Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Jim Duquette of MLB Network Radio that the Phillies have maxed out their payroll and that any rumors about the team acquiring an infielder are "B.S." David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News provides a transcript of the conversation and points out that Amaro said similar things before acquiring Roy Oswalt and Cliff Lee last year.
Amaro notes that the Phillies' payroll will be over $160MM and says no room for potential acquisitions exists. Chase Utley has an injured knee, prompting many – including MLBTR - to speculate on potential trades for the Phillies.
Valdez, Barfield, and Young are all playing very well. They are capable of taking some of the weight while Utley is out.
Hey Frank, Has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like Arthur Spooner?
You wouldnt believe how much I get that
Your name is frank_costanza and your picture is of Arthur Spooner…
I feel like you might be a fan of 90’s sitcoms.
LOL, His posts are even better if you read them as Arthur saying it.
What the hell did you trade Jay Buhner for?! He had 30 home runs, over 100 RBIs last year! He’s got a rocket for an arm… You don’t know what the hell you’re doing!”
Yeah Phillies dont need to make any acquisitions this year. This isn’t the first time the Phillies have had an injury.
No, we make acquisitions that make sense while maintaining a reasonable salary…
Yankees of the NL, they will trade for Young
As a Braves fan, I would love to see Young in a Phillies uniform.
Why? Young is still a good hitter…better than any other in-house backup the Phillies have.
Rube is full of
happiness? me too!
He always downplays things, but their payroll projects to be $20 mill more than last year. I dont think he is bluffing, the only way I could see them pulling a big deal is at the trade deadline if Utley is out for the year and things arent going well.
The Phillies won’t trade for Young because they are maxed out in payroll. They won’t trade for Young because he’s being paid $16 million for 3 more seasons, and the last thing the Phillies need is another declining player with a large contract.
basically the phillies won’t trade for him because he is wildly overpaid, for 3 more seasons, and not that good overall (especially since in the NL he will have to bat!)
But, if they offer any warm body, the Mets would be happy to ship them Castillo, eating the salary of course.
Is Castillo really THAT bad though? I’m hearing the Mets may release him soon. He had a terrible season last year, but proved he can still be at least somewhat productive with his 2009 season and even last year still had a league-average OBP.
Amaro you have lost the right to be believed. You said you had no money and then you signed Cliff Lee to 5 yrs 120 million……..It’s obvious you say it for strategic reasons, and then you swoop in and acquire a superstar.
Meh, payroll was stretched another $20 million recently. It’s pretty realistic that they are in fact maxed out, moreso than they were before the Oswalt and Lee deals. Hamels is set for a raise after this year and they have to worry about Rollins, assuming he doesn’t have another season like he did last year. He does that and he’s probably gone.
Plus, Oswalt has a $16 million option for 2012.
Strategically, what can be gained by it? I’m sure every GM in baseball is aware of Amaro and the way he conducts business. Saying their maxed out isn’t really going to make a difference.
Oh, and there aren’t any superstar infielders available via trade.
Why in the world would the Phillies sign Cliff Lee knowing it would put them in financial straights and not being able to fill other holes? You can have the best starting pitching in baseball but you can’t shortchange other areas of the team. Sooner or later you need quality major league proven depth.
Second base wasn’t a potentially gaping hole as it is now. At the time of the Lee signing, Utley’s state was totally unknown.
It’s still not a gaping hole as of yet. Nobody knows how much time Utley will miss or how effective he’ll be if he can play through it.
Hindsight 20/20
Hard to feel sorry for the Phillies though I guess it means they are going to lose a lot of games 1-0 this season.
Reuben sits at his desk, feet up, filing his nalis, phone hanging from one ear…
RUBE: Ed, I’m telling ya, You don’t want it. You want the WALT WHITMAN. It’s bigger, it’s stronger, it’ll hold up longer, and it’s gonna be cheaper…(Pause)…I’d be inclined to give it to you for Pence straight up, and believe me that’s a deal, buddy..
Secretary: Mr. Amaro, John Daniels is on line 2..
RUBE: Think about it Ed, it’s a 24 hour offer. gotta go..(Switches)..Jon, before you even start, I’m tapped, We’re not interested, it’s all B.S. rumors, Utleys never felt better, and Blanton is the best fifth starter in the game.
