The Phillies are expected to be major players in the outfield market leading up to the trade deadline at the end of July, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
According to Passan, one name that could be of interest to the Phillies is Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr.
Robert Jr. came into the league in the shortened 2020 season, finishing second in the AL Rookie of the Year voting while also earning a Gold Glove Award. He’s a player with excellent power and speed that any team would love to have in their lineup.
The main thing holding him back is his ability to stay healthy. The 26-year-old has missed a lot of time over the course of his five-year career, but when he’s on the field, he produces.
The one-time All-Star has 79 career home runs, 218 RBI and 47 stolen bases showcasing his power/speed combination. He also owns a career .276 batting average and .501 slugging percentage.
Adding Robert Jr. to the lineup and moving Rojas to the bench might be better for the Phillies' current center fielder and the team, giving manager Rob Thomson an elite defensive/speed option off the bench.
What would a potential trade for Luis Robert Jr. look like?
The price isn’t going to be cheap for Robert Jr. You have to pay a pretty penny for a young outfielder with elite potential who’s under team control through 2027.
The Phillies are rumored to be one of the top landing spots for the White Sox center fielder, and the club does have the resources to make a deal happen. The Phillies have a solid farm system that includes five Top 100 MLB Pipeline prospects.
You’d prefer not to part with some of the more major league-ready players like right-handed pitchers Andrew Painter (No. 1) or Mick Abel (No. 3), but one of them might have to go to swing a trade for Robert Jr. One of the four Phillies’ top prospects in Painter, Abel, infielder Aidan Miller (No. 2) or outfielder Justin Crawford (No. 4) will more than likely have to be included to match Chicago’s asking price.
Other prospects to look out for in a potential package could be right-handed pitcher Christian McGowan (No. 15) and middle infielder William Bergolla (No. 11). A package of Crawford, Abel and one of these two players could be enough to land Robert Jr. in Philadelphia.
The Phillies are legitimate World Series contenders, and Dave Dombrowski isn’t afraid to do what it takes to win. Adding a player like Robert Jr. makes this already dominant Phillies team that much better.