The Philadelphia Phillies find themselves in first place in their division by the slimmest of margins after the first half of the 2025 MLB season. In order to build upon their half-game lead over the New York Mets in the National League East, they must aggressively patch their holes at the July 31 trade deadline.
It's painfully clear that this club needs a handful of effective late-inning relievers and an impactful outfield bat. Thankfully for the Phillies, their farm system is the deepest it's been in years, and they have an intriguing selection of prospects to deal from. One of the likeliest prospects to be traded is starting pitcher Mick Abel, whose recent start in Triple-A has only improved his trade stock.
Mick Abel's near-hitless start looks great for Phillies and his chances of being traded
Mick Abel turned some heads around the baseball world with his electric MLB debut in which he struck out nine batters over six scoreless innings and tied a franchise record. Abel struggled with command in his five ensuing major league starts, raising his ERA to 5.04 and getting demoted to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on July 4.
In his first start back with the IronPigs, Abel held a no-hitter for 5 2/3 innings and ultimately struck out four batters over six scoreless.
Mick Abel allowed just one hit across 6.0 scoreless innings in the @IronPigs win over Syracuse! pic.twitter.com/bFSetEBWk4
— Phillies Player Development (@PhilsPlayerDev) July 11, 2025
That performance earned the Phillies' former first-round pick International League Pitcher of the Week honors, and it appears that he couldn't have picked a better time to get his stuff back on track. One of the most encouraging things about Abel's quality start against the Syracuse Mets is that he allowed just one walk.
The last time we saw Abel in Philadelphia, he walked five batters and allowed five earned runs in just 1 2/3 innings pitched. Command has always been the biggest concern with Abel, who walked a very alarming 78 batters over 108 2/3 innings for Lehigh Valley in 2024. The ability to throw more strikes and generate softer contact earned Abel his first promotion and saw him sneak back into MLB Pipeline's Top 100 prospects list, giving the Phillies six total.
Any seller at this year's trade deadline would love to take a chance on an MLB-ready 23-year-old like Abel. The Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, and Pittsburgh Pirates all have relievers that the Phillies have reportedly been connected to. Deals for controllable closers like Cleveland's Emmanuel Clase and Minnesota's Jhoan Durán would demand a greater return and almost certainly include Abel.
Abel's future with the Phillies always seemed uncertain with four starters in their rotation under contract for 2026 and Andrew Painter waiting in the wings. It seems even more uncertain now after the Phillies' draft strategy of taking college pitchers. What seems certain, however, is that Abel will be traded for some reinforcements as the Phillies hope to finally win a World Series with this core.