JD: Reuben, I talked to Nolan. We’ll give you 20 million and Michael for Joe straight up. Michaels on board.
RUBE: JD, wish I could but I’m tapped, baby. no room, can’t do it…
JD: Fine. We’ll take Kendrick too…
RUBE: Let me call Dave.
JD: ok.
Boy are you living in fantasyland!!!
I hate you.
But I salute you today, thanks for that.
I still can’t think of the Walt Whitman bridge without thinking of Hard Hittin’ Mark Whiten.
well, lee did take less money and years than what was expected to be offered and actually was offered. it’s not like rube was saying the phillies had NO money, just couldn’t offer what other teams were. with oswalt, rube pulled off a ridiculous deal and got the astros to pay a lot of the salary. he’s made some great deals so he might pull it off again but i think the well is pretty much empty.
The Phillies have money, but they dont want to get hit with the luxury tax. They were only able to sign Cliff Lee after Amaro put together a presentation stating why they needed him, and how he could make the deal work. The Phillies management have said that they will only extend payroll for big situations, like the possibility of signing Lee, which became a reality.
My heart goes out to Phillies fans. Rough life, being maxed out on payroll this year. And we expected such great things from them…
This just in.. Phills trade for MY
Come on, you know the Phils can send Blanton and Polanco to off-set the salaries. Longoria will punch the Rays owner in the face if he doesn’t do the deal. Haven’t you heard?
What’s a Super 2…. I mean of course I know what a Super 2 is!
Not this again!
Why do you think that’s happening?
Nah, forget it. I’m sure you’re just trolling at this point.
I’m sorry, I won’t settle for anything less than Zimmerman or Longo. Too bad David Montgomery is too cheap to get it done!
Why on earth would the Mets trade their franchise player to their hated division rivals? Do you know what that would do to an already pissed off fanbase?
I haven’t read any of the other posts where he suggested this, so I’m sure this has been said already, but man, what don’t you get about that?
not yet he isnt. Part of making that deal work was deferring a lot of the money so that they could fit him on the books this year. This year he is only making about $8 mil, and then next year it jumps to $11 mill, and then is when it starts to go to $20 mil
Cliff Lee starts making $25 million a year starting in 2013. So no, he isn’t the highest paid pitcher in baseball right now.
In any case, I’ve seen you say this over and over as if you’re proud of the fact that he’s getting paid that much money, when I seriously doubt he’s going to be worth $25 million the last 2 or so years of that contract. You do realize that the Phillies could easily have this come back and bite them, right? They have dished out quite a few large contracts to players over 30, and while they’re positioned to win now and maybe a couple of years after that, it’s not looking good for the future with the Braves, Nationals, and Marlins improving. Hell, by that time the Mets may even be competitive, a lot of money’s coming off the books.
And because of the Lee signing, they lack depth at multiple positions. And with Utley’s status up in the air, we could see the effects of that as early as this season. The Marlins, Nationals, and particularly the Braves all improved this season.
But the Phillies are guaranteed to win 100 games though, right?
You see, I have a ton of respect for that club. I really do, and it bothers me when bandwagoneers spout off arrogant nonsense on a routine basis because it creates this misconception that all Phillies fans are the same.
It is likely Cliff Lee will never be the highest paid pitcher in any year. RAJ has said that he called Doc before the Lee deal to explain why they were breaking the 3 year limit for Lee. I’ll call my mother a donkey before I believe Doc wasn’t guaranteed during that phone call at least a 1 year $25M extension for 2013.
actually i just checked my facts (and it wont let me edit my post for some reason). he is making $11 this year, and then it goes to $20 next year
Hamels would be involved and for the simple fact that its within the divsion, you’d need Dominic Brown. That’s why it won’t happen. The Phillies aren’t willing to give that much.
maybe if you stopped acting like a complete dbag you wouldn’t have so many people badmouthing you all over the boards..
Yet oddly enough, you’re the first one to complain to the mods that people are attacking you. go figure.
Don’t let him waist your time with him. I let him take up 2 hours of my life yesterday and do not ever want to hear from him again. Don’t waist your time. It’s too valuable.